My latest pizza cook on the Weber...

[caseydog]

I've been on a journey to make great pizza on a Weber kettle. I made a major step in the right direction today. I'm not at Moose level, yet, but I'm gaining ground on him. :becky:

i have my sauce down. San Marzano tomatoes, garlic, fresh oregano and basil from my garden, and more garlic. The sauce rocks.

Here is how the pie looked pre-cook, with my sauce, some of the best yellow bell peppers I've found this year, and fresh mozzarella, and some soppressata sausage (way better than pepperoni), and rough cut fresh oregano and basil.

Onto the redhead using my new pizza setup -- a pizza stone on top of a grate, with a grate on top of the stone, with my pizza on a pizza tray on top of that. My goal was to make the top of the pizza cook through at the same time that the bottom of the crust got done to brown and crisp.

It worked. In the past, I had pizza crusts cook faster than the toppings, because there was more heat coming from the bottom than from the top, as you would expect from a kettle setup.

But, this setup used the pizza stone as a diffuser, and used the grate on top of the stone to keep the stone from overcooking the crust. I'm pretty happy with it, but will probably still tinker with it.

Wow, this pizza was good. I tasted it too early, and burned the roof of my mouth, but it was worth it. I did NOT burn my tongue, so I tasted every bite. I ate most of this pie, and can't wait to eat the rest for lunch tomorrow.

Oh, yeah, this is how it looked when it was done.

I'm pretty happy with the grill setup. I am getting a good balance of heat from top to bottom, so my crust isn't done before my toppings. I think I took a big step forward today. Now I want to refine it, and make it readily repeatable.

CD

 

[peeps]

Looks great!!! Nice work! Can you elaborate on the kettle setup and gear you are using?

 

[blackdog043]

Nice looking pie, thats an interesting set up to grill it.

 

[peeps]

Crap...nevermind...it's in there and I missed it. Carry on.

 

[oifmarine2003]

That turned out real nice!

 

[caseydog]

Crap...nevermind...it's in there and I missed it. Carry on.

Well, I did some editing. My original description was a bit lacking.

I have been working on making a good homemade wood-fired pizza on a Weber kettle for some time. I still haven't mastered it, but I feel like i made a big step forward.

The trick is to get high heat, but balanced high heat. The whole pizza has to cook at the same pace. It is really easy on a Weber kettle to have the crust cook faster than the toppings.

That, and you want high heat, but you also want some wood-fired flavor. Otherwise, it is WAY easier to cook a pizza in your kitchen oven. That throws a second challenge into the mix.

How can a food so simple be so hard to cook? :becky: But, being Italian, I enjoy the challenge.

CD

 

[93vpmod]

Great looking pie! Nice setup and explanation.

 

[CharredApron]

That's a good looking pie CD. Practice and patience, Rome wasn't built in a day, either was Pizza in Naples.

 

[peeps]

Well, I did some editing. My original description was a bit lacking.

I have been working on making a good homemade wood-fired pizza on a Weber kettle for some time. I still haven't mastered it, but I feel like i made a big step forward.

The trick is to get high heat, but balanced high heat. The whole pizza has to cook at the same pace. It is really easy on a Weber kettle to have the crust cook faster than the toppings.

That, and you want high heat, but you also want some wood-fired flavor. Otherwise, it is WAY easier to cook a pizza in your kitchen oven. That throws a second challenge into the mix.

How can a food so simple be so hard to cook? :becky: But, being Italian, I enjoy the challenge.

CD

I think I was just mesmerized by the pr0n and missed it.

Thanks for the further info. I hope to try it sometime soon.

 

[caseydog]

That's a good looking pie CD. Practice and patience, Rome wasn't built in a day, either was Pizza in Naples.

I had my pizza epiphany in Napoli, AKA Naples, the birthplace of pizza. I went to a place the locals recommended, and ate something so incredibly simple, and yet so incredibly good -- and healthy.

I look at that pizza as the foundation upon which every pizza should be built. Yes, add things to it, but don't disrespect it. I want to make it my own, but do not want to make it Dominoe's or Pizza Hut.

CD

 

[mbshop]

I use brick to get the pizza higher near the dome. I have the same pan. coals around the outside with a few under the pan and so far it works well enough. we like to add a bit of pecan or oak smoke and they are great tasting.

 

[1911Ron]

That's a good looking pie there CD!

 

[JazzyBadger]

Looks really good man. How many chunks of wood are you using? Also how many pizzas do you think you could make with the setup you've got going? I have to make at the minimum 5 pizzas in this house, and with my bottomless pits it's more like 8-10.

Looks great, but it seems like it could be a pain to reload the briquettes.

 

[SmokinAussie]

I could fang that CD... even that tiny little burnt edge bit at around 7 to 8 O'Clock!

 

[sliding_billy]

Beautiful pie!

 

[jsperk]

Pizza looks awesome. I made pizza last night, now I better go have some left overs for breakfast after seeing your pies.