Pizza Oven Adventures
- The Satiated Blonde
- 2 days ago
- 5 min read
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Apparently, we love a good adventure and our pizza oven experience so far has been one! The oven itself is great and the customer service from Ooni is pretty much one of the top customer experiences I've ever had, love that. It was more of an adventure than it should have been because the first time we used it, it was the coldest day of the year. We're talking double negatives in temperatures with the wind chill. We hadn't picked up the propane tank yet so we were just using wood as the fuel source. It took a long time to get up to temp-- and seemed even longer because I was hungry, lol!
Our second attempt, it was pretty much a downpour and super windy. Let me tell ya though, the third time, when it was about 40 degrees out and we had the propane tank option, it was perfect!
We love having the wood as an option and it is so good to have that flavor when we have the time and it is warmer outside! We've found the first pizza of the evening is usually the most challenging, but we just have to make sure that the peel is seasoned and the oven is hot enough, then it's usually good! The oven cooks the pizzas so fast, but we typically have sheet pans out to put them on when they come out, then pop them in the oven on warm so everyone can eat warm pizza together-- that's the goal, anyways!
Our pizza oven:
Ooni Karu 2, previously named Karu12G
Multi-fuel option (gas burner sold separately--we opted for this) - we can use wood, charcoal, or gas!
Makes 12" pizzas
Fits perfectly on the cart we picked up -- and yes, we think it's a necessity so we don't have to deep squat with every open of the door.
Accessories
Pizza oven cover - came with the order
honestly, most of the time after it cools down, we put it on the porch and don't use the cover. However, there was that time we took the pizza oven to my parents for a family party and the cover definitely came in handy transporting it like that!
Ooni pizza peel - came with the order
A peel to serve the pizzas into the oven is a necessity. We have learned to season it with some olive oil and flour first and kind of test to make sure the pizza slides a bit when it's on it so it can make it into the oven onto the pizza stone optimally. But also, we don't worry if any ingredients get on the stone, they burn off pretty quickly since the oven gets so hot.
Pizza turning peel - ordered this separately
After the first bake, my husband said we had to get one of these. I didn't understand the difference between the peel and this, but now I do! It helps to lift and do a quick turn on the pizzas while they're in the oven, for even cooking.
Pizza table & cover - ordered this separately
We researched these pretty thoroughly and ended up going with this one. It's basically an outdoor-ready utility cart, with a stainless steel table top. It comes with a cover and honestly, it's been great. It's pretty heavy duty, comes with lockable caster wheels, and when the pizza oven isn't on it, my husband uses the top as extra prep/wrap space when he's grilling and smoking.
Pizza oven brush - ordered this separately
This is used to brush off the pizza stone (after it cools).
Pizza cutter rocker - ordered this separately
Is this necessary? Absolutely not. Is it fun? Absolutely, yes!
Detroit style pizza pan - ordered this separately
We actually haven't used this in the Ooni yet, but we have used it in the oven and I was pleasantly surprised by those crispy edges, yum! So good!
Digital thermometer - ordered this separately
We didn't have this when we first started making pizza, but it is helpful to get the surface temp of the stone since our temperature gauge on the Ooni is just a color-coded range, not an exact temp. It works really well!
Cutting Board - purchased this separately,
I actually found this at Costco, but I'm pretty sure the one I linked is the same one we have! Also, note in the video below I call the brandname "teak" but it's "teakhaus." It's the best cutting board we've ever had. The grooves are great for catching juices, especially for barbecuing and it's super heavy duty. It's also recommended by America's Test Kitchen (although we didn't know that when we purchased it!).
Fuel sources
Propane tank - we picked one up around the corner from us and it was probably the most expensive propane tank ever, but we wanted to try it and forgot to get one elsewhere. Plus, it was convenient.
Wood - we also wanted to have the option to cook with wood, since we got the multi-fuel pizza oven. It took some searching, but found some hardwood that is (from my understanding) specific for cooking and not from China or chemically treated.
Toppings
We've branched out and tried lots of different toppings outside of my favorites (manchego, pepperoni, and banana peppers). Here's some other things we've tried:
Burrata
Mozzarella (pictured below & Kirkland brand)
Nuna uncured hot sopressata (from freshthyme)
Nuna milano salami sliced og (from fresh thyme)
Applegate mini pepperoni + large
Artichokes
A sprinkle of oregano on top!
For sauce, we've done some as "white" pizzas with just olive oil and toppings, but mostly use the organic marinara sauce from Costco (we have tried a few others that we've liked, but this is our go-to).
The process takes up almost every surface in the kitchen, but it's well worth it! For flour to make the dough, I plan a few days in advance and make sourdough pizza with flour from Italy.
We haven't made bread in the pizza oven yet, but love making other sides like olives (they're so good crisped up and topped with lemon zest) and asparagus.
See the oven in action in this video:
I share more detail about the actual pizza dough I make at home (before we got the wood-fired pizza oven) here and I have to mention that this is the flour we've been using. Between that and the sourdough fermentation, it doesn't bother me the way regular flour does (which I don't choose to consume).
Want to see some pizzas that inspired us to make this at home? Check out these posts:
Exploring my Favorite Eats in Northeast Ohio: A Culinary Adventure
Exploring the Tasty Variety of Northwest Ohio's Cuisine (post coming soon)
Napolitano Pizza Around The World (post coming soon)
Hope you've enjoyed these pizza oven adventures! Have any tips? Leave them for me in the comments and join me on my next adventure in my stories.
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