Aiming to bake pizza like the Italian original, you don’t have a stone oven at home. That’s when a pizza stone and our tips on how to make a pizza stone can come to the rescue.
Homemade pizza with a crispy base and tasty toppings is a real culinary delight. This is exactly where pizza stones can help. With the pizza stone, however, not only crispy-crispy pizza can be prepared, but also bread and rolls will also become loose and crispy on the stone.
With such a stone, the homemade pizza should come close to the original from the Italian. In this article, you will find the answer to your question, about how to season a pizza stone.
What Exactly Is A Pizza Stone?
A pizza stone is a form with which it is convenient to bake a blank of dough. It turns out neat, and evenly baked when using a suitable oven mode. The stone has a porous surface, which helps with baking. Thanks to the use of stones, you will be able to avoid pizza sticking.
Only in a stone pizza oven on a stone and at a temperature of about 350-400°C you can cook pizza in the best way. Unfortunately, however, conventional household ovens create temperatures only up to 250°C, and the baking sheet is also not an optimal base, since it cannot absorb moisture from the pizza dough.
The result is a pizza that, although it has rather uneven edges at the sides, is mostly rennet or not yet fried to the inside. In addition, at a temperature of 250°C, instead of the usual 350-400°C, pizza will cook longer than in a stone oven. As a result, the filling dries out, and the taste qualities burn out. But you don’t need to put an expensive stone oven in the kitchen.
Namely, with the help of a pizza stone, you will turn an ordinary home oven into a stone oven.
How pizza stone works
Since the pizza stone is made of the same material as the original stone ovens, it can absorb sweat released from under the dough during baking. This allows the pizza dough to bake evenly. The result is a homogeneous puff pastry without a rennet middle. In addition, the heat of the hot oven is preserved in the pizza stone.
Direct heat contact means that your pizza will cook faster. Instead of the 15-20 minutes, you would have otherwise, you will need to cook a pizza in just 5-7 minutes. A short baking time will benefit the ingredients for the pizza filling because the taste qualities do not burn, and the filling remains juicy and does not dry out.
How much pizza stone costs
One pizza stone will cost you as much as if you ordered 2 medium-sized pizzas from an Italian. That is, already from the 3rd pizza you will save some money, as you will save on expensive restaurant prices and inflated prices for drinks at home.
And the beaming children’s faces are pre-programmed to stuff them with crazy ingredients, while adults can finally make pizza using only the favorite ingredients they have. With a pizza stone, making pizza becomes a real family event.
The cost may depend on the size of the pizza stone, its shape, material, and additional items included. Pizza stones are available in sizes from 13 to 17 inches, rectangular or round, stoneware or ceramic, and come with metal racks/handles.
Whatever you choose, you’ll get more than restaurant-quality pizza at home. What else?
What else tastes better on a pizza stone
Anyone who believes that pizza stones are designed exclusively so that they can be used is very mistaken. Most pizza stones can do so much more!
Whether it’s bread, rolls, baguettes, sweet slices, or Indian naan bread, any pastry benefits from cooking hot. A pizza stone can be used with any type of dough, both classic yeast, and yeast-free. More information about the types of dough can be found here.
Whether in the hot oven, on the grill, or over the fire in the home fireplace, pizza stones are versatile and are indispensable for any home cook and pizza lover. It even makes steaks and fish!
With a baking stone, we can turn your barbecue grill into an outdoor pizza oven. Cooked in the fresh air, the familiar dishes will become even more appetizing. Just look at Weber, what yummy things they make with pizza stone!
What pizza stones are made of
Pizza stones come in different materials. Everything is presented here, from ceramics to refractory and cordierite. It is worth taking another brief look at the properties of various materials.
Ceramics baking stones
Ceramic stones are very light and usually have a smooth surface. It looks very beautiful visually, but it also has some drawbacks. Lightweight means that the pizza stone cools down relatively quickly, and the smooth surface does not allow the pizza stone to absorb as much liquid as other types of pizza stones.
