Baking Stone
I would like to purchase a baking stone. I am justifying this due to the abundant baking books I have and my desire for freshly baked bread. I am uncertain what type/brand would be sufficient for my needs. I have an electric oven, I don't know if this makes a difference or not. I do anticipate making pizza every now and again. But baking breads and other savory items are what I will be doing most of all. I appreciate any suggestions. Thanks!
gabby29
Jan 07, 2008 11:29PM
You can get a nice baking stone via catalog/ internet from King Arthur, Chefs catalog among others, or in stores at Bed Bath and Beyond. I purchased my current stone at a Pampered Chef party.
You can also buy terra cotta tiles at a home supply store, and place them on a 1/2 sheet pan.
They work fine in both gas or electric ovens.
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Supposedly the one from King Arthur is top rated by CI. I am also interested in hearing about people's first hand experiences with various stones.
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I bought a 12" square marble floor tile from Home Depot, which works well for my needs, though it's obviously too small for a large pizza. It's lasted longer than the ceramic baking stone that I paid much more for, and which cracked when I heated it up too fast or too hot or something.
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Here's what I'm coveting right now. Expensive, but it gets great reviews. I've gone through one stone and two sets of terra cotta tiles and am ready for something I'm hoping will last a little longer.
http://www.bakingstone.com/
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I purchased one of the Fibrament stones (rectangular) about a year ago mostly for doing pizza. It may be a tad more expensive, but it's (by far) the best stone I've ever used.
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Thanks for the empirical information (as in, your stone ain't blowed up) and the pointers, both of you (JoanN and grampart). Much appreciated.
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I own a nice baking stone, but prefer to use a rack full of half-thickness fire bricks. They take a lot longer to heat up, but they also hold the heat better, so the results are closer to what you get from a brick oven. They're porous, so crusts come out right, and they don't deteriorate and crack like quarry tile.
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Where does one get fire bricks?
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I would look in your phone book under"masonry supplies" Masons who build chimneys will be able to get the firebrick that are required to construct the hearth.
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Welding supply outfits can also supply firebrick, or at least aim you at someone who does.
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I have an inexpensive round unglazed pizza stone, and it works great for baking bread. I can fit three medium loaves of ciabatta (say, 12 by 6), and it gives a great, crispy crust result.
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My baking stone cracked at high heat. Now a use the thin fire bricks and they work fine. Less expensive too.
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We used a round baking stone and made some excellent thin crust pizza over the weekend. I have also used unglazed quarry tiles (reddish in color). They are inexpensive and work well. If baking bread you need to heat them ahead of time in the oven. Not sure if you also need to spritz to create a steamy environment, I defer to hounds who are bread bakers. Depending on your oven you can keep them on the oven floor (might not be an option since your oven is electric) or stack them up and put them away when they are not in use.
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You can pick up a baking stone at pretty much any "Linens and Things" or "Bed Bath and Beyond" that will do the trick. They're not always the thickest, but they'll definitely hold heat well. For around $10, it's not going to break the bank, and it'll definitely make a difference on thicker pizza crusts.
A bit off-topic, but I'm a fan of thin pizza crusts and I generally make those in a thin pan, brushed with olive oil, pre-baking at 500F for 4-5 minutes to firm up the crust. It makes for a wonderful quattro formaggio if you then toss on a few pine nuts and some taleggio, parmesan, grana padana and a little provolone and put it on the middle rack under the broiler, until the cheese bubbles up.
My Blog: http://www.epicureforum.com
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Will spritzing create a problem for an electric oven? Novel question I'm certain but I've only made bread in a gas oven in the past.
What's the highest temperature I can use with a stone to prevent cracking? Or is this only an issue if they aren't heated properly?
As for tiles/bricks/and the like, how many will I need and do I place the bread on top of these or place them in a sheet pan on the rack below?
I see the opinions are split, does anyone utilize both a stone and tiles? What items are best for either/both?
Thanks for all your help. You've given me lots to consider.
