For years, I've baked pizza on an unglazed, 15" terra cotta stone that cost around $30. It radiates heat more evenly, which seemed to do the trick (What do I know? I grew up on Boboli).
Then my pal Jon, a pro pizzaiolo, starting coming around. The pies he crafted with our stone are delicious: light homemade dough, fresh local ingredients (including sunny-side egg). When he reported not being especially pleased with the results, I figured he was being modest. Nope. I began to realize he's right. Every slice from an artisan-style pizza joint just tastes better. Why?
Cooking at 700F+ vs. the puny 500F pumped out by my standard oven/range is part of the secret. Turns out baking with a lone stone is too. The solution: $13.50 worth of ceramic firebricks plucked from a landscape supply yard. Details after the jump -- plus, the taste test that convinced me you don't have to shell out big bucks or construct a huge outdoor oven to boost the quality of a homemade pie.
To start, do you need to buy the priciest pizza stone available? "Note that more money does not necessarily buy a better stone," according to Cook's Illustrated. OK, that's your cue to be cheap. Drop $30 on a basic pizza stone and you're literally half way there. You just need the firebricks...
http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2009/05/01/how-to-build-the-ult.html
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