What's for Dinner?

[vinny]

Now if you're cooking at 800+ degrees, it's probably a Neapolitan style dough which usually is a shorter ferment...if so ignore the above suggestion.

I give the oven a really good preheat because the flame is on top. There is nothing to heat the stone from below so the pizza is always pulling heat from it. On high I can brown the top in seconds. So I heat it up good and and hot then turn it to low to get a slower even cook.

Mostly I am just wingin it!

I would appreciate a recipe if you have a good one to share. I am always in pursuit of the ever elusive perfect pizza.

 

[ceeaton]

Okay, I'll give you the concepts I learned from The Elements of Pizza by Ken Forkish book I have.

The faster the cook time, the lower the hydration of the dough. So for example, a Neapolitan Pizza made in a 900*F oven in Naples will have between a 55 and 58% water content, because the pizza cooks in 90 seconds. The reason is that the pizza crust must set so it can be quickly rotated from the heat source or the part towards the heat initially will blacken too much.

But at my oven temps of 550*F, that same pizza will take 7 or 8 minutes to cook and loose tons of moisture while cooking, so I aim for 65% hydration or higher. Now for a NY style crust, the end product is crisper, so a lower hydration is used. For this last round cooking in my oven, I used a dough that was about 64% hydration, and it came out pretty good. I'd go higher for a Neapolitan type dough.

That being said, this was my last attempt:
48-72 hour NY Pizza dough (pg 124 of the book)
310g water
500g hi-gluten flour
14g sea salt (about 2 1/2 tsp)
1.2g (a little more that 1/4 tsp)
1 dollop sourdough discard (around a TBS, this should bring hydration up to about 320g for the 500g of flour, which is 64%. If you don't add any discard, increase the water to 320g)

You want the water around 90*F or lower. I use a digital scale to measure my weights (zero out for the container). I use a dough hook to mix since it's lower hydration and hi-gluten flour, about 90 seconds. Form into a rough ball and let rest covered in the mixing bowl for about 30 minutes. Cut into two 400-425g pieces and form into round balls. Add some olive oil to containers (with lids), coat balls, put the top on and throw in fridge for 2-3 days. I have used a pin to make a hole in the top of the lid so the lid doesn't pop off.

The day you are going to cook the pizzas, take the containers out of the fridge about 2 hours before you need them. A room temp dough seems to let the gluten relax a bit more. Also note some of the gluten proteins have been reduced by the slow fermentation in the fridge, plus the by-product of the fermentation is a nice added flavor (and you get more if you add the sourdough discard).

A 400g+ dough ball will easily make a 16" pizza. Use less if you want a smaller diameter, the book breaks a batch into 3-5 individual doughs as they must have a really small pizza stone/steel. But we all know that size doesn't matter (at least that is what she said).

Hope that gives you something to ponder and play with...

 

[cmason1957]

I find your logic hard to argue with.

Would you mind sharing your model. I have no idea what I want to buy. I'm still sussing out the options.

I have a Cook Shack electric smoker. I do love it, it is built like a tank. Very heavy duty. Works great. If it ever dies, I probably would not buy another one of these. I have the smallest model they make and I think they now run about $1000, it seems a bit high to me.

 

[Kraffty]

Salad, potato salad and baby backs finished with a store bought Korean BBQ sauce.

 

[Boatboy24]

 

[Mcjeff]

Beautiful day again, only issue is that we need rain and there isn't any in the forecast for the next 10 days. Playing with my food as I usually do, today was a dough experiment using the KettlePizza at 800*F temps. So lowered the hydration of my doughs, one set 24 hours in fridge with 00 flour, another same day with minimal yeast and ferment at room temps (also 00 flour) and one a NY style crust fermented in the fridge for 2 days. All except the NY style used 55% hydration (NY style 62%).

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All had nice char spotting (aka leoparding) on the bottom of the crust. Last pizza pictured was cooked as the temps fell through the 700s. Had two pizzas with bubbles that "blew up" and one charred nicely! 1st pizza of the day was a GF for my son done inside in the oven since he despises "char" (not pictured).

24 hour fridge ferment dough was the hands down winner for cooking in the KettlePizza (images 3 & 4). Of course those went to my neighbor next door, lol.

My beer pizza Doug recipe is also best after overnight in the fridge

 

[Mcjeff]

The big easy is an oil less turkey fryer. Pretty similar results as the rotisserie, but I wasn't gonna try to spin a crown roast.

