If you want your pizza to have a nice crisp and well-charred underside, you need a technique and tool to shift it to the blazing-hot surface of your pizza oven. Using a pizza peel (or paddle) – a utensil with a long handle and a flat paddle at the end that is used to place and withdraw pizzas from the oven – is the most effective method for accomplishing this task.
Most experts utilize a peel with a long handle and good quality metal heads with rounded tips to move their pizzas around the oven. They are also used to place the pizzas inside a very hot oven, without having to reach in and burn their hands and arms. But what about those of us who cook at home? Which pizza peel is ideal for use in our Home Pizza Ovens? In this article, you’ll come to know the best types of Pizza Peels! Let’s Commence!
What are the qualities of the Best Pizza Peel?
Some qualities need to be considered while buying a Pizza peel. Let’s discuss some qualities of the best pizza peels.
Shape – Peels used by professional pizza chefs typically feature a circular head. They must be eligible to work with pizzas in every area of a vast oven. The pizza peel with small circular head is used to move the pizzas within the oven.
A square-headed peel is used to ‘launch’ the pizzas inside the oven. The head needs to be big enough to fit the entire pizza onto it.
If you are using a small pizza oven, a square shaped head will be sufficient for launching and removing the pizza. In a small pizza oven, you will not turn the pizza whilst still inside; instead you will remove it slightly from the oven and use your hand to turn the pizza whilst still on the peel. You will then place it back in the oven for further cooking.
Materials – Pizza peels are generally available in two primary materials:
- Wooden peels have a nice authentic feel to them. Wood is the greatest material when placing uncooked pizza into an oven because it is less likely to stick to the dough (you may still need semolina or flour on it first though). Your pizza can be cut and served straight from the peel without hurting your knives or pizza wheel. You will need to be mindful of the wood warping. The peel should be dried thoroughly after washing. Moreover, wood peels are also not fireproof.
- Metal peels are available in a variety of steel materials. Metal blades seem super-thin and simple to slip beneath a pizza. They are easy to clean and long-lasting.
So, which is the best one of them? It really comes down to personal preference. Many pizza cooks will use a wooden pizza peel/paddle to prepare their pizzas on, then launch into the oven; and a metal pizza peel for turning the pizza inside the oven and then removing it.
Length of Handle – The pizza peel handle should be long enough to let you retain your hand at least 4-5 inches away from the oven door while letting the blade access the back of the oven.
Here is our selection of the Best Types of Pizza Peels available:
NEW STAR WOODEN PIZZA PEEL
Comes in a variety of different sizes.
Sturdy, durable, and lightweight basswood with a fine, even texture ensures our peels are less prone to cracking & free of secreting oils that make their way into your food, separating this product from all other conventional pinewood pizza peels.
Wood peels feature a tapered half-inch blade designed to easily slide under, and lift pizza from a distance
Available in various lengths and sizes; Hand wash only peels are simple and easy to clean
Perfect for putting pizzas in and out of the oven, while keeping hands and arms away from the heat.
THE ITALIAN KITCHEN PERFORATED PIZZA PEEL
No More Burnt Flour Taste – The perforated blade prevents sticking and removes excess flour from the bottom of the pizza, allows for cooking a better crust without that burnt flour taste from standard non-perforated pizza peels.
Easily Slides Under All Pizza Styles – Whether you’re making Neapolitan, New York style or anything in between, the flexible tapered edge slides right under the dough with minimal to no flour. Works great in all Ooni Pizza Oven sizes (12 and 16 inch models).
Last Pizza as Good as Your First – At 27.3 inches, the lightweight aluminum handle acts as an extension of your arm. The 13 × 16.7 inch blade is made from a high-grade aluminum that cools quickly between pizza launches.
Design Perfected for the Serious “Pizzaiolo” – Premium quality design makes it perfect for commercial restaurant and personal use. Comes with sturdy handle and hanging loop for easy storage.
The Italian Kitchen Family Promise – From our family to yours, if you aren’t satisfied with the quality of our pizza peel, reach out to our customer service team and we’ll make it right.
OONI PIZZA TURNING PEEL - LONG HANDLE
Great pizza! – A motto that Ooni Pizza Ovens live by – We believe that everybody deserves great pizza and our pizza peels have been designed with that sole purpose in mind!
Faster cooking – By using the Ooni turning pizza peel while cooking your favourite pizza the base stays in contact with the pizza stone baking board as you spin your pizza like a pro cooking your pie faster in your flaming hot Ooni pizza oven.
Lightweight and easy to use – With a handle manufactured from glass-reinforced nylon our Ooni Pizza Turning Pizza Peel is extremely lightweight and exceptionally durable – allowing you to easily turn your pizza as they cook with ease
Super smooth surface – Made with an anodised aluminium surface this Ooni pizza peel has a non-stick effect for sliding right under your pizza creation. While the perforations on the 7” pizza paddle let excess flour fall away for a perfectly cooked base
Long handle – The extra-long handle on our Ooni Pizza Turning Peel allows you to cook great pizza in your Ooni pizza oven without needing to get too close to the ultra-high temperatures needed for truly great pizzas.
The above are only a selected range of pizza peels and paddles. Be sure to check out our page on a full range of great quality and priced home pizza tools and accessories – Home Pizza Oven Tools and Accessories
I found that using a perforated metal paddle works the best for me – for launching the pizza’s into the oven. It helps to reduce the burning on the bottom of the pizza because most of the flour/semolina falls off when you pick it up. However, when turning the pizza inside the oven, a small round metal peel works best. And use a long handle particularly for the turning peel. Save burning your arms!
Thanks for letting us know your launching and turning preferences. Some people swear by the wooden peels. We, personally, also use the metal perforated peels. But each to their own!
Itís hard to find educated people on this topic, but you seem like you know what youíre talking about! Thanks