Whether you make pizza all the time or this is your first time, you need to choose the right temperature for your oven. This way you can ensure that the pizza cooks evenly and tastes great.
Read on to learn more about the ideal pizza oven temperature based on various factors.
Pizza oven temperature
The best oven temperature for pizza varies depending on the oven you use. If you make pizza at home, you may only have a conventional oven. Many conventional ovens can only reach about 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you use a conventional oven, you can bake your pizza at 450 to 500 degrees. However, if you have a pizza oven, it could get twice as hot at 1,000 degrees. However, if you use a pizza oven, you are only allowed to bake your pizza at around 700 to 800 degrees.
Restaurants may have commercial ovens that they use to bake pizza. They can get as hot as a regular pizza oven but can stay at temperatures around 800 degrees.
How to choose the right oven temperature?
I love making homemade pizza about once a month. Luckily I found a pretty good recipe that tells me exactly how hot my oven needs to be.
But maybe you’re still experimenting with recipes. Or maybe you’d rather have a frozen pizza than a homemade dough. To help you choose the right oven temperature for your next pizza, I recommend the following tips.
Consider your oven type
First I would ask you what type of oven you have. As I mentioned earlier, some ovens can bake pizza at much higher temperatures than others.
I usually use my regular home oven, which can get up to 500 degrees. The recipe I use calls for an oven temperature of 475 degrees, which is pretty hot for a home oven, but worth it.
But maybe you are a bigger pizza connoisseur than me and have a pizza oven. You could heat it up to 800 degrees. Then you could bake your pizza faster and make it crispy.
Follow a recipe
My biggest tip for beginners is to look for a good pizza recipe. I did that when I first started making pizza at home and I still use a recipe to this day.
You can easily tell from the recipe how hot the oven needs to be. Plus, I don’t have to worry about overcooking or undercooking the pizza.
If you want your pizza to taste amazing, you need a guide. And if you’re not willing to take a cooking class, a recipe is probably the best you can get.
Think about the type of pizza
I would also compare types of pizza like New York and Chicago. I love the traditional Neapolitan pizza and many of us think of it when we think of pizza. If I had a pizza oven I would heat it to 900 degrees to get the expected flavor.
But I’ve also eaten some delicious Chicago deep-dish pizzas. I’ve heard that you should lower the oven temperature to 400 or 425 degrees when preparing it. Of course, the pizza takes longer to bake, but you can make the crust super fluffy.
I’ve since figured out that the center is where you should make New York-style pizza. I’ve never made this type of pizza, but apparently you should set the oven to around 550 degrees. But if you have a pizza oven, you can bake it at any temperature, up to 800 degrees.
I would experiment with the exact temperature, especially if I didn’t have a recipe. Then I would jot down the perfect temperature for future pizzas.
Watch the oven
One of my favorite things about making pizza is that I can just pop it in the oven and wait for the timer to go off. But I know that if you don’t have a prescription, you don’t have that luxury.
If I had to make pizza without a recipe, I would make extra dough. Then I would choose the lowest temperature I want to try for the first pizza.
Maybe I’ll raise the temperature for the next round. But if the temperature seems okay, I’d recommend experimenting with the cooking time. If the pizza is burning, I would decrease the cooking time and maybe even watch the oven every few minutes to see if the pizza looks any different.
That way I would know when the cheese is melting and the crust is starting to brown. However, I would also prevent the pizza from being completely ruined by being in the oven for too long.
Use a thermometer
I’ve never had to do this, but maybe I’ll go out and buy an infrared thermometer. When researching the correct pizza oven temperature, I learned that you should aim for an internal temperature of between 200 and 205 degrees.
It can be as hot as 210 degrees, but be careful not to let the pizza get much hotter. I would point the thermometer at the pizza to make sure it was the right temperature.
If it’s too cold I would set a timer for about a minute. Yes, I’d rather sit longer, but I don’t want to overcook the pizza, so I would use the thermometer every minute or so until the pizza is done.
Keep the pizza warm
A few weeks ago, I started making pizza a little earlier than I was going to eat. So I baked the pizza as normal, but then lowered the temperature to keep the food warm.
The oven was turned down to about 180 degrees. This was hot enough to keep the pizza fresh and when my family and I finally got to eat it, it was just as delicious.
I like that it gives you more flexibility when baking pizza. Maybe you’re not hungry when it’s ready, or your relative is working a little late one evening. You can still eat well and your work will not be lost.
Why is oven temperature important for pizza?
Choosing the right temperature is crucial when preparing pizza. Because of the crust, it almost resembles baking candy or other baked goods. Baking is like a science because to get the results you want things have to be precise.
Here are some reasons why you need to carefully choose the oven temperature for pizza.
Cook evenly
First you need to make sure the pizza cooks evenly. The crust should rise and an air bubble or two may form. Of course, you also want to make sure the cheese melts completely and all the other ingredients are heated.
If you set the oven temperature too low, your pizza may take too long to cook. And even if it’s fully cooked through, it might not taste good.
You may also have to take the risk of burning the crust so the cheese, for example, melts. This can make it more difficult to enjoy making and eating the pizza.
Expected taste
Depending on the pizza you’re making, the temperature can affect the flavor. While you may need higher heat for one type of pizza, the same temperature for another type of pizza can cause burning.
If you make pizza frequently, you should use the same temperature so that the taste stays the same. Changing a little thing can make a big difference, especially when it comes to the stove.
While you might want to experiment with toppings, these things shouldn’t alter the results. On the other hand, adjusting the temperature could result in the pizza being burnt or undercooked.
