Baking Steel for Pizza

[mise_en_place]

I got the Baking Steel as a gift and I love it (and I am a pizza snob). Great for bread, too.

The lift you get on the dough is incredible.

 

[Chifunda]

Quick question on wooden peels - do you treat them with oil or board butter? I assume that would lower the risk of them splitting? I added the JK Adams one to my order since I have not made it to the local restaurant supply place within the past year to pick one up. What ever did we do before Amazon?

Stefan

Stefan,

I've had the JK Adams peel from Amazon for well over a year now and have found it to be excellent. I'm especially fond of the way the leading edge is tapered so that it slips easily under a pie when turning or removing it from the oven.

When I first received mine I gave it a good coat of mineral oil and have not felt the need to do so again. I never wet it, simply brush it off and hang it from a hook in the pantry.

 

[apicius9]

Thanks for the infos, gents, looks like I should be all set once the steel and peel come in. The pizza bible is on my Amazon wish list. Looking forward to playing with this, pizza, baguette, and other bread variations are on my 2015-resolutions list.

Stefan

 

[99Limited]

... I heat the oven for 30 minutes at 550. The plate will usually be between 650 to 630 degrees.

How does your plate get 100° hotter than the oven supplying only 550° heat. :scratchhead:

I guess ovens settle into a +/- target heat level, but I would think it would over heat by 80° to 100°.

 

[Mucho Bocho]

99, the steel climbs way above the actual temp of the oven. If you IR gun a well heated pan, you'll see the temperature to be considerably higher that the temp of the oven. I'm conjecting but suspect that the increase in pan surface temperature delta is exponentially related to oven temp.

 

[apicius9]

So, if I have a baking steel and put something like a cast iron pan on top of it, will the pan heat up higher than it would without the steel? Just wondering whether this would be a way to do steaks on a very hot surface right under the broiler. Once the reversible steel comes out, this will be a moot point...

Stefan

 

[99Limited]

I don't eat pizza very often maybe twice a year. I could see sticking one of these steels in the oven to moderate the temperature swings. Maybe make your oven a little bit more energy efficient too. I used to do that with a pizza stone until it got lost two moves ago.

 

[apicius9]

First one on the steel. Many mistakes were made, but it tasted great and was noticeably faster and crisper than before. I had a look at the pizzamaking.com forum - these guys are all obsessed and crazy about ridiculous details. It's as if we here would talk about steel characteristics and blade geometry. Oh, wait.... 😁 Anyway, much to learn and Inlook forward to a tasty journey.

Stefan

 

[Mucho Bocho]

Looks great Stefan.

 

[daveb]

I would eat that. Smiley.

 

[CoqaVin]

Stefan RUSTIC!, this one place I worked where they made traditional Neopolitan pizzas, if you made one too round he HATED it

 

[Bill13]

What are the toppings ( besides the schrooms)?

 

[apicius9]

Thanks guys. Ham and mushrooms, tomato sauce and mozzarella on this one. I agree with the rustic look, don't have the ambition to get it perfectly round, but definitely need more practice. This one I eventually rolled out because I got impatient - it was late and I had skipped lunch... And the dough was a bit off also. Will try again with a little more preparation this weekend.

Stefan

 

[Chifunda]

Stefan,

Looks like you're well on your way to pizza nirvana. Now all it takes is practice, practice, practice. When I was first bitten by the bug, we ate pizza twice a day for weeks.:happymug:

For what it's worth, here's my standard dough recipe For NY style pizza. Mixing directions are based on use of a Bosch Compact mixer. And do try to avoid rolling out your dough...it wastes all those lovely gas bubbles the yeast has been working so hard to create. If your dough is fighting you, cover it with a towel and let it rest.

12 1/2" Lehmann New York Style Dough
Pizza
source Lehmann Calculator
INGREDIENTS

211 grams bread flour (100%)
133 grams water (63%)
¼ tsp IDY (.3%)
3/4 tsp sea salt (2%)
1 tsp olive oil (1.5%)
3/4 tsp sugar (1.75%)
DIRECTIONS

1) Add water, salt, and sugar to the mixing bowl and stir until solids are dissolved. Add olive oil.

2) Measure flour into a separate bowl, add yeast and stir until combined.

3) Add flour/yeast mixture to the liquid ingredients and mix on speed two until combined.

4) Allow dough to rest for 5 minutes.

5) Using dough hook, mix on speed 1 for 6 minutes.

6 ) Form into a tight ball, oil and place into a bowl which has been sprayed with Pam. Cover and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, preferably 48. Allow to come to room temp. (~1 1/2 hours) before stretching.

Enjoy the journey!

