Pizza on the SNS Deluxe Kamado

[jfmorris]

WillieMac was asking me in some comments in another discussion thread about setting up the SNS Kamado for pizza, so I thought I would show a pizza cook from last summer here, in case it helps.

I built a fire in the bottom, using lump charcoal, with several starter cubes. You could also dump a lit chimney on top of unlit charcoal to get a head start on this. Run with the vents all wide open at first.



Here's where I end up. Usually in the 650 to 700 range. I snapped this picture around 600 just to record my vents at that point. Takes about 45 minutes to get here WITHOUT using a chimney (just 3 lighter cubes in the bed of charcoal).



First pizza on...



Note that you need to yank that parchment paper out from under the pizza after about 1 minute. I.e. close the lid, open a minute later, pull it out. Otherwise it burns. I turn the pizza 3 times during the cook, 90 degrees each turn. Cook takes 7-8 minutes tops at these temps. Less if you go hotter.




As you can see, there are flames all around the deflector. Depending on what stone you use, you may be better on the main grate with it. I was kinda perched on the elevated grate, reasoning that the higher it was in the dome, the hotter.

[58limited]

Looks great! I haven't done pizza on my SnSK yet.

[Rod]

Great looking pies!

[RonB]

I'd be very happy with those. (PMing you my mail addy now. )

[WillieMac]

jfmorris Looks great, and thanks for the temp/prep advice on the MCS-Charcoal Grill Time page. I used Kingsford Professional - raked the "old" ashes (I did a test fire in the AM) out into a bucket for best air flow, started with nearly a 1/4 bag & firestarter on the charcoal grate, and lit a half-chimney a few minutes later, reasoning it'd ash over faster. Tossed those in when ready and inserted the deflector, main grill and our stone. Lid down, bottom vent open all the way. At another poster's suggestion, took the top vent cap off completely, which really got it roaring. But that seemed to slow at around 500 so I replaced the cap, full open and opened the vent. Also reached in with a tool and tapped up under the grate, thinking I'd knock some ash loose and free up air flow. It immediately began climbing steadily. In about 45 total minutes, I reached 650. My wife had done all the prep and had sprinkled semolina on the wooden peel. It didn't exactly slide off the peel but made it with little urging. Took 10 minutes.

About 5 minutes in

The underside, done

Homemade pizza and homemade beer. What a treat!

So, pretty happy with this. I'll use more charcoal next time but stick with this Pro stuff (advertised as "low ash" and frankly, it was) for consistency. I see you and other Kamado folks are lump fans. I'm not - seems like a big dusty mess to me - but I should clearly try it to see if I can get to 700.

[jfmorris]

Looks great!

You ought to see if you can get B&B lump anywhere near. I’ve had great luck with that -and not a dusty mess. It is just so much lower ash than Kingsford due to the lack of binders used in briquettes. And this comes from someone who had at one time a stockpile of 60 to 80 20 pound bags of Kingsford in my garden shed

[jfmorris]

Question - is that a ceramic pizza stone you used, or a steel or cast iron "stone"? I ask because it is black, and I am curious by nature, haha....

Also - what is the beer? I am a homebrewer as well, and that looks like the porter I was drinking all day yesterday, which is on tap in my garage...

[fzxdoc]

jfmorris and WillieMac , I like the way the bottoms are not burned in places on those pies. Char on bread is such a turnoff, IMO.

Kathryn

[WillieMac]

I don't mind a little but the missus does

[WillieMac]

jfmorris Perhaps it was the brand I tried out. Whose lump do you recommend?

[jfmorris]

The ones I tried and did not like were Cowboy and Royal Oak. So far I really like B&B lump and briquettes, which for me is available at a place called Academy (sporting goods). Ace Hardware also carries it. Here it is $12.99 for 20 pound bag.

I find that lump lights faster, burns hotter, and produces less ash. It also works better for reuse, if I shutdown the grill and want to relight old charcoal it seems to light better than partially burned briquettes do.

[WillieMac]

jfmorris I'd tried the Royal Oak lump. I have an Ace nearby so will pick up some B&B and give it a try. My stone is an old Pampered Chef Stoneware model that this cook turned a deeper black/brown while heating up (weirdly, the bottom retained the original clay brown color). Worked nicely. The homebrew is a black IPA, one of my go-to beers. The basic recipe is called Back in Black. It drinks lighter than it looks. Google it; the 21st Amendment Brewery recipe should pop up.

