How Does a Pizza Oven Work?
Wood Burning Pizza Ovens
A traditional pizza oven burns wood for fuel to heat up the outer surface, which is usually made of clay bricks. The fire is started inside the oven and allowed to burn until the temperature inside reaches about 800 degrees. Then the embers are either swept out or pushed off to the side. The oven will slowly cool down and when it reaches a temperature of 750 degrees, the pizza is put in the oven to cook. The pizza will cook in about 90 seconds. These type ovens rarely have doors. The temperature is held by the brick and these ovens can stay hot enough to cook pizza for hours. The thicker the surface, the longer the oven stays hot. When the temperature cools down too much, another fire is started and the process starts over again.
Modern Pizza Deck Ovens
The more modern type of pizza oven is a deck oven. They have a rectangular shape, not like a regular box-type oven. It is usually made of a stainless steel outside with an aluminized interior. The problem with the newer modern ovens are that they are fueled with gas or electric and only reach a temperature of 650 degrees, taking longer to bake the pizza. They can usually be stacked and can hold many pizzas at a time, so the time factor is balanced out with the capacity factor. Many people still prefer the taste of the pizza cooked in a wood-fired pizza oven.
Go Green with a Wood Burning Oven
The wood burning oven is the green way to go. It burns so hot that any food, oil or crumbs are burned up and swept out, so there is no need for chemical cleaners. It also uses no fuel that would cause any chemical gases to be placed in the air. The oven can also be used to cook other food as it cools off, so no heat is wasted. You can throw bread in at 450 degrees and roast a chicken when it gets down to 350 degrees. These ovens are made for personal outside use also.
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