Breaking pizza stones?

Folks,

I've just had the *third* pizza break in less than a year. What gives? Are there any stones that are rugged? should I pour one from re-inforced concrete??

So I've bought the Lodge pizza pan and will give it a try. I'll report back anon.

Geo

Mr. McGuire: I just want to say one word to you. Just one word.
Benjamin: Yes, sir.
Mr. McGuire: Are you listening?
Benjamin: Yes, I am.
Mr. McGuire: Steel.
Benjamin: Exactly how do you mean?

What kind of oven? What kind of pizza? When baking NY and American-style pizzas in my kitchen oven, I use 3/8" plate of steel (on top of a 3/4" fibrament stone). Awesome combination.

Bill,

As always, you're on top of it, pizza-wise ( and lots of *other* wises, as well : ).

LG electric oven, set to 525°F. In my buddy Jean's Québec bread oven, we don't need no stinkin' stone. The whole thing is the stone.

So I'm now going to use the Lodge pizza pan.

Tell me about the "fibrament stone, Bill.

Geo

http://bakingstone.com/

Another cast iron alternative is the Camp Chef pizza pan. http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/1/1/585 ... a-pan.html Not the same quality as Lodge but adequate IMO. I used mine just hours ago to bring in the second 10 lb batch of leg quarters from the grill. (48¢/lb at Valli FTW )


Totally unrelated to the subject at hand, but I like to brag. (OK, you may be spared the picture because the forum S/W tells me "It was not possible to determine the dimensions of the image.")

I've also used firebrick in my Weber lkettle: http://www.menards.com/main/heating-coo ... c-6881.htm. It takes a while to heat up but does the job well. I just lay them next to each other and the joints seem not to matter. For that matter, if I had a pizza stone and it broke, I would just use it that way, pushing the parts together (unless there were too many parts.)

Another alternative I've heard about but not tried is red quarry tiles.

Yeah, there's sufficient information here to tell you how thrifty I am.

edit:fixing image link

HankB - I tried to post a photo of my steel/stone and got the same error.

Geo wrote:Bill,

Tell me about the "fibrament stone, Bill.

Geo

Geo,

Fibrament (and other baking stones) are good for storing heat. Most pizza styles benefit from a blast of heat to create a light crust, the faster the better so that the crumb has a chance to expand before the crust sets up. Stones don't do that as well as more conductive materials such as steel. Cast iron pans (I have the Lodge) lack the thermal mass to store as much heat as I need for my dough, which tends to have a high moisture content. The combination of the fibrament stone and the steel plate has the ideal thermal mass and conductivity - especially if baking multiple pizzas.

However, this creates a new problem in which the crust can be cooked before the toppings are done. Check out my little video on solving this problem:



Hard to see, but the pizza in this video is being baked on the stone/steel. Watch at HD if you can

Best,
Bill

I have been using a cast iron pizza pan for 2 years with great results.

Hi,

You can purchase a rectangle of A-36 steel from a metal shop. My 3/8" thick 14" X 16" steel cost just over $30. I used a grinder to smooth the edges. The surface was easily cleaned by immersing the steel in vinegar. I seasoned the steel with flaxseed oil.

Another option is the reversible Baking Steel. One side has a lip around the perimeter. This allows the steel to be used as a high temperature griddle which is wonderful for steaks.

Steel has much better thermal properties than cast iron.

tim

I bought a Hearth Kit ceramic insert for my oven (sort of like a very thick pizza stone with two side walls the rise up) and have had a lot of success baking pizza with it. My oven gets up to 525-550 F, measuring with an infrared thermometer at the stone and never any indication of cracking.

I bought unglazed quarry tiles at Menards. $10 for a box of 28 - 6" x 6" tiles.

Lay them on the rack in your oven, use however many it takes. I usually go 4x3 (24" wide 18" deep).

I also put a layer on the rack above so that it radiates heat downward also. Pre-heat for 30 or so minutes to desired temp and it works great.

at $10 a box, breakage is not really a concern.