How to Build an Outdoor Woodfire Oven
A homemade wood-fired oven is a daunting task for the uninitiated. The process will take a little over one week's time to complete, yet the reward is large. Once completed, you will have your very own clay oven capable of cooking a variety of delicious wood-fired foods right in your backyard. While the project is time-consuming, the materials are basic and readily available. Learn how to build the oven and enjoy the outcome.
Instructions
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1
Put the wood pallet on a flat, even surface where you want the oven to stand. Choose a location that you are comfortable with since the oven will be very difficult to move once completed.
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2
Put one layer of red bricks on top of the pallet so that it is covered. The bricks can be arranged in rows or columns as long as the are orderly.
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3
Moisten the sand so that it is easily pliable and mold a mound to act as the support for the clay dome . Build the mound into a perfect hemisphere as large as you would like the dome of the oven to be.
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4
Moisten sheets of newspaper and apply two layers over the sand mound.
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5
Apply the clay on top of the newspaper in a thickness of 3 inches. It is easiest to apply the clay to the base of the dome and work to the top. Mold separate pieces of clay together, once on the dome, with wet hands. Allow the clay to dry for two hours before resuming work on the oven.
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Cut an arched hole into the clay dome so that the apex of the arch reaches exactly 2/3 of the way up the dome.
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Slowly pull all of the sand out from the arched opening. Do not worry about the newspaper, as it will burn off during the first fire.
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8
Survey the exterior of the clay dome and patch any cracks with fresh clay. Work the clay into the cracks so that the exterior is even. Allow the clay to dry for one full week before lighting your first wood-fire inside the dome.
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References
- Photo Credit Pizza image by Daniele Cruciani.it from Fotolia.com
