4 ms·

> Do you use the same peel to launch and to extract? Typically this is not recommended as the extraction can make that peel hot and moist, which would affect th

> Do you use the same peel to launch and to extract? Typically this is not recommended as the extraction can make that peel hot and moist, which would affect the next launch. Launch off wood or aluminium. Extract with aluminium or other metal peel. Alternatively, scrub the peel with cornmeal between launch and next pizza.

SideburnsOfDoom 4y ago
> Alternatively, scrub the peel with cornmeal between launch and next pizza You would have to make do like that if you only have one peel, but in general you'll be better off with separate Launch, turning and extraction peels. They do different jobs and so have different designs. The turning peel is typically quite different to the other two, but as mentioned, you'll do better with 2 different ones for launch and extraction. Wood is great for launch, terrible for extraction - you can't keep it in a hot oven for any length of time. And a metal peel that has warmed up during doming and extraction would be worse for the next launch. Also, the launch peel can be prepped for the next launch by someone else, while the current pizza is cooking.
- peteradio 4y ago
  Absolutely, I have a separate turner. All good points, but it can be done without. Generally my flow once things get going is: 1) clean launcher (scrub with cornmeal to remove sauce burned cheese etc) (15 seconds) 2) heavily flour the launcher with fresh cornmeal and kneed flat a single pizza dough (1 min) 3) build pizza with toppings (30 seconds) 4) launch, watch for flare ups (pull pizza away from flare ups and let burn out before pushing back forward), turn as cheese browns until all surface cooked (1-2 min) 5) take out pizza and set aside for slicing, use launcher to push forward cornmeal from last launch to force a burn out (15 seconds) 6) go to step 1 3-4 oven minutes / pizza or 15-20 pizzas / hr / oven Most expensive part is the real mozzarella cheese which is outrageously expensive in the US. In France its 1/4 the price. I think I may make mozzarella in the near future, it looks like the easiest of cheeses.
  - AlbertCory 4y ago
    > real mozzarella cheese which is outrageously expensive in the US do you mean the "fresh" stuff they sell in some US stores, in liquid? Or the bufalo? I actually did a 1/2 and 1/2 test with a friend, half bufalo mozz & half standard shrink-wrapped mozz. He preferred the bufalo, I was meh. The interesting thing was, the bufalo had so much moisture that it soaked through the crust. At least the shrink-wrapped stuff is dryer so you don't have that problem.
    - peteradio 4y ago
      Pardon me I meant the "fresh" stuff they sell in US stores is outrageously expensive, ~$10/lb. I don't really know what Bufalo is but the stuff I'm talking about would be fairly moist too, you need to use the cheese sparingly or else it will create a puddle on the surface.
      - AlbertCory 4y ago
        Italians may use mozz made from water buffalo milk. I guess I spelled it wrong: two f's: https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-buffalo-mozzarella.htm https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-buffalo-mozzarella.... I don't think it's very often used in the US.
      - graycat 4y ago
        The mozzarella cheese I use is from Sam's Club. I just checked, and what I use is "Maker's Mark Part Skim Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (5 lbs.) $14.67 $2.93/lb" Soooo, a lot less than $10/pound! What if anything that Maker's Mark cheese has to do with anything from/in Italy, I don't know! To have the cheese keep without mold, I keep it frozen. When I'm making a pizza and put on the mozzarella, it is still frozen. Right, when the heat for the cooking starts, still frozen! Works fine! The Teflon sheet lets the top of the pizza and the cheese get hot before burning the bottom of the crust. In the US, pizza, in all its versions, is a big industry, a significant part of the diet of 300+ million people. BIG! So, we're not talking a grandmother in a rustic kitchen in the hills of a small, rural town in Italy!!! I omitted but might include: For applying the heat, I put the cast iron frying pan, covered, on one of the large burners of my 4 burner US electric stove. The burners are, as I recall, from GE or some such -- some big US company anyway. And I've seen them from the same source on other electric stoves. Soooo, if you have an electric stove, there's a good chance you have the same burner elements. Then for the burner there is a dial. Viewing the dial as a clock face, 12 o'clock is OFF. 1 o'clock is the highest power. 6 o'clock is medium power. For cooking pizza, I use about 8 o'clock and 22 minutes. Then the toppings are hot. The cheese is melted. The crust is cooked with the edges puffy. And the bottom of the crust is browned but not burned. 23 minutes can be too long, burn the bottom crust and have the melted cheese running over the sides of the crust. 20 minutes, maybe the cheese is not yet melted. On your stove, likely you should watch carefully until you have the time and temperature about right!

