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No more pizza stones…

By jabbett
Published January, 28 2004 1:57 pm
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Unglazed Quarry Tiles
Two weeks ago our pizza stone fell off its shelf and broke into several pieces.

Rather than spend $30 for a new stone, I found a cheaper approach: unglazed quarry tiles, available at my local Home Depot. I only needed 6 6″x6″ tiles for my oven — a grand total of $2.35.

Last night, they worked like a charm. See them in action.

A pizza stone, for those of you unfamiliar with the concept, is a large ceramic square or round which one preheats in an oven to simulate a traditional pizza cooking environment. By providing instant direct heat beneath your pizza, it cooks faster and gets a crispier crust. An absolute must for good homemade pizza. Put your stone/tiles in a 500-degree oven for 30 minutes to an hour before you cook your pizza. Unless you’re making deep-dish, put the raw pizza directly on the tiles.

5 comments so far (Post your own)
1.At 12:52 pm on November 9th, 2005, Yehuda wrote:

I use an inverted Terra Cotta planter dish as a pizza stone. I was unable to find trhe unglazed quarry tiles when i went looking for them a while back.

2.At 8:49 pm on January 19th, 2006, Annie wrote:

I have a gas oven, so I put my quary tiles right on the floor of the oven, being careful not to block any vents. And that is where they stay, even when I am not making pizza. They don’t effect the oven’s performance and are great for reheating bread or pastries.

3.At 10:51 am on September 19th, 2006, Chris Mohr wrote:

I wish to find a light, thin substitute for a pizza stone. I realize that a thin stone is not supposed to retain as much heat as a thick one, but I just purchased a Wisco pizza oven and a thick stone or tile is too heavy for my slide out tray on which I put my pizza.

4.At 4:02 pm on November 24th, 2006, Tom wrote:

Unglazed (quarry tiles) is the most important word here. Glaze may contain lead. Lead in your food and food handling implements can cause problems for you. No glaze = no lead = no lead problems.

5.At 6:51 pm on November 26th, 2006, Naveen wrote:

While getting unglazed tile is a must, it doesn’t necessariyl guarantee lead free tiles. Some ceramic tiles are made from clays that might contain lead and are not food safe. Usually quarry tiles are OK, check the label - it should say lead-free unglazed tiles. If unsure contact the manufacturer of the tile.

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