How to Use A Pizza Stone To Make Crispier Home Pizza Crust

Using a pizza stone puts a crispier crust on your pizzas.

Making pizza at home saves money and gives you full creative license when it comes to ingredients and sauces. The brick ovens used in pizza parlors reach 800 degrees Fahrenheit; modern home ovens usually don't heat above 500 degrees. But adding a pizza stone or large terra cotta tiles to your home oven can yield the same mouth-watering crispy crust you love at your favorite pizza place.

Things You'll Need

• Cornmeal
• Pizza peel

Instructions

1. Put the pizza stone on the lowest rack in a cold oven. Preheat the oven to its hottest temperature, usually 500 degrees F., with the stone in it so it reaches the correct temperature for creating a crispy crust.

2. Prepare the dough and add the toppings. Sprinkle cornmeal on the pizza peel and the pizza stone so the crust doesn't stick.

3. Lift the pizza off your work surface with the pizza peel and transfer it gently to the pizza stone.

4. Set the timer for 10 minutes, then check the pizza every few minutes after that. Ovens differ so cooking times vary, but in general, a thin crust pizza cooks in 10 to 12 minutes on a stone, a thicker crust in 12 to 15.

5. Take the pizza out of the oven when the cheese melts in the middle and the crust turns golden brown.

6. Cool the stone completely, then wipe it off with a damp cloth. Do not submerge the stone in water or use soap to wash it.

Tips & Warnings

• Do not touch the stone during cooking and for at least 30 minutes to an hour after removing it from the oven as it will be extremely hot.

References

• What's Cooking America: Pizza Making Hints and Tips
• Homemade Pizza Made Easy: Pizza Stone
• Breadtopia: Making Pizza Dough