January 1, 2007
Things We Love: Pizza Stone
A well-used pizza stone is a thing of beauty.
I started baking, and would have friends over to try my creations. I’d like to think they enjoyed those early trials, but there were a number of places that gave a lot of room for improvement. One that was obvious was a brick pizza stone to improve my crust.
The brick is like a heat battery; it heats up and has enough mass to remain hot even after you’ve put the pizza on top of it. The high, dry heat keeps the crust from getting soggy when it cooks.
My good friends Chuck and Patty gave me my first pizza stone (which I still use every time I make pizza). I think the brand is “Old Stone” but I have long since lost the box, and the stone itself sits on my pantry shelf under my wok when it’s not in use. I’ve baked pizza on it, rolls, calzones and mnaeesh.
When I’m baking a lot of stuff, I use 2 stones at once. I was baking this mnaeesh on my larger stone, but if you look at the top of the photo you can see the round stone on a higher shelf. Just having the stone in the oven, once the stone has been heated, helps the oven deliver a nice even heat. Chuck and Patty also gave me my pizza peel (which you’ll see in baking photos now and again in my Flickr photostream) and a great pizza cutter (a +1 pizza cutter, in roleplaying parlance).
Julie saw the photo on my site yesterday and asked about the color of my round stone. It has become black from the ash that remains behind when baking is done. Sometimes corn meal remains on the stone and burns from residual heat. I don’t know if it helps cook better pizza, now that it is black. A new stone probably cooks just as well.
To clean the stone, I just scrape it off with my metal board scraper. I don’t remember ever having to scrub it, and I’m afraid soap will leave a residue, so I never clean it with soap or detergent. Some people use a stiff brush. Using the scraper seems to have contributed to the darkening of the stone, because I end up scraping the burnt residue over the stone, which seems to imbed it.
Perhaps having that blackened surface makes it less likely to have stuff stick to it.
My pizza stone is something I get consistent good use out of and is one of the best-used gifts I’ve ever gotten. Some people arrange bricks in a pan in their oven and use that, which is fine, I guess, but I have always appreciated having this great, smooth stone for baking with very little fuss.
Successful baking relies heavily on technique, but having the right equipment is also a good thing.
Posted by James at January 1, 2007 2:29 PMMost of my stonewear I have came from Pampered Chef. They say you should never wash a stone with soap because the soap will be absorbed into the stone. Next time you go to use it your food will taste soapy. They recommend just scrapping the stone to remove the surface stuff and rinse off with hot water. The discoloration means that it is a well seasoned stone and will always produce good eats!
Here is a link to their site: http://www.pamperedchef.com/our_products/use_care/detail.jsp?productId=166.
Here are the directions for cleaning their large round stone:
How to Clean
As soap can flavor foods that are baked in Stoneware, it is important that you do not use soap or detergents to clean your Stoneware or wash in an automatic dishwasher using dishwasher detergent. Follow these steps for cleaning:
General Cleaning
- Allow Stoneware to cool to room temperature before cleaning.
- Soak Stoneware in clear, hot water to loosen baked-on foods.
- Scrape off excess food on surface of Stoneware using the Nylon Pan Scraper (provided with Stoneware).
- Rinse and dry thoroughly before storing.
Deep Cleaning
- Prepare a baking soda paste by mixing 1/2 cup baking soda with 3 tablespoons water.
- Apply baking soda paste to desired areas and let sit for 15-20 minutes. Scrape off excess paste using the Nylon Pan Scraper. Rinse and dry thoroughly before storing.
I am glad you have enjoyed your stone. I know I have enjoyed your pizza!
