Outdoor Pizza Oven!

aarchk

My in laws have one. It was built for them by some friends of theirs. Uses lots of wood and takes a while to fire up but the pizzas cook very quickly. They constructed it using instructions on the internet.

Trumpeter

JMurph, Yes, I built one last year, It hasn't had as much use as I had hoped but that's mainly down to the weather & work commitments. And yes, the pizzas are amazing. As you surmised, a barbie doesn't really get up to the right temperatures & it also doesn't give the all round heat that an oven does. With regards to the "must like pizzas" bit, you can cook anything in it that you can in a normal oven. It just takes a bit of planning. When you get used to firing it right you can do steaks, casseroles, roast chickens even bread (mind you, a home built tandoor for nann bread & tandori chicken might be the next project). I'll drop you a PM & show you some photos from the build. In my (humble) opinion, it's sort of in the middle between the really rough builds & the ultra professional jobs. Before I started, I'd never laid a brick in my life so I don't think it's turned out too badly.

Avoriaz

Trumpeter wrote: »

.. As you surmised, a barbie doesn't really get up to the right temperatures & it also doesn't give the all round heat that an oven does.

What temperature is required for the best Pizzas?

My gas fired BBQ has a lid and gets very hot on maximum.

The heat is also presumably "all round" with the lid closed as it is rising from the base and circulating with convection.

Maybe I will try cooking a pizza in it and report back on the results.

Trumpeter

Avoriaz wrote: »

What temperature is required for the best Pizzas?

My gas fired BBQ has a lid and gets very hot on maximum.

The heat is also presumably "all round" with the lid closed as it is rising from the base and circulating with convection.

Maybe I will try cooking a pizza in it and report back on the results.

Hi Avoriaz, I wasn't completely dismissing the barbeque idea, just suggesting that if the OP wanted a pizza oven, then the "specialist" item would be best. I fire mine to between 450 - 500 C for pizza (checked against an IR thermometer from China via Ebay!) The all round heat bit refers to the fact that the fire is at the back of the oven & heats the brickwork of the floor & the dome by convection. Unlike a barbie, there is no heat directly from underneath so the base does not burn before the toppings are heated through. Having said that, we find that the best results come when using smaller amounts of toppings than you would usually find on a commercial pizza. Also, after you've finished with pizzas, you can cook many other things as the ovens cools. If you get the insulation right, you can cook a full leg of lamb overnight or cook fresh bread next morning. If the OP (or anyone else who's considering building) has any doubts as to whether or not it's worth doing, I would suggest that they see if they can find a pizza restaurant that uses a wood fired oven &, as they say, Taste the Difference.

1jim

We cook pizza on a weber BBQ , air vents open fully top and bottom, lots of charcoal, air bricks on the rack, pizza cooked directly on the air bricks, mmmm.

There was a YouTube clip somewhere..... Will see if I can find it


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVeQBHludGs&feature=youtube_gdata_player
Complete with comedy voice :-)

JMurph

Right, oil tank has been removed so now I've three wee supports and a gap in the hedge ready for some pizza oven action!

The supports are a bit low though, so I'm going to have to build them up a bit. If I get round to it, I'll post pics as I go, though I hope you're patient - I'm not known for getting these sorts of projects done quickly!

JMurph

OK, I'm no quantity surveyor, but so far I've worked out I need "some" clay or "plenty" of refractive cement in order to adequately insulate my oven. Or failing that some other sort of insultating material. Any ideas what's best, and where I could procure them? I think if I went to B7Q I'd probably get, but I'd also have to take out a second mortgage to pay for it.

Many thanks

aarchk

My in laws oven is built of firebricks with concrete over then standard bricks. There is an open area below for storing wood. I'm afraid I didnt pay much attention during the construction. The firebricks were ordered online from a specialist company.

Glad you didnt go for the BBQ idea. Im sure it cooks fine on a gas BBQ but its more of an experience with a pizza oven, plus makes a handy bomb shelter. We have just stocked the in laws up with wood ready for the first pizza party of the year (its a late start this year due to family illness). We each make our own and put toppings on, the kids love it.