[jfmorris]

I’ve got a black IPA recipe here, but it’s been almost a decade since I brewed it. I’ll take a look at the recipe you mention. Sounds tasty!

Right now due to a home renovation I’ve only got one beer on tap - a robust porter that I brewed in February. Reno is almost done though, and I’ve got 9 empty kegs that need beer in them… of course, now I’ve waited for the bad/hot time of year for brewing….

[jfmorris]

A friend who is moving to Spain and cannot bring "biologicals" into the country gave me a couple hundred pounds of base and specialty malts, much of which is appropriate to Belgian and English beer styles. It's in a dozen 2 gallon and 5-6 5 gallon buckets with O-ring lids out in my garage. I see a lot of brewing in my future. Sadly he did not give me hops or yeast, haha!

[WillieMac]

No prob getting my Deluxe Kamado nice and hot today ... well, scratch one old Pampered Chef pizza stone.

[SheilaAnn]

Oh snap! Pun intended!

[jfmorris]

Ouch!

[jfmorris]

WillieMac I am so sorry to see your pizza stone cracked! Did you put it in and let it preheat with the grill, or did you drop it into the already hot grill? Regardless, you may want to consider replacing it with cast iron for grill use... Lodge sells a 16" one that would work nicely.

I ran pizza tonight down here in Alabama, and used a chimney of lit lump on top of the old lump already in the bowl of the SNS Kamado to get things to 650, and put my Lodge 14" cast iron pizza pan in there to preheat at the same time I added the deflector and grates.

I let top and bottom vents remain wide open until things hit about 550 on the dome thermometer, and then I shut the bottom vent to about where the photo below shows it:



This let it creep up to about 650 and stay there:



I used my pizza dough recipe, which is kind of a NY style crust, which I shared here a few years ago:

https://pitmaster.amazingribs.com/fo...ugh#post880095

Anyway, I made two pies for the wife, daughter, myself and a 16 month old. Son in law went out of town on business, so the daughter and baby are staying with us for a few days. Topping included Newman's Own alfredo sauce, mozerella sliced from a block, mushrooms, black and green olives. The first one was prepped on my very last peice of parchment paper, making it easy to transfer to the grill.



The second one I was out of parchment paper, so I used a lipless pan I have as a peel, with plenty of semolina until it didn't stick to the peel as a stretched the dough.



Slid right off the "peel" onto the "stone"...



I use a Grillgrate tool to spin the pizza every minute or so until it is done - about 5 minutes total...



And... finished product, ready to slice and eat!

[WillieMac]

Nice! Just reading this but a Lodge 16" is arriving today. Fyi, the old one heated up with the grill. It wasn't real thick and I think was really aimed at kitchen oven-temp pizza baking. Despite the damage, I did manage to finish 3 pies - two with toppings, one of them gluten-free. Raves all around. My wife this AM: "So what are you cooking for us this weekend?" I am loving this grill!

[jfmorris]

WillieMac yeah - I am betting the ceramic on many of these stones was not intended for use beyond the max temp of most home ovens, which is about 500 degrees. We lost our ceramic stones many years ago, and I don't think the wife or I miss them. I think she is the one who cracked them, by putting a cold stone into a hot oven, or something like that. She sure would not have let me drag them out to the grill, haha.

Glad you got the pizza done regardless, and I'm with you on this grill!

[rlozinak]

That pie looks great!

[jfmorris]

Thanks! I was too lazy to grate the mozzarella, and the way the slices melted, it worked out ok. In fact it was probably a thicker layer of cheese than normal, due to thickness of the slices I made off the block of cheese.

[Argoboy]

I read your post and we made pizza tonight with good results using your dough recipe but I was unable to get my Primo XL over 450F. I started the Primo an hour before our cook and after the cook was over I left it on and an hour later it was still at 450F. I suspect my problem is lump charcoal that is too small in size and not enough air flow? I have tried two different bags of charcoal and both seem to be small in sizes.
Here is the finished product.

[jfmorris]

Pizza looks good! Yeah, airflow is the most likely issue. Some folks take the top vent off the kamado to open things up.