Accessories for Wood-Fired Pizza Ovens

Without a set of accessories for pizza ovens  and essential tools, no backyard pizza oven or outdoor kitchen is complete. This article outlines the must have accessories that you will need not only to cook pizzas on your outdoor wood fired pizza oven, but to keep safe as well.  When you are entertaining a crowd at a backyard pizza party around your new pizza oven, three are certain tools you won’t be able to do without.

What accessories do I need with a wood fired pizza oven?

1 A Pizza Peel

A pizza peel is an implement that is used to place pizzas in the oven without spilling any of the ingredients on top. This handy equipment is described as a huge spatula on which you can create your pizza and then bake it.

However, there’s more to it than that. A pizza peel also allows you to take your pizza out of the oven without risking scorching your fingers.

Using a pizza peel, you may reproduce the authentic pizza-making experience by facilitating  the following:

• Allowing you to set your pizza dough straight on a burning hot surface, such as your grill or a pizza stone, and then retrieve it once it’s done cooking.
• Providing a convenient surface for rotating your pizza so that it cooks evenly.
• Because turning is easier, charring from hot places is reduced.
• Impressing your guests and making you appear to be the neighborhood pizza guru. Especially if you invite them over for pizza and show them your pizza peel in action.

Without a pizza peel, you can make pizza at home. That is correct. However, if you want to reproduce the flavor, texture, and sensation of baking pizza in an outdoor pizza oven, you’ll need a pizza peel.

You can select a wooden pizza peel, a stainless steel pizza peel or a composite pizza peel. Just ensure that the handle is long enough to keep your arms from getting singed in your woodfired oven and one where the dough will not stick to the surface.

2 Ash Rake and Shovel

As with an indoor wood burning fireplace, you’ll want to remove the ash from your last pizza baking event before you cook your next pizzas.  The rake and shovel are usually sold as a complete tool set for brick ovens that are wood fired.

This is most efficiently done with an ash rake and shovel with long handles to reach the very back of the firebrick floor of your oven.

To quickly accomplish this, scoop the ash out of the oven with the ash rake and a fireplace shovel, or another small shovel with a flat tip or cutting edge. Don’t worry if you don’t get everything.

Collect the ash in an ashcan with a lid to dispose of later or add to your compost bin. Consider distributing ash around surrounding plants if you have a little bit.

3 Oven Brush

Part of the ritual of pizza making in an outdoor pizza oven is cleaning the oven when it is cool. For this, you will need a good brush with scraper.

While most food spills will likely burn off owing to the intense heat in the oven, there may be some residue.

Scrape any baked-on or burnt food, grease, or other materials from the oven floor with an oven brush with copper or brass bristles and a stainless steel handle.

No soap or solvents should be used with the pizza oven brush.

Any brush that isn’t made of brass or copper should be avoided. Other metal bristles can scratch your oven’s heating surface.

4  Thermometers

An accurate infrared thermometer should be in the possession of every pizza connoisseur. If you want to bake consistent pizza in a pizza oven, this is one of the most necessary pizza accessories. It’ll come in handy for both wood and gas-fired pizza ovens, as well as your pizza steel.

If you have a pizza oven, you need also have a probe thermometer to check the air temperature within the oven to ensure that you have the correct amount of reflected heat to bake your toppings.

It’s critical to understand both the floor and the air temperature of your oven in order to make a flawless pizza.

You may also want a probe thermometer. The radiated temperature inside the oven is measured with a probe thermometer for pizza ovens. When the oven is heated by the fire, it begins to radiate heat from the oven’s walls and ceiling. Probes are typically put in the pizza oven’s door, although they can also be mounted in the wall. If the probe is mounted in the wall, it should not be located where the fire will be lit. The reason for this is that you want to measure the radiating temperature, not the fire’s high heat, which will give you an inaccurate reading.

5 Heat Resistant Gloves

Heat-resistant gloves are a must-have for everyone who owns a pizza oven. It’s critical to be as safe as possible when using a pizza oven. Working with an oven that reaches 900 degrees Fahrenheit necessitates the use of protective gloves to protect hands and forearms.

These pizza oven cooking gloves are made to endure extreme temperatures. It is critical to understand that heat resistant gloves should only be used on dry, hot objects. You will be burned if they get wet and you continue to use them.

They also don’t shield you from steam. So, be careful how you utilize them when cooking. When the gloves are wet, hang them to dry and wait until the moisture is gone.

Stick to a short holding time, which means the gloves should not be left off for long periods of time. The heat will begin to radiate after 10-15 seconds. The length of the holding period varies depending on the glove.

6 Pizza Cutter

No matter what kind of pizza you like, a pizza cutter is a must-have in your kitchen. Unless you are making very small pizzas and will hold the entire pizza in your hands, the proper cutlery for slicing pizzas into digestible wedges should be on your accessories list.

A pizza cutter consists of a sharp blade in the shape of a wheel is usually affixed to the handle of a pizza cutter.  The tool may have a 10 inch blade or larger. They may come with wooden handles or metal pizza cutter handles. Without making a mess, the keen steel can cut through the thin pastry. As opposed to random knives, it does not mix pizza toppings together. You must use considerable caution when handling its blade, which has been expertly sharpened.

7 Fire Starter

You can always elect to try and light an oak log or kindling with a match or butane lighter, or you can get help from firestarters which will make the ignition process much easier and quicker.

Fire starters are designed to make the sometimes difficult task of starting a fire easier by producing a steady flame that can catch on surrounding kindling. To accomplish so, the fire starter must burn for long enough to establish the fire. The longer you burn, the more likely you are to get a strong blaze.

As effective as fire starters are, their utility is mostly determined by their ease of usage. Look for fire starters that are small and lightweight, with a length of 3 to 6 inches. These pocket-sized pouches, pods, or cubes are often supplied in boxes of 12 or 24 and can be stored in plain sight or tucked away.

The first fire starters were loaded with combustible chemicals, giving them a distinct odor. Today’s greatest fire starters, on the other hand, are practically odorless, which is a significant bonus when using them to start the grill or smoker instead of lighter fluid.

Environmentally friendly materials, such as wood waste (sawdust or shavings), non-toxic wax, recycled paper, or waste textile fibers, are used to make the best fire starters. Remember that utilizing a fire starter usually results in a faster and more thorough ignition, which minimizes particulate matter and carbon monoxide emissions.

9 Pizza Steel

Steel is the best pizza baking material in general. A steel pizza steel  is still the quickest to bake and crispiest to eat.

Steel, unlike stone, conducts heat quite well. This means the steel can transport heat more quickly and effectively. Something that aids in the baking process.

A pizza steel is a long-lasting baking surface that will last a lifetime. A thick slab of steel, unlike many stone materials, does not break. It’s also quite easy to clean because of the flat surface. Steel, on the other hand, is prone to rust and should be oiled on a regular basis.

Other accessories you might consider include an oven cover for your outdoor pizza oven to keep out the weather and critters.

Many of these suggested items are available in an accessories kit which might save you some money versus buying each individually.  These oven tools are what we consider essential to have on or near your wood fired pizza oven.