SideburnsOfDoom 4y ago

> Alternatively, scrub the peel with cornmeal between launch and next pizza You would have to make do like that if you only have one peel, but in general you'll be better off with separate Launch, turning and extraction peels. They do different jobs and so have different designs. The turning peel is typically quite different to the other two, but as mentioned, you'll do better with 2 different ones for launch and extraction. Wood is great for launch, terrible for extraction - you can't keep it in a hot oven for any length of time. And a metal peel that has warmed up during doming and extraction would be worse for the next launch. Also, the launch peel can be prepped for the next launch by someone else, while the current pizza is cooking.

peteradio 4y ago
Absolutely, I have a separate turner. All good points, but it can be done without. Generally my flow once things get going is: 1) clean launcher (scrub with cornmeal to remove sauce burned cheese etc) (15 seconds) 2) heavily flour the launcher with fresh cornmeal and kneed flat a single pizza dough (1 min) 3) build pizza with toppings (30 seconds) 4) launch, watch for flare ups (pull pizza away from flare ups and let burn out before pushing back forward), turn as cheese browns until all surface cooked (1-2 min) 5) take out pizza and set aside for slicing, use launcher to push forward cornmeal from last launch to force a burn out (15 seconds) 6) go to step 1 3-4 oven minutes / pizza or 15-20 pizzas / hr / oven Most expensive part is the real mozzarella cheese which is outrageously expensive in the US. In France its 1/4 the price. I think I may make mozzarella in the near future, it looks like the easiest of cheeses.
- AlbertCory 4y ago
  > real mozzarella cheese which is outrageously expensive in the US do you mean the "fresh" stuff they sell in some US stores, in liquid? Or the bufalo? I actually did a 1/2 and 1/2 test with a friend, half bufalo mozz & half standard shrink-wrapped mozz. He preferred the bufalo, I was meh. The interesting thing was, the bufalo had so much moisture that it soaked through the crust. At least the shrink-wrapped stuff is dryer so you don't have that problem.
  - peteradio 4y ago
    Pardon me I meant the "fresh" stuff they sell in US stores is outrageously expensive, ~$10/lb. I don't really know what Bufalo is but the stuff I'm talking about would be fairly moist too, you need to use the cheese sparingly or else it will create a puddle on the surface.
    - AlbertCory 4y ago
      Italians may use mozz made from water buffalo milk. I guess I spelled it wrong: two f's: https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-buffalo-mozzarella.htm https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-buffalo-mozzarella.... I don't think it's very often used in the US.
    - graycat 4y ago
      The mozzarella cheese I use is from Sam's Club. I just checked, and what I use is "Maker's Mark Part Skim Shredded Mozzarella Cheese (5 lbs.) $14.67 $2.93/lb" Soooo, a lot less than $10/pound! What if anything that Maker's Mark cheese has to do with anything from/in Italy, I don't know! To have the cheese keep without mold, I keep it frozen. When I'm making a pizza and put on the mozzarella, it is still frozen. Right, when the heat for the cooking starts, still frozen! Works fine! The Teflon sheet lets the top of the pizza and the cheese get hot before burning the bottom of the crust. In the US, pizza, in all its versions, is a big industry, a significant part of the diet of 300+ million people. BIG! So, we're not talking a grandmother in a rustic kitchen in the hills of a small, rural town in Italy!!! I omitted but might include: For applying the heat, I put the cast iron frying pan, covered, on one of the large burners of my 4 burner US electric stove. The burners are, as I recall, from GE or some such -- some big US company anyway. And I've seen them from the same source on other electric stoves. Soooo, if you have an electric stove, there's a good chance you have the same burner elements. Then for the burner there is a dial. Viewing the dial as a clock face, 12 o'clock is OFF. 1 o'clock is the highest power. 6 o'clock is medium power. For cooking pizza, I use about 8 o'clock and 22 minutes. Then the toppings are hot. The cheese is melted. The crust is cooked with the edges puffy. And the bottom of the crust is browned but not burned. 23 minutes can be too long, burn the bottom crust and have the melted cheese running over the sides of the crust. 20 minutes, maybe the cheese is not yet melted. On your stove, likely you should watch carefully until you have the time and temperature about right!