How to use a pizza stone

How to Use a Pizza Stone

Using a pizza baking stone is simple. Place the stone in directly on your oven rack at the lowest possible height.

To achieve the desired crispy crust both the oven and oven stone need to be as hot as possible. Most home ovens highest setting is 500°, however many ovens do not actually reach this temperature. Place the stone in oven before you begin preheating the oven.

The directions given by the baking stone manufacturers, and much of what I have read, recommend heating the stone for 15 to 30 minutes. I advise to heat the stone for an hour before baking to allow the stone to heat properly and providing a better chance for success.

How to use a pizza stone...Put the stone in the oven…crank the heat to maximum…and come back in an hour!

Warning !!! Do not place stone into a hot oven !!

To prevent cracking your pizza stone it is important that you allow it to heat up and cool down gradually. Thermal shock occurs when the stone is exposed to sudden changes in temperature, such as placing it into a hot oven or immediately removing exposing to cool temperatures.

The way to avoid this is to place the stone in a cold oven and allow to heat gradually, and to allow the stone to cool along with your oven.

During the winter months it is common for us to “permanently’ leave our stone in the oven. We seem to do more baking during the winter months and leaving the stone in the oven is convenient. The holidays is also a time when we bake more than usual…so our oven stone gets lots of use during this time of year.

Warning !!! Do not place the pizza directly on the stone !!

Doing so will cause the pizza to stick and cause a mess in the process. Your local pizzeria uses flour or cornmeal to prevent sticking, we discuss this approach in our section on Pizza Peels, and we also discuss the other option of using screens in our Pizza Pans section.

The Secret to Crispy Crust

Now you know how to achieve the perfect crispy crust, and why the pizzas you eat at your local pizza shop taste different than those you are used to making at home.

High oven temperatures and a Pizza Stone are the secret! Baking stones are part of our Basic Equipment that we recommend for all aspiring home pizza chefs. Invest in a quality stone and it is an investment that will last for years and bring delight to your friends and family.

Your oven stone can also be used for a variety of other purposes like baking bread, cookies, biscuits, and pastries…have fun. Follow these instructions on how to use a pizza stone and you will be cooking like a pro in no time.

Looking for a high quality pizza stone? Take a look at these Pizza Stones .

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