Turned out nice and juicy! The outside was like plain and kinda boring ribs, so I think I have to smoke the next one. don't get me wrong... It was delicious, but salt and pepper ribs vs smoke. There is no comparison.

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I have one of those. I use it mostly with wings. Agree I use my smoker more.

 

[bstnh1]

Hot off the Weber Smokey Mountain.

 

[Mcjeff]

@vinny
I have a Bradley Electric Smoker. (I may have posted this before).
They have a new model. Professional P10,4 Rack, Electric Smoker
Also. It is Canadian!

 

[vinny]

Hot off the Weber Smokey Mountain.

@vinny
I have a Bradley Electric Smoker. (I may have posted this before).
They have a new model. Professional P10,4 Rack, Electric Smoker
Also. It is Canadian!

Enablers, The whole lot a ya!

Thanks @Mcjeff I was going to ask. Going to the city tomorrow, Costco. Thinking a new guitar might be in order, and you never know what I might stumble across. If I had a smoker I'd be smoking right now I tell ya! That chicken looks damn good, as does @Boatboy24's fine work.

At this point I don't really care how it's fuelled, It's the complete absence of smoke that is my complaint.

 

[bstnh1]

Enablers, The whole lot a ya!

Thanks @Mcjeff I was going to ask. Going to the city tomorrow, Costco. Thinking a new guitar might be in order, and you never know what I might stumble across. If I had a smoker I'd be smoking right now I tell ya! That chicken looks damn good, as does @Boatboy24's fine work.

At this point I don't really care how it's fuelled, It's the complete absence of smoke that is my complaint.

With all the wildfires up there can't you just hang a chunk of meat on the clothesline and smoke it?

 

[ibglowin]

Not for dinner but this will help take dinner over the top! Nice to have friends in low places as well as in the right places.

 

[vinny]

With all the wildfires up there can't you just hang a chunk of meat on the clothesline and smoke it?

I've been really fortunate. It's all immigrating south.

There was a bad stretch a couple of weeks ago and we are in a light haze right now, but I have been in way worse with BC smoke moving in. Considering how close it is we are very fortunate. I think the evacuation alert is to the next Township road south of me.

 

[vinny]

Not for dinner but this will help take dinner over the top! Nice to have friends in low places as well as in the right places.

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This would seal the deal on fuel source. The only viable option I have is Birch. If the property was loaded with good smoking wood there wouldn't be a question.

 

[vinny]

Because I don't have a smoker.

 

[ibglowin]

This would seal the deal on fuel source. The only viable option I have is Birch. If the property was loaded with good smoking wood there wouldn't be a question.

Walmart carries lots of different wood chunks these days for smokers. Just use some good grade lump charcoal as a base and then use a few wood chunks on top. Add more chunks as needed depending on the length of your cook.

https://www.walmart.com/search?q=wood chunks for smokers&typeahead=wood chunks

 

[bstnh1]

Pizza feast tonight - with plenty left over for lunches this week!

 

[bstnh1]

Walmart carries lots of different wood chunks these days for smokers. Just use some good grade lump charcoal as a base and then use a few wood chunks on top. Add more chunks as needed depending on the length of your cook.

https://www.walmart.com/search?q=wood chunks for smokers&typeahead=wood chunks

Lowes and Home Depot also carry wood chunks for smoking.

 

[ceeaton]

Got the sawdust burner going early today. Forecast had a nice day on tap, rain yesterday, rain tomorrow. Tossed on a 7 lb pork butt and let it cook. Some leftover "competition" pellets and added some hickory pellets on top. Started out for about 4 hours at 225*F, ramped up to 250 for an hour, checked temp (was 165 or so) and wrapped in foil, pushed to 300*F. Checked 2 hours before dinner and was hanging at 205-208. Turned off the sawdust burner and let rest. Pulled really quickly and had a nice smokey flavor and aroma.

Yum!

 

[Boatboy24]

Got the sawdust burner going early today. Forecast had a nice day on tap, rain yesterday, rain tomorrow. Tossed on a 7 lb pork butt and let it cook. Some leftover "competition" pellets and added some hickory pellets on top. Started out for about 4 hours at 225*F, ramped up to 250 for an hour, checked temp (was 165 or so) and wrapped in foil, pushed to 300*F. Checked 2 hours before dinner and was hanging at 205-208. Turned off the sawdust burner and let rest. Pulled really quickly and had a nice smokey flavor and aroma.

Yum!

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Somehow I missed (or forgot) that you got a pellet pooper.