Outdoor Pizza Ovens

GARDEN · GLOBAL

Outdoor Pizza Ovens

Fuel types, temperature and technique, safety and where to put one

An outdoor oven cooks a pizza in ninety seconds because it runs three or four times hotter than a domestic oven, which changes everything about how you use it.

Fuel types

Wood gives flavour and demands attention, since you are managing a fire while cooking. Gas reaches temperature in fifteen minutes and holds it, which suits anyone cooking for a group.

Pellet ovens sit between. Multi-fuel models take a burner as an accessory, which is worth checking before buying.

Temperature

A Neapolitan-style pizza wants a floor around 400 to 450 degrees. Use an infrared thermometer on the stone rather than guessing, and let the oven soak for long enough that the stone is hot rather than just the air.

Turn the pizza every twenty to thirty seconds, since the side facing the flame cooks far faster.

Dough and preparation

Have everything ready before lighting, since there is no time once a pizza is in. Use semolina rather than flour on the peel, build the pizza on the peel rather than transferring it, and keep toppings light.

Safety

Site it on a stable non-combustible surface, well away from fences, buildings and overhanging branches, and never use one indoors, in a garage or under a gazebo — any fuel-burning appliance produces carbon monoxide.

The outside gets extremely hot. Keep children and pets well away, use long tools and heatproof gloves, and let it cool fully before moving or covering it.

Cooking other things

An outdoor oven roasts vegetables, bakes bread and cooks meat and fish extremely well once the fierce initial heat has fallen. Cooking pizza first and dinner afterwards uses the same fire.

A cast iron pan handles anything that would otherwise stick to the stone.

Buying

Check the internal dimensions against the pizza size you want, the weight if it needs moving, and whether a stand and a cover are included.

Wood and fuel

Kiln-dried hardwood below twenty percent moisture, in small pieces sized for the oven. Wet wood smokes, gives less heat and tars the flue, and softwood burns too fast.

Never use treated timber, painted wood, pallets or lighter fluid, since all of them taint food and release harmful fumes.

Practice

The first few pizzas will be imperfect, which is normal at these temperatures. Cook a plain base first to learn the turning rhythm before trying anything loaded.

Have a helper for the first session — one person cooks and one builds.

Cleaning

Burn off residue at high heat rather than using detergent on a porous stone, and brush the floor once cool.

Storage

A breathable cover once completely cold, and keep the stone dry.

WHERE TO BUY

Ready to shop Atkin & Thyme? Use the link below to visit the official store.

→ Shop Atkin & Thyme — official site

Visit this site