Backyard pizza ovens are slowly but surely becoming more and more popular, and anyone who’s made a pizza in them will agree: they yield a really, really great pie. This got us thinking—what else can a pizza oven yield that would benefit from its burnishing, brick oven-esque environment? We put a few different dishes to the test and found it works perfectly as an outdoor oven when used with the proper pans (of course).
If you’re kind of sick of pizza but want to make the most of the final summer nights eating and cooking al fresco, here are our three recommendations for the best pans to be used in your pizza oven—whether you’re making pizza or not—that can be found in our Pizza Oven Sets.
Our 3 Favorite Pans for Pizza Ovens
The following pan recommendations come in a variety of materials, sizes, and shapes, but for the most part, they’re all built to maximize the heat of your pizza oven, whether you’re cooking up a pie or something else entirely.
Carbon Steel Half Griddle
Griddles are an excellent alternative to a pizza steel: not only do they offer plenty of flat, uninterrupted surface area, but they’re typically also made from highly conductive materials like carbon steel—aka, our favorite material for cooking pizza, steak, and a wide variety of other dishes.
Our Carbon Steel Half Griddle is compact enough to fit inside of most home pizza ovens, along with being easy to maneuver on and off a pizza peel.
Carbon Steel Frying Pans
The compact size and shape of our Carbon Steel Frying Pan makes it an excellent option for individual pan pizzas, as well as any proteins or vegetables you might want to cook in your pizza oven. The sloped sides make for particularly crispy edges, and help contain any grease, spilled sauce, or fallen cheese.
Carbon Steel Pizza Steel
For serious pizza lovers, it’s hard to do better than a carbon steel pizza steel. We designed ours with a perforated bottom to maximize air flow, which—paired with the superior heat conduction of carbon steel—results in a light, crispy crust and evenly cooked toppings. It’s great for flatbreads, calzones, and sandwiches as well.
Features to Consider When Choosing Pans for Your Pizza Oven
Since every pizza oven—and pizza cook—is a little different, it’s important to choose a compatible pan.
Material
Steel is much more conductive than pizza stones, meaning that it absorbs and releases heat much quicker. This makes it a lot easier to achieve an airy, bubbly, crispy crust, and also means that your pie or other ingredient cooks in minutes—ideal especially if you’re making multiple pies or dishes in a row. We prefer carbon steel, which, in addition to being highly conductive, is also fairly lightweight, making it easier to transfer pies into and out of the oven.
Cast iron works similarly well for firing up crispy pies—though it’s considerably heavier, and doesn’t heat as quickly or evenly as carbon steel.
Size and Shape
Since most home pizza ovens are fairly compact—most fit a single 16” pie, max—you’ll want to make sure your pizza pan or steel has plenty of clearance when you slide it into the oven. Our Pizza Steel has a diameter of 12.5”, making it compatible with practically any oven.
Handle Design
While most pizza pans don’t come with a handle, alternative options like the above mentioned Carbon Steel Half Griddle and Frying Pan do. Handles can help make your cooking process easier, allowing you to quickly retrieve your meal from the oven when it's done cooking. Just make sure to use a decent pair of high heat-resistant oven mitts.
Benefits of Using Specialized Pans in Your Pizza Oven
Because great pizza is always worth investing in.
Enhanced Cooking Performance
There’s a reason we don’t recommend using just any pan for use in your pizza oven: some—like stainless steel and non stick—don’t have as high a heat tolerance as carbon steel and cast iron, nor do they retain heat as well. Meanwhile, the latter two can hold up to extremely high heat, and yield more uniformly cooked pies, better browning, and a lighter, airier crust.
Durability and Longevity
Whatever cookware you choose for your pizza oven, it’s going to take a beating. With many models reaching up to 950F, having a pan that can stand up to high heat without warping or burning is essential—particularly if you hope to get a lot of use out of it. This is yet another reason to go for carbon steel or cast iron.
Versatility
Of course, you don’t need to own a home pizza oven to use a pizza steel: you can also get great results from cooking your pizza on the grill, oven, or even over an open fire (just watch out for melting cheese!). You can also use it for cooking flatbreads, meats, and veggies, as well as any other foods that might benefit from quick, high heat cooking.
Ready to Cook?
We’re all about investing in our hobbies—especially when one of those hobbies is pizza. And if you’re looking to get the most out of your pizza oven, we have the pans for you.
While you’re at it, check out our Pizza Oven Sets with all of our high heat-optimized Carbon Steel favorites, perfect for maximizing your pizza oven—whether for pizza night or something else entirely.
