Pizza Stones

[Maureen]

I did a search on pizza stones in here and it gave me good advice but I have a couple questions. My pizza stone comes with a rack. It says " comes with rack for easy serve stright from oven" I don't get it. Do I put the rack in the oven with the stone? How would you put the stone back on the rack to serve...you can't touch it after being in a 500 oven? Even if you could move it to the rack, people could get burned toching it and it would still cook the pizza because it's on the stone? I don't get it. Are they saying I need 2 stones...one to cook on and one for a serving style?

[thecooktoo]

Probably a Pampered Chef Stone with a carry rack. No, you put the stone in the oven, bake on it, take it out and put it in the rack for service or carrying.

Jim

[Maureen]

How do you make a taco pizza when using a stone?
Do you bake the pizza dough than put re-fried beans/meats on it towards the end?
People say they make bread on theirs... won't the bottom get to crispy before the inside is done? They say they make calzones on it also...again, won't the bottom be to done before the inside and top? ( They meaning people that have use stones at home)
Thank you for your wisdom

[Gourmet_Mom]

RE: Bread and stones

The way I understand it is...the stone helps generate the heat required to "spring" the dough and give it the rise you need for a good bread. Having done it both with and without a stone...I can tell you, the stone makes a better bread.

Maybe the bakers will tell you the science of it, but from personal experience....any dough product, I will use a stone (and a pan of water).

[Maureen]

Thank you! Interesting! I will try making bread on it today.

[jeanmarie]

I use a pizza stone for baking bread pretty much all the time. I have found I get better results when I allow the stone to preheat in the oven for at least 30 minutes. It takes awhile for the stone to heat up to the oven temperature, so don't rush.

[Bubba Shlub]

The pizza stone also makes a crispier crust.

When cooking a pizza, turn the oven up as high as it will go, usually 500 for home ovens. Let the stone heat up for about an hour. Sprinkle some corn meal on a wooden pizza peel. Place your rolled pizza dough on it and cover with your toppings. Slide it from the peel onto the stone. This is what the corn meal is for. It makes it easier for the pizza to slide off. It will cook very quickly, maybe 10 minutes or so, depending on how thick or thin you make the crust. The bottom will not burn.

I have a conventional oven with the heat source at the top. I cook my pizzas on the middle rack. Any higher and the toppings will cook to fast.

Also, when topping your pizza, make sure you keep everything away from the edge. I've heard you don't want a lot of moisture dripping onto the stone. I think too much moisture may cause the stone to crack.

[thecooktoo]

I leave the stone in my oven all the time. Never take it out. Helps even out the temp in the oven.

Jim

[Bubba Shlub]

Same here.

[RodinBangkok]

In very simple terms the stone stores the heat energy, and yet also is full holes. This means that when you place a cold wet dough on a very hot and dry stone, the stone has enough stored heat not to drop too much in temperature and at the same time the steam that is generated by the heated moisture in the dough can escape thru the holes in the stone. The other reason for placing your finished product on a rack is to let further moisture escape, thus helping keep a crisp product. But eat it quick, as the moisture in the air will soon find its way back into this dry crisp crust, just looking for moisture, like a sponge.

[cheztom]

My home-use stone cracked about a year ago and I have missed it terribly. Just haven't gotten around to replacing it. It's on my "honey do" list and eileen complains bitterly every time she bakes bread, which is about every other day. My capacity for whining and complaining's pretty high, but now I've reached my limit. I'm thinking about getting a few 12" heat proof oven tiles at Tile Mart. Like Jim, I prefer to leave the stone in the oven at all times.

[Gourmet_Mom]

I'm glad to see that others leave theirs in the oven as well. I was a little anxious that this would hurt the stone. Thanks.

[RodinBangkok]

If you can find a source for soap stone, which is quite common, you can get a custom made stone to your ovens size. Terra cotta is another good source for stones. As I purchase stoneware as one of our products, I'm a bit more conservative about using common fired floor tiles for use in food ovens, as I'm not sure these floor products are produced with lead free materials. Please note this has nothing to do with China, cheap products, etc. But for a long time fired ceramic cookware has been lead free from all over the world, but I'm not sure floor tiles are. Having said that also not sure the lead levels in a couple floor tiles are any worse than the lead levels you'd get during normal life, such as standing on a street corner in any major city for a couple minutes.

[cheztom]

Good info Rod, thanks. I was thinking unglazed terra cotta, myself. Soapstone sounds good though. Probably a lot less brittle than TC.


Interesting...we go through all sorts of permutations here in the US regarding lead levels in house paint, but I've never heard of anyone giving tiles a second thought. Perhaps its due to the stable/durable nature of the tile product as opposed to paint. We just put our house up on the market and we had to fill out three seperate forms related to the peresence or absence of lead-free paint in our house.

[Bubba Shlub]

My stone is cracked too. On one side from one end to the other. It's in two pieces. I just keep it in the metal handled rack it came with. It fits in nicely and stays together. The stone still does its job.

I remember when it cracked. I was baking pepperoni rolls and I heard a loud snap behind me. I turned around and realized it came from the oven. I knew exactly what it was. I thought I lost the stone for good.