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I've been using the same pizza stone that I bought in the '80s thru a PBS show called the Pizza Gourmet. I bake pizza at least twice a week and bread (it will hold two large loaves) once a week. Here in the mountains we mostly have electirc ovens but I've also used it with gas and have always used a spray bottle with my bread. No cracks. Stone or tiles make sure you have enough space (about an inch) at the edges for heat to circulate and make sure you pre-heat. You can usually get the unglazed quary tiles at Home Depot if you get an interested employee and they will cut them for you if needed. Try a search at thefreshloaf.com for discussions on this, also pizzamaking.com (I think you have to register there).
We'd all like to hear how it works out, good luck!
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I LOVED the pizza gourmet. He was the antithesis of today's movie-star food personalities....
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A rack full of tiles are a pain when you want to do something directly on them, they shift as they heat and are an extra hassle. The edges can sometimes break down a bit and shed a sandy material on the floor of the oven.
Each material has limits to how hot it can get, but more important is how slowly /quickly you try and heat / cool it. Thermal shock is the real enemy. Even room temp heavy/dense dough on a 400+ piece of anything that is not from NASA has the potential to shatter -- likewise trying to "speed up" the preheat by using BROIL is a giant mistake (don't ask my spouse about that...).
There are kits that allow you to line nearly the whole oven. While I think certain kinds of crusty bread would benefit from the extra radiant surfaces the pre-heat time would be extended and the potential for oven damage exists. Generally oven makers discourage placing a solid layer of material around the oven as it could trick the sensors into thinking the oven is under or overheated depending on where the sensor is in relation to the heat source. It makes sense to have an independent thermometer to rely on instead of the built in setting when using baking stones.
The greatest benefit seems to be when the baked item sits directly on the stone.
When it comes to spritzing the same consideration must be observed -- a heavy enough squirt is going to quickly cause cool and thermal stress, while quick light mists will be ok. Obviously you don't want the moisture to be directed to the heating element in an electric oven, but otherwise things should be OK -- afterall the electrical connections are generally waterproof enough to allow use of Easy-Off and similar watery cleaners.
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The author of "Bread Alone" and "Local Breads" suggests the Hearthkit, which is a little expensive at ~ $200, but seems kind of cool. Unfortunately, it is a little too big to fit in the main compartment of my oven.
Might be worth looking into for some, though.
http://www.hearthkitchen.com/
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I measured the floor of my oven (gas). I kept the unglazed quarry tiles in the oven most of the time. I usually pre-heated up to 500. Never a problem. Might be a problem to get a pizza out of the oven if you don't have a pizza peel and don't want to move the tiles from the oven floor to the rack when making pizza. Don't remember the price difference between baking stone and unglzed quarry tiles.
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I got mine several yrs ago from Pampered Chef - God how I despise those stupid home parties. UGH! This stone and a push up measuring cup thing are the only beneficial things I got out of those stupid parties. Oh, and a zester. :-)
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Thank you all for the wonderful responses. I think I'm going to go with the stone from King Arthur's catalog. It is large and has been tested by CI which actually matters in this case. I considered the heart kit but it leaves little room in the oven for anything else and for my purposes that isn't practical. Although I do have an internal thermometer, what are your opinions on the digital ones that reside on the outside? Are they more accurate/beneficial particularly for those that bake frequently?
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I think a digital internal thermo is more useful for roasting needs than for baking. I do check my breads internal temp before removing from the oven, but you can accurately guage by color and time for most baked goods.
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Not in my experience. A probe thermometer is crucial for breads, at least in my oven, and especially for breads baked in a loaf pan. It is hard to judge the interior doneness by the browning of the upper crust....stick in the probe thermo, and you'll instantly know if the interior temp has reached 205 (or 210, or whatever adjacent temp is appropriate for your particular loaf). Pain de mie/pullman loaves are esp hard for me to judge without a thermometer.
I do agree that cookies, cakes, pies, other baked goods are easy to judge by color/time.
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I use a big old piece of Penn. Blue-Stone... well, maybe slab is a better word for it. It just barely fits in a standard overn (leaves about 2 in gap all around) and is 1 1/4 in thick! It takes about an hour to really get up to temperature, but once it's there, it holds the temp. well. Another bonus -- it was free. I found at a local landscaping shop, apparently the stone had fallen and cracked in half, they didn't want it, but I did. :)
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