Tips for High Temp (Pizza etc.)

[JDW]

I am new to the "club".  Have had my 32BB for about a year.  When making pizzas on the top rack with the KK pizza stone what dome temp can I expect?  How about surface temp of the stone?  Any other tips/tricks other than full basket of high quality lump and open vents?  Thank you in advance.  My wife says I have an unhealthy obsession with this thing - although she does love the food!

[wrandyr]

You will likely have to do some experimenting to get things dialed in, which should be a pleasurable task in itself. I started out with a round cordierite stone (not the KK stone), aiming for 700°F, which was what worked on my previous rig. 700° was too hot, so I went to 600°F. The tops were burning before the bottom crust was done, so I switched to a 1/4" steel. The bottoms burned before the tops were done. Then I tried with the stone on top of the steel-success! 600° for about 5 minutes. I don't even have to turn them. I have a 21"KK, so YMMV. There are lots of more experienced experts here who will have more tips, and there is for sure more than one path to pizza nirvana.

[tony b]

A lot has to do with your dough. I'm not the go-to for advice in that category, as I'm not the best baker in town by any means. I usually cheat and get a Poppa Murphy's pizza (take it out of their silly cardboard pan.)

As far as the KK goes, I use the KK stone on the top grate. I aim for about 550F dome temp and let the stone heat soak for about an hour before cooking. As @wrandyr said - YMMV. I have a 23" KK. 

[jdbower]

I think the first question is whether you've made pizza in the past and what those conditions looked like. I've done plenty in the oven (because I'm lazy and don't want FDNY knocking on my door!), but that's 500-550F. If I were to do the same on the KK maybe I'd push it a little higher temp, but some of it is experimenting with what you feel is "good" pizza. Here in NYC we've got our own definitions, places where pineapple is common yield different results.

[jonj]

Before I got a wood-burning pizza oven, I used @tony b's technique in the KK: 550°F dome, heat-soak for an hour, pizza stone on the top grate (later I used the pizza stone topped with a baking steel, which enabled a bit more leoparding on the bottom without burning the top), and let the KK recover about 8-10 minutes between pizza launches. I made mostly NY-style or Chicago deep dish. One can't (or at least I couldn't) make a true Neapolitan on a KK. Or maybe because I was unwilling to risk running my KK at 900°F. 00 flour doesn't work as well below 750°F.

As Tony said, you have to match the dough / flour to the temperature you plan to use. As I remember, large lump charcoal made it easier to achieve and maintain the temp. I have a KK23 so the KK32 may be a little different.