Heston Blumenthal's pizza recipe (BBC TV)

[pdc]

Another recent attempt. At this point, this has become my go-to technique. It just plain works.

[Entropy]

At this point, this has become my go-to technique. It just plain works.

As opposed to what?

Varasano's technique just plain works, too. 

As does my technique, which is similar to Jeff's but which I've never bothered to document, since making pizza every night doesn't leave me much time for posting.  (My solution to the oven problem was an ancient Kenmore gas stove with two mercury thermostats inside.  Its broiler ran continuously and after a few hours was actually a bit too hot for pizza.  Sadly, it died a few years ago and I haven't found another one yet.)

Don't be lazy or cut corners; hack your oven and learn to make real dough.  Pizza is worth the trouble of getting right.

~ Kiran <entropy@io.com>

[RichT]

As opposed to what?
Don't be lazy or cut corners; hack your oven and learn to make real dough.  Pizza is worth the trouble of getting right.

It really amuses me how some people oppose (and almost mock) this technique. I can only think that they haven't actually tried it.

Fact is, as pdc says, if you get this right - it works extremely well. The beauty is, there's no need to "hack your oven".

Perhaps some other methods do get slightly better results. But not everyone has an oven that can be "hacked", or wants to go to the lengths of buying a new oven etc. By comparison, this method uses 1 cheap item - an iron pan.

I've been using this technique for a long time now (all be it with a different dough recipe), and the simple reason is that it produces some great tasting pizza that I haven't been able to achieve in any other way to date. Do I want to strive to get an even better pizza? Of course. In fact, I'm planning to build a brick oven in the new year. But for now, this technique serves its purpose very well indeed.

[Pete-zza]

I wonder whether any of the cast iron pizza pans shown at the following sites will work with the Blumenthal method:

https://secure.lodgemfg.com/storefront/product1_new.asp?menu=prologic&idProduct=3984

http://www.cheftools.com/prodinfo-new.asp?number=07%2D0390

http://www.barbecues.com//web/catalog/product_detail.aspx?pid=237117

The pans seem to be shallow enough to heat on the stove and to slide an unbaked pizza onto them, either before or after placing in the oven (with the broiler on)

Peter

[Essen1]

Or you guys could try member Grog's technique. I used it before in my home oven and it went actually very well.

http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,6291.0.html

[hammy]

Well - here I go again, trying to remember all that I typed before the site ungraciously wiped out all of my text because of Pete-zza's hyperlinks in the quote.

Boy, that was annoying. In any event, I learnt my lesson...

We use a Centro cast iron BBQ griddle (cost $C25.00 at Canadian Tire)and preheat it an hour on the bottom rack with the oven set full whack, and then we move it up under the broiler for about 20 minutes before cooking if we cook directly on the griddle. I can get 2'30" timings that way, but my better half doesn't like sliding the pizzas on and off the griddle so close to the broiler.

When we cook in a pan, like tonight, we cook for 6 minutes on the bottom rack, followed by two minutes with the broiler on (pan and pizza still on bottom rack) and get beautiful browning, top and bottom. We used the Little Caesar's clone dough recipe, simply because we lucked into a 27 pound bag of their proprietary hi-gluten pizza flour. We use Aurora brand "pezzettoni di pomodoro" Italian diced tomatoes for the sauce base. I don't know if our pizzas are up to the standards of this site, but we definitely beat all the local pizza shops around here hands down with our homemade.

Thanks for all the tips, folks, and Pete-zza in particular. You've been a great help and have taken us to a new world of pizza appreciation.

Cheers,

Greg

I wonder whether any of the cast iron pizza pans shown at the following sites will work with the Blumenthal method:

<hyperlinks deleted as evidently I cannot post any as a new user - now if the site design hadn't deleted all of my text in telling me not to post hyperlinks, I'd be a happy camper... FUME!>

The pans seem to be shallow enough to heat on the stove and to slide an unbaked pizza onto them, either before or after placing in the oven (with the broiler on)

Peter

[Corbs]

I haven't made pizza at home for a good long while so I used a similar method, with an upturned baking tray. It worked well, much better than just a grill. I placed the tray in upside down for about 3/4 of an hour. I oiled the surface just before putting the pie on and it worked very well. I overdid the tomatoes though. But I like to have a lot of them.
(http://i436.photobucket.com/albums/qq83/C0RB5/HPIM1441-Copy.jpg)

[guysnape]

Well - here I go again, trying to remember all that I typed before the site ungraciously wiped out all of my text because of Pete-zza's hyperlinks in the quote.

Boy, that was annoying. In any event, I learnt my lesson...

I got caught out by that too - however if you just use your browser's back button, you may well find your text there unscathed.

- guy

[PizzaEater]

I just saw and read this thread. Very surprised at the negative comments, though I have yet to try Heston's method I plan too. The idea of using the bottom of a cast iron skillet heated on a stove top burned for 20 minutes will he a heck of a lot hotter than you will ever get in any home oven with or without a stone. Then placing the pizza on the inverted skillet only a couple inches from the broiler will I thing will most certainly cook the pizza in 2 min. If you notice he leaves the oven door open so the broiler element remains on.

Further this was meant for the home cook and the ability to cook at a high temperature. I also never heard him claim it was Neapolitan pizza, at worst he may have alluded to it being his version of a Neapolitan pizza.

Regardless the pizza he produced looks outstanding.