[JHUrbina]

Thinking about a Christmas gift for me...I mean my wife I saw that Solo Stove came out with a portable pizza oven and that got me thinking.. And then I starting looking and there are tons of them available! Oonie and Roccbox get good reviews. And it seems they are easier to use with better insulation then the Solo. And the Solo is a little small. ( it will take a ton of 12 inch pizzas to feed a big group) I want one you can add wood to obviously. But I wonder how hard some of these would be to pack on a boat? I know the solo would pack well, and I used a campfire unit each night on the grand. For those that say Dutch, I say this would be easier and pop out multiple pizzas of a useable size faster.

I am very pleased with my Gozney Roccbox. I think there are add ons that make it a bit better, such as the nice peel that has perforations and is small (easy to release from the peel), the turning peel breaks down and is useful as well, and the door when there is significant cold is also useful to retain heat. It does have to hang a bit over the back edge with the fire or the gas burner, but from the standpoint of its center of gravity it was designed to do so (needs to be level). Temperature gauge is accurate enough. Easy to overheat, but if you are going for pizza napoletana you just need to be vigilant and practiced as a pizzaiolo, or accept some burns. A bit too narrow from top to bottom to lift to the top to get a bit of extra heat on the ingredients, but I think the ingredients need to be ready and not raw anyway. Really does take about 30 minutes to reach a steady state no matter what, so it is not exactly conserving of propane, and although I plan to try wood fired on the river, I need to be ready for it to fail for whatever reason meal wise. Right now I am trying to either consider a dry bag made for it by JPW or consider what other solution I may need. I like the way the shipping box protects it.

edit: I note this makes a standard 10”-12” napoletana size pizza, perfect for a hungry 1 person (who may eat more), or nice for a buffet. I envision for a 16 person Grand Canyon group using the oven for flat breads too, and a production line where people choose three ingredients and put them in a bowl, one pizza maker and one pizzaiolo to crank out the product

 

[JHUrbina]

I have the Bertello brand, that hooks up to full size propane. I can make a pizza in 1:40 from raw dough. They are only about 6-8" round, if you go bigger it's far too difficult to maneuver. So you are making a slice of pizza every 2 minutes or so. On easy family floats, the entire thing fits in the Lowes/HD black and yellow boxes. I have cooked for 15 people, but the cook is making pizzas for a very long time, since each 'pizza' is so small.

Great treat on the river.

Do you carry a proofing box for your doughs?Baker's Mark 18" x 26" x 3" White Heavy-Duty Polypropylene Dough Proofing Box

 

[JHUrbina]

I fully expect my comment to be ignored on this topic, but why not bring cold already cooked pizza? Eat cold straight from cooler. Or re-heat over open fire with utensil of choice or grill.

This has been my go-to on Gates of Lodore trips as of late. Order a full pizza in Steamboat, eat a slice or 2 for dinner, then package the rest for cold lunches on the rio.

Not ignoring, in fact you bring up one of the best points. Whether it is a Boboli crust, whether it is a Chicago style DO riff or as you say, the professional pizza pieces packed perfectly (alliteration), all forms are viable options, perfect solutions, and with a makeshift lid such as a wok lid or upside down DO, can be reheated on a grill, etc. An oven is for the crazy MF who seem to think that true wok cookery and endless propane are reasonable, and those on the trip are willing to put up with it for bucatini all’Amatriciana on day 12 with 2 year aged Parmigiano reggiano and organic olive oil late harvest, who wants to add focaccia to the mix or who wants to make naan for Indian night

 

[JHUrbina]

I am a terrible cook and know jack shite BUT recently bought a second hand wood stove for a wall tent that came with a pretty big oven deal . Wonder if you could do something like that? Those pizza ovens are cool for sure you just gotta buy ine and take it really? In another thread guys talk about baking with a pop up pit by putting stuff under it too? I dunno lol but I was surprised by the oven for this stove. I’ll never use it iam to lazy lol! I love cold pizza! So that’s a great idea!!!