Cordierite, new pizza stone
The material from which dreams of pizza are born. At least for a few years. This is a porous stone, and thanks to this they perfectly absorb liquid. In addition, they are heavy and durable. Just a few years ago, cordierite pizza stones had a disadvantage.
That they were relatively expensive to buy. Today, one pizza stone costs as much as a visit to your favorite Italian restaurant.
Chamotte baking stones
Fireclay bricks were until recently the most popular pizza bricks because until then they had the best properties. Until cordierite stones replaced them. This is a heavy and porous stone. In addition, chamotte is available everywhere, and it can also be found in fireplace stoves.
The disadvantage of refractory bricks is their susceptibility to destruction since this material is very fragile.
Here is a video that shows the process of creating a pizza stone out of clay by hand. Most likely, the ancient and authentic pizza stones were just like this.
How To Season A Pizza Stones: Why It’s Important
Is Seasoning a Pizza Stone Necessary?
Of course, this is important, because only over time will the non-stick coating form on the stones, which will help you cook a delicious pizza and not let it burn.
Benefits of Seasoning Process
First, you get a non-stick coating. The seasoning process works with natural oil, that covers the seasoned pizza stone and prevents the product from burning or sticking with natural seasoning.
During the backing, the pizza will not stick to the stone. For us, this is the main one. Your pizza may smell delicious, but stick to the stone and ruin the whole evening. To prevent this from happening, we recommend seasoning a pizza stone. After seasoning the stone, you will not wash the burnt pieces but will enjoy the evening.
Then, due to natural seasoning, the pizza will have a pleasant aroma. Vegetable oil can be briefly infused with herbs and spices in advance.
Last, pizzas and pastries in general will have an awesome crust. The unglazed surface of a pizza stone has pores that take excess moisture from the dough. Many restaurants custom purchase special large pizza stones for professional ovens.
How To Season A Pizza Stone: Step-by-Step Guide
Step 1: Properly dry and clean the stone
Before using the pizza stone, you do not need to wash it thoroughly. Just wipe it with a damp cloth. Why is this necessary? You must protect yourself from household chemicals that can harm your stone. If you don’t clean it properly, it will get the taste of dishwashing detergent and will be toxic.
And most importantly, you should thoroughly wipe your unseasoned pizza stone dry using a clean cloth. This is required so that when you come into contact with natural season and oil during oil coating, you do not get an unpleasant sticky slurry. This can happen because the tiny pores of the stone are filled with water. Then you rub it with olive oil and swelling occurs.
If you let the pizza stone get too wet, the stone will not bake the pizza crust properly. We recommend you do not put your pizza stone in the oven to dry, as water trapped in the stone can cause cracks.
Step 2: Make a thin coating of oil
At this stage, we recommend using natural oil. Exactly rapeseed oil, vegetable oil. We do not recommend using too much oil. Use just a few drops on the porous surface of your pizza stone. Also, do not take for oil coating a strong smell and olive oil. Rapeseed oil, as well as linseed oil, is the best natural oil for cooking pizza in the oven.
After dripping oil, take a clean cloth, then distribute it smoothly over the surface of the pizza stone with a circular motion. Thanks to a small amount of oil, a thin protective layer is formed. Thanks to this, it formed a protective layer. Be careful not to use a wet cloth — this is a guarantee that you will not see spots of grease and film on your stone.
Step 3: Preheat your oven and pizza stone
Take a stone and put it in the oven. Only then turn on your oven at 300 °C. It should ignite, exactly together with the stone. Why do we recommend doing it this way? If you turn on the oven first and then put a stone, then cracks may appear on it, or it will break. Therefore, in no case do not neglect this important advice and step in the preparation.
Step 4: Baking the pizza stone
After about 30 minutes of heat, the pizza stone is ready to work and ready for baking. Using the included pizza spatula, you put the pizza directly on the hot pizza stone, and now you are ready to bake pizza in 5-7 minutes, depending on the thickness of the dough.