 

[boomchakabowwow]

So, if I have a baking steel and put something like a cast iron pan on top of it, will the pan heat up higher than it would without the steel? Just wondering whether this would be a way to do steaks on a very hot surface right under the broiler. Once the reversible steel comes out, this will be a moot point...

Stefan

i think the steel, being way denser than air is hotter, as with all the metal bits inside the oven. the air temp, with air being less dense than the steel is only 500..it's why you can stick you hand inside a hot oven, but if you touched that pan..ssssss!

i could be wrong, my brain is already in "friday" mode.

 

[ImpossibleGermany]

I've got the ME edition - I think it can make some pretty darn good pizza (and pita bread and things like that), in my oven that probably peaks out at about 460f (without any tweaking, like loading the bottom with extra pans and stuff).

This was from my first attempt at using it:

http://thelondiniumproject.com/2014/09/13/una-pizza-napolitana-a-londra/

 

[Talim]

i think the steel, being way denser than air is hotter, as with all the metal bits inside the oven. the air temp, with air being less dense than the steel is only 500..it's why you can stick you hand inside a hot oven, but if you touched that pan..ssssss!

i could be wrong, my brain is already in "friday" mode.

Actually, if it's a closed system and given enough time, then everything inside would be at the same temperature including the air. If all you did was put the cast iron in the same system then eventually it too will be at the same temp as everything else in the oven.

 

[mark76]

Is there anyone from Europe here reading this? I wonder where in Europe I could get such a baking steel.

 

[Chifunda]

Crappy iPad2 photo, but a recent pie with kalamata olives, sweet onions, and fresh basil over mozzarella and Asiago cheese. Sauce is 6 in 1 ground tomatoes straight from the can. Baked on 3/8" Modernist Cuisine steel at 550* for about 4 1/2 minutes.

And no, they don't all come out this round.

http://[URL=http://s1153.photobucket.com/user/Chifunda/media/imagejpg1.jpg.html] [/URL]

 

[Mucho Bocho]

Ok You've inspired me to get my steel out. I don't think I've used it in a year. I've got Chifundas dough rising in the refrigerator for tomorrow's lunch. Portuguese Pizza pics to follow

 

[Mucho Bocho]

Ok We just finished making and eating them. I made two batches of Chifunda's dough. Let it sit 24hrs, then on the counter for 1.5hrs before touching it. I did not realize that this dough could not be rolled out with the hands. The Neapolitan pizza I'm used to making get stretched out by hand, ya know tossing them about and such. As soon as I tried stretching out the crust I had formed, the dough just cracked in half. So, I rolled out the second batch. It came out ok, but I like my crust cracker thin and this was more doughy than that. Thanks for inspiring me to break out the steel again.

 

[Mucho Bocho]

 

[Chifunda]

I did not realize that this dough could not be rolled out with the hands. The Neapolitan pizza I'm used to making get stretched out by hand, ya know tossing them about and such. As soon as I tried stretching out the crust I had formed, the dough just cracked in half. .

Huh? That's a mystery to me. I stretch that dough on the counter top, stretch it with my fists and occasionally toss it and have never had a problem like that. In fact I made a pie last night and the dough stretched like a dream :scratchhead:

I checked the recipe I posted against my notes and it's accurate, so I'm at a loss as to what happened. When you finished kneading the dough, did it feel like fairly soft bread dough? Should be slightly tacky, but not sticky. Was the gluten fully developed? Maybe try the windowpane test?

I've refrigerated my dough from one to three days and have found two days to be the sweet spot for me but I don't really think that's the problem. Be curious to hear how it goes if you try it again. Glad you got back in the game.

 

[Chifunda]

MB

Here's a margarita made with my recipe and as you can see, it's definitely not been rolled out. My apologies for the lousy images. Now have an air2 and the camera is definitely better.

http://[URL=http://s1153.photobucket.com/user/Chifunda/media/imagejpg1-1.jpg.html] [/URL]

 

[Zwiefel]

You guys are making me hungry for pizza and I have no idea where to get a truly good one in the metroplex.

 

[sudsy9977]

I couldn't find nothing online about this new reversible griddle/baking steel...anybody know when it's coming out...ryan

 

[99Limited]

View attachment 25964

Now that's what I consider a PIZZA. :hungry:

 

[apicius9]

I couldn't find nothing online about this new reversible griddle/baking steel...anybody know when it's coming out...ryan

They told me in an email 'first quarter of this year'.

Stefan

 

[foodchem70]

sounds great, ths a lot.

 

[menzaremba]

I had a steel plasma cut to fit in my oven. Pre-heat for an hour on broil, use Jim Lahey's dough (minus a little salt). Results are excellent. Definitely going to borrow some ideas from this thread. Thanks!