A few newbie questions about making Neapolitan-style pizza in an oven

[streetwaves]

Hey guys. Now, I realize there are limitations when it comes to making Neapolitan pizza in a conventional oven. While down the line I'd love to invest in a proper wood-fired oven, at the moment I'm just sticking my feet in the water and don't want to go too crazy yet.

I have a conventional oven with a max temperature of 500F and a broiler on top. I also have cheap pizza stone and a wooden pizza peel (I have much difficulty getting the pizza from the peel onto the stone).

I have a few questions:
-I've seen some good things about cast iron pans/plates versus stones, but the cast iron pan I found on Amazon is only safe to 400F I believe.
-Is Caputo 00 flour good to use in a home oven? I read a little about it potentially not being an ideal choice in a low-temperature environment.
-Should I invest in a thin, metal peel to do the initial placement of the pizza onto the stone? Seems like it would be easier.
-Also, I typically heat up the stone at 500F for a couple of hours and then put the pizza in. Would it be a better idea to heat it up at 500F on bake for X amount of time, and when it comes time to actually make the pizza, switch it to broil at 500F and use the broiler instead (this might be a dumb question)?

I've done some searches and found a lot of information and I'm sure some of these Qs have been answered before, but hopefully you all won't mind me too much. I'm here to learn!
Thanks,
Joe

[TXCraig1]

Limitations is an understatement.

These are probably your best two resources. I'd suggest reading them both cover-to-cover if you have not already. Many, of the answers to your questions can be found in them.

http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,11654.0.html
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,10024.0.html


Some thoughts on your questons:
Cast iron should be able to go as hot as your oven will go.
You don't need Caputo. AP or BF should be fine.
Yes, a peel is a big help for launching pies.
The threads above discuss oven management, just keep in mind that your broiler might not even kick on if your oven is at it's max.

CL

[streetwaves]

Hey Craig, thanks for your reply. Yes, the more I read the more I understand that it's not so easy to make Neapolitan pizza in a conventional oven. But I'm still going to give it a try until I can get myself the real thing. I'm sure a WFO is in my future.

Thanks for the links too - the second is especially interesting, and I plan on reading through them both. The taste of my pizzas overall has been good, if not occasionally 'quite good'. Of course, that doesn't necessarily make them real Neapolitan pizzas. Oh well!

[jeffereynelson]

Neapolitan style in a un-moded home oven is nearly impossible to create. You will probably need to go NY style, which is what I ended up having to do.

1. I don't think you need cast iron over a stone
2. I wouldn't use caputo until you achieved temps in excess of 700F
3. No do not invest in a metal peel. Thats for getting the pizza out. It would stick to metal more than to wood. Just dust your wood peel better with flour first until you start to get the hang of it more. Make sure you shake the pizza between every step- strectch and put on the peel and shake, add sauce and shake, cheese and shake, toppings and shake, then load.
4. Go 2 hours at max bake then do about 25 minutes on broil. If you load your pizza with broiler on the top will probably be done before the bottom. I load mine with broiler off, wait about 1:50, then flip on the broiler for the last 1:45. You will have to find what works best for you.