The special texture of the material means that the pizza stone absorbs the resulting sweaty water from the dough. At the same time, direct thermal contact, similar to a contact grill, ensures uniform baking of pizza anywhere from the bottom, almost the same as when using a contact grill.
The result is a pizza dough with a crispy crust, like an Italian. In addition, the filling does not dry out due to the very short baking time.
Step 5: Enjoy the baking pizza
Be careful, the surface is very hot — use oven gloves. The results speak for themselves: an airy and fluffy crust due to strong heating and a porous surface of the pizza stone, which draws moisture from the dough and makes it lush.
A well-browned, deliciously crispy, and flavorful, great pizza that can match the pizza in your favorite pizzeria. Be sure that this will be the better pizza of your life.
How to cool a pizza stone
If you want to finish the baking process, just let the baking stone cool down. Thanks to excellent heat preservation, it will stay warm for about 3-4 more hours. You can take it out and put it back when it cools completely, or just leave it in the oven until the next use.
If you are unpacking a new pizza stone, read the hints and tips on the package carefully. The manufacturer will indicate how long it will take for your stone to preheat and finish cooling, depending on the material.
Seasoning Your Pizza Stone Naturally
When you buy a new pizza stone, then most likely it will be pale in color and has no natural non-stick coating, to which nothing sticks and looks like a cast iron pan. But it is also practical as a cast-iron frying pan – unpretentious in care and does not require thorough washing. But how to get this coating if the stone itself is porous? It’s very simple.
What will you need for this?
You will need to buy a pizza stone at the store. It costs in the store in the range of 5 – 12 dollars. Then you will need some oil, as well as a paper towel or just a good kitchen towel. You need to preheat the oven to a temperature of 375 to 425 degrees.
Now grease the stone with oil, then send it to the already preheated oven for about 40 minutes. At first, it will be light brown, and then, each time it gets darker and darker until it turns almost black, and it gets better and better. If you do have to clean your stone a bit, don’t be too hard on it.
How To Season A Pizza Stone: FAQ
Many users often have the same question how to season a pizza stone? In our section, you will find answers to frequently asked questions.
What do you put on a pizza stone to keep pizza from sticking?
Pizza that sticks or flakes of the stone baking board may be the result of several factors: the dough is too wet. There is a hole in your text. If there is a hole in your text, the filling will fall into the oven and may cause the pizza to stick.
Do not use parchment paper on the season pizza stone. because most types of parchment do not withstand the effects of heat. This means that the oven temperature is 450-500°F (230-260°C) or higher, while parchment paper usually withstands a temperature of no more than 430°F (220°C). This means that the temperature in the oven should be no more than 220 ° C (450-500 ° F). Thus, the parchment paper will burn on the pizza stone.
Should the pizza stone be preheated?
To get a perfectly browned pizza crust, you need enough time to preheat the pizza stone. A hot season pizza stone is the key to making pizza with a well-browned crispy crust on the bottom.
Which oil should I use to flavor the pizza pits?
You can use any kind of oil, but not olive oil. The purpose of seasoning or greasing a well seasoned pizza stone is to prevent the pizza from sticking to the pizza stone. (Because it’s a quick way to ruin your fresh, delicious pizza.) The non-stick surface is also much easier to clean.
How to Clean Seasoned Pizza Stones?
Please note that during cleaning, the stone is treated only with water. Dish soap or other liquids can soak into the stone and then be transferred to the pizza the next time you use it. The seasoned stone should only be washed by hand. A large amount of water in the dishwasher and detergent can damage the seasoned pizza stone.
Conclusion on How To Season A Pizza Stone
In this article, you learned how to season a pizza stone. A pizza stone is a perfect alternative if you don’t have a pizza oven. Nevertheless, many people who buy them either use them incorrectly or end up ruining their stone by trying to flavor it or clean it incorrectly. This blog will clarify some things and answer some common Pizza Stone questions.
Just 5 simple steps and your seasoned pizza stone will serve you well for years. Wish you nothing but a delightfully crispy pizza crust!
