Summer Is Here So Why Not Build Your Own Pizza Oven
Is there anyone who doesn’t like pizza? We really doubt it! Thin, crispy dough, tasty toppings and aromatic herbs – a pizza prepared using high-quality ingredients is a real feast of flavours. Especially if it is prepared traditionally in a wood-fired oven. The taste of a dish prepared this way is unique.
Construct your own pizza oven
If you are a fan of this Italian delicacy and you enjoy spending time with your loved ones preparing food, you might want to consider building your own pizza oven in the garden. Imagine candle-lit evenings filled with conversations and laughter of friends and family, spending time in the open air, lighting a fire in the oven and baking the best pizzas you’ve ever had.
Do you want to find out exactly how the process of building your own pizza oven looks like? We have prepared a thorough guide with a list of all the necessary materials.
Preparing the base
The first step in building your own pizza oven outside is to choose the right place. Choose one that will be fairly level – this will save you extra work.
Once you have chosen the right spot, it is time to prepare the foundation. The foundation will provide adequate insulation from the ground, and will allow you to set the oven at a convenient height. It will also act as a stable support because the stove is heavy. Concrete, brick or stone is most often used for making the foundation, although the furnace can also be placed on a wooden structure.
Creating a solid foundation and place for the oven
The base of the furnace should be created on the prepared foundation. The bottom is lined with glass bottles or broken glass, which provides additional insulation to help maintain the right temperature in the oven. The base is usually formed by placing a few centimetres layer of clay (often mixed with straw). At this stage of construction, you have to be patient, because sometimes up to a month is needed for the clay to dry.
Construction of the pizza oven
The pizza oven should have the shape of a dome. It is usually built on a wooden skeleton or forms of wet sand, which are covered with bricks, connected using mortar.
The dome is constructed using fire bricks and special, heat-resistant mortar. However, there are also other options. One of them is to use a special mixture and cast the desired shape from it. It is also possible to create a dome from clay. For this purpose, a mound of sand of the desired shape is heaped on the fire brick with which the oven is lined. It is covered with wet newspapers and clay, and after the mass has dried, a hole is cut through which the sand is removed. After building the dome, wait until the form is completely dry, and then remove the supporting structure.
The oven door and finishing
You can also install doors in the dome. It is not necessary for baking pizza due to the fact that thin dough is baked very quickly. However, if you decide to build an outdoor oven, it is worth installing a door that will allow you to bake bread and prepare other dishes as well. It is recommended to use steel doors that will maintain the temperature and will last for many years. Remember that it is crucial for the doors to be perfectly airtight.
The last necessary step in finishing the oven is its insulation. For this purpose, ceramic fibre mats are usually used, which are covered with a special cement layer. Once all these steps are completed, the over in ready for use. Of course, we also recommend modifying the appearance of the oven according to your preferences.
Starting up the oven for the first time
This step should be carried out carefully. It is best to heat the oven up slowly, starting from a low temperature and gradually increasing it. This is necessary to prevent cracks appearing on the dome.
Materials needed for the construction of a pizza oven
As you can see, the process of building a DIY pizza oven is not as complicated as it might seem. You need a bit of patience, as each layer has to dry completely before you continue to the next step, but the work itself is not very difficult. You can use materials and semi-finished products which are specially prepared for this purpose and will significantly simplify and speed up the whole task. By selecting high-quality materials, you will be sure that the oven will warm up properly and maintain a sufficiently high temperature to bake the tastiest food.
All the materials you need to build a pizza oven yourself can be found here