Flexibility: it’s one of the best things about wood fired ovens. With a wood fired oven, you get a lot more control than you would with any other type of oven, especially when it comes to temperature. But with all that flexibility, you might start wondering, “What’s the best pizza oven temperature?”.
How a Wood Fired Pizza Oven Works
To fully understand how to find the best temperature for your wood fired oven, it helps to first know how your oven works.
It seems simple at first glance: the fire inside the dome heats the oven. The dome is usually made some heat-retaining material. This helps the inside keep its heat for longer periods of time.
However, it is important to light your oven several hours in advance. This is true of most ovens, but it’s especially true of wood-fired ones. Just think of all the recipes that ask you to preheat your oven before baking. Preheating your oven ensures that you will be able to attain and maintain the correct temperature for cooking. The larger your oven, the bigger a fire you need, and the longer you need to preheat.
There are plenty of things that can affect how long you need to preheat your oven. First, how large is your oven? You also need to take the weather into account. Is it cold outside, or hot? What firewood are you using? Is your firewood dry, or moist? It is good practice to take all of these factors into account. You will probably need to experiment to find what works best for you and what you like to cook. Take your time. This is also a great opportunity to really get to know your oven.
Building the Fire to Your Desired Temperature
Once your oven is at the right temperature, seal the oven door shut. This has two benefits. First, it will temper the fire, which is good since you’ve already reached your ideal temperature. Next, it will also help the heat to spread to the entire oven chamber.
After some time, you can open the door, and move your firewood to the side. Then, place your pizza on the side opposite your firewood, so you can start baking.
So, What’s the Perfect Pizza Oven Temperature?
There are lots of ways to make a good pizza. You’ll get different results with a variety of different styles. That’s why experimentation is so important. However, you’ll probably be fine with oven temperatures around 700-800 Fahrenheit.
Another good rule of thumb is to have your oven at 800 Fahrenheit, and cook your crust for 90 seconds. This will result in a deliciously crispy pizza.
You can also cook your pizza at 300-400 Fahrenheit. This is the typical temperature range of indoor pizza ovens. In this case, you will have to cook the pizza for 15 minutes. The crust won’t be that crispy, however. So you might want to consider a higher pizza oven temperature.