Lots of budding home pizza chefs buy a pizza stone and then don’t get the best use out of it. If you are wondering how to use a pizza stone, this is the guide for you.
If you already have a pizza oven, chances are it came with its own stone – this guide is aimed at those of you that want to use a pizza stone for their oven or BBQ.
As already discussed in our pizza stone buying guide, when used correctly a pizza stone will help to produce a crispy pizza base, rather than a soggy one.
How To Use A Pizza Stone In An Oven
- Place the pizza stone in a cold oven.
- Switch the oven on and heat it to 260C/Gas Mark 10. It should take about 15 minutes but this will vary according to your oven.
- Once the oven is at the correct temperature place a room temperature pizza on the stone ready to be cooked.
- Close the oven door and cook for 5 minutes.
- Using a pizza peel, turn the pizza 180 degrees and cook for a further 5 minutes.
- Again, using the pizza peel remove the pizza from the oven.
- Switch the oven off and leave the pizza stone in there to completely cool down before wiping it clean.
A pizza stone can also be used on a BBQ (gas or charcoal). Follow the same steps as above.
Don’t Season A Pizza Stone
You’ll come across a few places telling you to season a pizza stone – this shouldn’t be done! If you oil a pizza stone it will simply soak in to the porous stone and stay there, smoking each time you put it in your hot oven or on the BBQ. The oil will also stay soaked into the stone eventually giving off a rancid and unpleasant odour – not to mention how it’ll taint the taste of your pizza base!
Don’t Cook A Frozen Pizza On A Pizza Stone
If you place a frozen pizza on a hot pizza stone you run the risk of cracking it. Only room temperature pizza should be put on a hot pizza stone.
Taking Care Of Your Pizza Stone
It’s important to follow the care instructions closely if you want to get the most out of your pizza stone. We covered this more in our how to clean a pizza stone guide, but essentially you mustn’t submerge your stone in water or use soap to clean it.