All About Baking a Pizza
Introduction
There are many ways to bake a pizza at home but they all have the same goal: very hot base so moisture is not trapped between the crust and the heating surface. This results in a crisp crust, not a soggy one.
Pan Pizza Method
This is my favorite method. It is easy, little cleanup, and the crust turns out nice and crisp.
This
is ready to go into the oven. I can't wait!
Put the pan on the bottom rack at 450 degrees for 20 minutes or until
the cheese is slightly brown.
Pizza Stone Method
This is the type of pizza stone I use. The goal of a pizza stone is to emulate the pizzeria oven which has a hot, hot, hot stone base (really made from sand) that gives pizza its crisp, brown bottom.
The stone needs to be on the lowest rack and preheated at 450
degrees for 1 hour so it is nice and hot when the pizza goes on
it. I sprinkle some cornmeal on it to prevent sticking.
Slide the pizza on the hot stone in the oven with a pizza peel. Cook the
pizza until the cheese is slightly brown.
Perforated Pizza Pan Method
The pizza is placed on a pan which in turn is placed on an oven rack. Typically, the pizza is cooked at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or so. This method is best for frozen pizzas and not homemade ones since the results are marginal.
Pizza Pan Method
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. The pizza is placed on a pan which in turn is placed on the center oven rack. Typically, the pizza is cooked for 20 minutes or so. This method is best for frozen pizzas and not homemade ones since the dough turns out a little gooey.
