Pizza Stone vs. Cast Iron

[RSMBob]

Hi all,

I've been making pizzas for 20 years now and have gone through a variety of stones (and pans and screens)...my latest one is almost 10 years old (yea, no ckracking, chipping or breakage!). Recently, I got a Lodge cast iron double burner griddle and never having really used cast iron before, I am VERY impressed with the way it has cooked. In the two weeks I've had it, it hasn't left the stove top except for rinsing/scrubbing.

It got me to thinking about the use of cast iron instead of a pizza stone for baking thin crust pizzas. Lodge makes a couple of them...link below. Anyone use them or have opinions about their viability compared to a traditional stone?

https://secure.lodgemfg.com/storefront/product1.asp?idProduct=3984

[Christopher]

Hi, RSMBob,
it is definately an interesting concept. Mario Batali has a restaraunt (otto) where he makes thin crust pizzas on an iron griddle and  they look pretty tasty and there is a style of italian pita-type bread called piadina that was at one time cooked on a tile but is now cooked in iron skillets or so i have read. i have had an interest in trying this since it is novel and cast iron pans are pretty cheap. if you try it out please post back with your results. i am interested.
christopher

[scott r]

The heat retention will certainly be good, but I think I have read that one of the attributes of the stone is that it draws moisture out of the dough.

[gottabedapan]

If you're looking for "home-style" (bready) pizza crust, cast iron works fine; if you're looking for a NY/Neapolitan-style crust, stick with a stone. I cook pizza over live coals on camping trips all the time, and IMO, cast iron pans are a great substitute for dark steel deep dish pans (in fact, in some ways I prefer cast iron pans for deep dish). My experience with NY/American/Neapolitan style crusts is that they come out bread-ier and less crusty than on a stone. My guess is that with cast iron most of the moisture in the dough "boils" up through the dough and out the top of the pizza instad of being drawn out of the bottom like it is on a stone.

[454Casull]

If you're looking for "home-style" (bready) pizza crust, cast iron works fine; if you're looking for a NY/Neapolitan-style crust, stick with a stone. I cook pizza over live coals on camping trips all the time, and IMO, cast iron pans are a great substitute for dark steel deep dish pans (in fact, in some ways I prefer cast iron pans for deep dish). My experience with NY/American/Neapolitan style crusts is that they come out bread-ier and less crusty than on a stone. My guess is that with cast iron most of the moisture in the dough "boils" up through the dough and out the top of the pizza instad of being drawn out of the bottom like it is on a stone.

Perhaps somebody with a lot of time (and access to free tools) could perforate a thick cast iron slab?

[loch]

pftaylor does a review of Mario Batali's pizza made in that manner in the review section.

I have one of the Lodge 14 inch round griddles but have only used it on the stovetop for flat bread. I have, however used cast iron skillets for deep dish pizza for quite a while. Works great and, as mentioned,  will be a bit more bread like.

Dave