tony b Posted July 9, 2017 Report Posted July 9, 2017 I bought this Lodge cast iron one for dual use on the KK and on the double burner arrangement on the stove top. I've not tried a pizza on it, it was primarily for smash burgers, quick sears of sous vide steaks, etc. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B002CMLTXG
SmallBBQr Posted July 10, 2017 Report Posted July 10, 2017 Keep in mind there is really nothing special required for these. Something to check out if you have a steel shop/welder/fabricator in your neighbourhood. You can easily use A15 mild steel as a grilling steel and it is easily cut with the right tools. After showing a lady in my office the grilling steel/pizza pics, she had her husband get a friend in the business cut her one to use....cost them a case of beer. 1
Syzygies Posted July 10, 2017 Report Posted July 10, 2017 17 hours ago, SmallBBQr said: Keep in mind there is really nothing special required for these. Something to check out if you have a steel shop/welder/fabricator in your neighbourhood. You can easily use A15 mild steel as a grilling steel and it is easily cut with the right tools. After showing a lady in my office the grilling steel/pizza pics, she had her husband get a friend in the business cut her one to use....cost them a case of beer. Yes. However affordable steel plate has what can generously be described as a "compound" surface. When Baking Steels were first introduced, there was a flurry of posts on the web describing how to completely clean a generic steel plate down to bare metal, before seasoning it properly. I decided that Baking Steel was worth the price. I can't speak to the food safety of whatever surface coating is left on if one is oblivious to this issue, and it's not clear by what mechanism harm would be imparted to a pizza crust. In my business however (mathematician), lack of imagination is not an accepted form of proof. I do know that galvanized metal is toxic in a cooker, so the question at least deserves to be asked. Lead glazes for storing wine helped bring down the Roman Empire, and recent cases of botulism among Eskimos are usually due to swapping in modern plastics while fermenting seal meat and such. These are both great examples of evolutionary pressure, still working. Always think twice before engaging in a novel food handling procedure, if one doesn't want to qualify for the Darwin Awards. 1
Syzygies Posted July 10, 2017 Report Posted July 10, 2017 (edited) My Fibrament-D baking stone happens to be 13" x 16" x 1" (special order $78 in 2014). It does not fit on the upper grates (lid won't close), but it fits with room to spare on the main grates. I chose this size to match a kiln stone of these dimensions, with the wrong thermal characteristics. 14" x 16" x 1" is a standard size they cut down for me. This stone is ideal for two loaves of bread side-by-side; a round stone is better suited to pizza. I own 15" diameter round Baking Steels on both coasts. For my New York apartment I custom ordered 1/2" thick, which weighs nearly 30 lbs. For California I went 1/4" thick so my wife could lift it. The difference in baking performance is modest but real. Any eBay knockoff promoting even thinner steels will be happy to tell you how little this matters. A 16" diameter round would be ideal for the Komodo Kamado, but just too big to fit in an indoor oven. Better to maintain flexibility (these also make awesome griddles for flatbreads such as homemade English Muffins). So my advice is to buy a 15" diameter baking steel, as thick as you can stand lifting and paying for. Edited July 10, 2017 by Syzygies 2
SmallBBQr Posted July 10, 2017 Report Posted July 10, 2017 (edited) 1 hour ago, Syzygies said: Yes. However affordable steel plate has what can generously be described as a "compound" surface. When Baking Steels were first introduced, there was a flurry of posts on the web describing how to completely clean a generic steel plate down to bare metal, before seasoning it properly. I decided that Baking Steel was worth the price. I can't speak to the food safety of whatever surface coating is left on if one is oblivious to this issue, and it's not clear by what mechanism harm would be imparted to a pizza crust. In my business however (mathematician), lack of imagination is not an accepted form of proof. I do know that galvanized metal is toxic in a cooker, so the question at least deserves to be asked. Lead glazes for storing wine helped bring down the Roman Empire, and recent cases of botulism among Eskimos are usually due to swapping in modern plastics while fermenting seal meat and such. These are both great examples of evolutionary pressure, still working. Always think twice before engaging in a novel food handling procedure, if one doesn't want to qualify for the Darwin Awards. Here's a little blurb from some pizza guys....take it FWIW. https://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php?topic=31267.0 As with many things in life, a certain minimum IQ and amount of research can help with many things. That's why a specific grade of steel is suggested for it's composition and not some generic piece of steel from the local wrecker. https://www.onlinemetals.com/productguides/alloycat.cfm?alloy=A36 Unfortunately, I don't think anyone is immune to having preconceived notions about anything these days. Everything seems to get myth-busted all the time.... Just ran into this for example. I would have sworn 10 minutes ago that stainless steel was imperious to leaching....now....who knows. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4284091/ Hmmm.... Though in the end, I'm sure it will be something else that kills me. Edited July 10, 2017 by SmallBBQr 1
tony b Posted July 13, 2017 Report Posted July 13, 2017 Like the saying goes, Your gonna die from something.
Pequod Posted July 16, 2017 Report Posted July 16, 2017 A little example of why a baking steel griddle is awesome. This is the griddle side of the same steel I use on my KK for pizza and smash burgers. Indoors, we're doing English muffins today for eggs Benedict made with some leftover Wagyu tri tip. 4
DennisLinkletter Posted July 20, 2017 Report Posted July 20, 2017 I really miss English Muffins.. year ago I could by Thomas' English muffins frozen in a restaurant supply house but that dried up.. Gotta try making them myself.. those look awesome. Miss those Nooks & Crannies!
Pequod Posted July 20, 2017 Report Posted July 20, 2017 (edited) 39 minutes ago, DennisLinkletter said: I really miss English Muffins.. year ago I could by Thomas' English muffins frozen in a restaurant supply house but that dried up.. Gotta try making them myself.. those look awesome. Miss those Nooks & Crannies! They're super easy. I used the recipe on the Baking Steel website. This is the one: http://www.bakingsteel.com/blog/english-muffin-recipe Edited July 20, 2017 by Pequod
MacKenzie Posted July 20, 2017 Report Posted July 20, 2017 I agree, I have made that many times. We'll give it a two thumbs up.
