Jose Andres Zapata

Antonio, At first glance the differences are hard to distinguish, unless you look at the Komodo Kamado which is in a class by itself. Amongst the others, I discounted the BGE because I dislike the color (shallow ) and they have not innovated at all in a while. I almost decided on a KJ until I found the Saffire. The two features that sold me on the Saffire were the Crucible Firebox, which is made of firebricks vs ceramic. The Ash basket which other brands are now adopting. And finally the all polished stainless steel hardware on the Platinum series. The one thing I gave up vs the KJ was the airlift hinge. A year later I am still very happy with the purchase. The blue color with the stainless steel looks great too!

I do take the top completely off, and control with just the bottom door. About one third to one half open dials me in for the temps I am looking for. With the cap off I can peak at my pizza and you can take a quick IR measurement of the stone. If your cheese is getting soupy, consider squeezing some moisture out of fresh mozzarella. The nice golden tips on the first photo are on a feta... so dryer to begin with and that is why it has color. (Spinach, garlic confit, feta on that pie.). Dry shredded mozzarella releases less moisture when melting, sometimes I combine the two. The insulating bricks can be found at Ceramics/Potters suppliers. I bought mine from a local Ceramics store for around $5 ea. Fitted them to the stone and cut the outer edges to maintain airflow. A handsaw worked fine. I have estimated the max time I have at 650deg is about an hour. If I cook and eat with guests I have been able to make between 4 and 6 pizzas in that time. 4 is more the average and 6 a lucky max . Also the charcoal is important, medium to larger pieces will give you more temp and last longer. I have not been able to cook more than 4 pizzas with Royal Oak. Cowboy has had a better average of medium pizzas and will give me temp and last a bit longer. Locally I can get Mexican mesquite and those bags usually come with some huge pieces ( but a lot of dust too :( ). Those larger mesquite pieces produce a lot of heat!

Hi Struja, Here are a couple of thoughts based on my experience. 1) Your first pizza was ok because the stone had not come up to temperature. It takes longer than 10 mins once you reach your dome temp for the stone to catch up. 2) Real Neapolitan pizzas are 180g to 250g balls. So a 375g is going to take longer to cook inside while potentially burning the outside. 3) The big difference conceptually between Kamado's and Wood Fired Ovens is that the heat source is below in the Kamados and above in a wood fired oven. Increasing the potential for crust burning. 4) All purpose flour usually has some type of Malt added. Increasing the potential for burning because of the sugar content. 00 has not added malt. --------------------------------------------------------- At my home we have come to the consensus that we like NEO-politan type pizzas . More dough for the crust.... 350 to 400g dough balls. Lately I have really like Tony G's recipe from his book Pizza Bible, Master Dough with Poolish. Although his recipe makes a 820g single ball, it is for a larger NY style pizza. I just divide and make the smaller balls for a 12" pizza. I have been using Red Mill Artisan all purpose flour. It already contains some malt so I skip adding more malt. Here are my suggestions: 1) In the Kamado my target temperature is 650deg to 700deg for 350 to 400g dough balls. 2) Use an IR thermometer for the stone. My target temp for the stone is 550 to 600 deg. ( I use insulating bricks). 3) Let it reach those temp and allow them to hold a few minutes before launching your first pizza. 4) Build your pizza on the counter and then move to the peel. Move quickly and use as little flour as you can. Give it a wiggle for a small slide to keep it from sticking on the peel. Wood peels are easiest to launch with. Or the metal with holes. 5) DON'T overload with toppings. Keep a nice balance dough/toppings. It can make your dough stick to your counter and or peel. They will take longer to cook. Welcome to the Rabbit Hole!!! Let me know if you have other questions.

Grilled Fennel + Orange Salad and Picaña I love grilling Picaña on my Kamado. I setup a two zone fire and crisp up the whole exterior and develop an internal temp of 95deg approx. Then cut into steaks and finish cooking for different done temps. 125 to 145deg. Even at 145deg and above it's still very juicy and flavorful.

Thank you Keeper!

8-10 would be a push but possible. 1) Full firebox 2) Correct fuel. Larger chunks burn hotter and longer. Cowboy worked very well for me for 6 and holding the temp for longer time. RO has much smaller pieces and could not hold higher temps for long. 3) Make them back to back. Not much time here to bake and eat. 4) This would be for 650 to 700deg temps and 3 to 4 minutes / pizza. Good luck!

A beatiful SoCal sunset with my Saffire and pizza. Diavola - Pepperoni + Calabrese Peppers + Mozarella

These are my latest. One thing learned on this round. I used RO and it did not last as long as my previous cook in which I used Cowboy charcoal. I think I get higher temperatures and longer lasting with the Cowboy. I have had good results w temps at 700deg. Cook times of 3-4 minutes.

I like the Royal Oak tumbleweed starters. $3something at Walmart for 16. I use 1 to 4 depending and how fast I want it to start. They are $6something at Homedepot...so Walmart it is.

I have been making the dough at about 62% hydration. Lately I have been using Marc Vetri's Neapolitan recipe with a poolish starter which I really like now. Thank you Freddy.

That is a great looking pizza Freddy!

Chasdev, I am glad a checked the activity feed. I had notifications turned off. I did not add any "seasoned ground tomato". I just diluted with water for the desired consistency and did add a bit of chocolate. That was it. Enjoy!

I had been wanting to try picaña, and I stumbled onto a couple of pieces at Walmart of all places. After a bit of research I started by making cuts on the fat cap and seasoning with plenty of salt and some pepper. I started the cook by searing the bottom first and then flipped it and let the fat cap cook until it was a bit crispy and the internal temp was about 90 to 95 deg. I pulled it and cut into steaks and then returned to the fire for searing the sides and cook to an internal temp of 145 + -. It is a nice cut of meat, full of flavor and super juicy. I love the cooked / crispy fat too.

Kabobs.... Beef, marinated with ginger and soy sauce. Mahi Mahi, just oil salt and pepper. Croutons and Orange pieces. Spinach and roasted tomato salad.

For moving it... take out all the removable parts and use a mover's blanket. Use the blanket as a sling. It makes it considerably easier to handle. And allows for 2,3 or 4 people to carry it.