There are a number of solutions that use already common equipment (Cambridge Welding fire pit, Partner Steel stove). These are adaptations to a variety of heat sources for charcoal grills, and other propane fired things. I also beta tested using both my Partner Steel griddle with a wok lid and other lids as this seemed reasonable, and also hypothesized using those grill mats (thin non-stick coated metal) and building the pie on top of this making it easy for a noob to use a peel on a charcoal grill covered with a wok lid. Even worked on designs to fabricate as well, as they all seemed reasonable. This said, what is needed for mass flawless/failsafe production is a steady source of heat around 600-750 degrees Fahrenheit for about 1 hour. Therefore I have been focused on expanding the scope of use of this monotasker for pita, focaccia, naan, and even working on both savory and sweet galette recipes galette - Google Search

 

[JHUrbina]

Delicious!! Do it! These boats are so big, if I was going solo my boat could carry it all and goobs of propane and wouldn’t matter one bit lol!! Be nice to be on a trip with gourmet food!!!

Big issues I have been working on are start to finish 1 hour goal, 2 hour limit. Also ways to gourmet up breakfast but get off the beach in a timely fashion. Last one, I used stainless steel bento boxes three containers for lunch dishes that are keepers, Vietnamese grilled marinated chicken thigh and noodle salad, orecchiette pasta salad, baklava was beta tested and passed, Indian food with naan is a keeper, for some reason Portuguese kale soup was the favorite on the last visit but grilled lamb chops were not. Halibut poached in miso served with dried shiitakes was a good day 9 dish in the Grand Canyon as well. Late trip meals used more dried pasta, rice, beans that I made fresh with a pressure cooker, and prepared meats from Costco. Charcuterie appetizer is a winner, as is putting bread from the Wildlflower bakery in dry bags. I need to make more soups and expand beyond DO desserts. Wok cookery is on the next one, I did find DO breakfast fried rice was nice enough though, just not hot enough for the texture I want

 

[JHUrbina]

How about cooking pizza under your pop-up pit?

I argue it can be done. Question is reliable temps for duration for a larger group. Steel is just as good a surface as a firebrick type pizza surface in an oven and less fragile. For 4 people or appetizer I believe all the solutions are solid. Also the fast solutions listed by others just as solid and for folks who wouldn’t tolerate me rowing them the preferred solution

 

[JHUrbina]

A few years ago I was on a Middle Fork trip with several folks who had boated together for decades. Good people. I had boated with some of them for many years; others were old friends from their past since it was their permit.

On Day One, when we stopped for lunch, one of the team pulled a Subway sandwich from his cooler. That was his lunch. The other folks gave him a hard time about it. Day two, guess what he had for lunch. Yep. Same for days three through eight. He has a long tradition of stopping on the drive in and getting a whole bunch of sandwiches and calling it good. I was surprised they stayed edible that long. Well, some would suggest they're not totally edible when fresh, but I digress.

And my apologies for digressing from talking about pizza. Now I want pizza.

No worries. I don’t want anybody to feel that my nose is turned up. I am simply telling what my passion is. I love the river and river people and understand I am a bit off

 

[JHUrbina]

I have one. Should try it. Hell, I might give it a go in my driveway! I bet it would work well for re-heating my Steamboat stop pizza too!


👆👆👆👆👆👆Sophistication level = higher than the average MtnBuzzard. And threw some alliteration in there too??? WHAT?


How much is the average Subway sandwich? $8? 8 days X $8 = how much lunch meat, sliced cheese, and bread can I buy for that? Also Subway is barely food.

Fr

Make calzones instead.

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Had a calzone I Florence, Italy last month, it had the stuff inside the dough folded over and the sauce on top. On my list of things to try

 

[JHUrbina]

Personally I hate cold pizza. But would it be over board? Maybe...Someone steaming towels soaked in essential oils for the entire group this summer seemed pretty over board, but we all enjoyed it! I am leaning more towards the Ooni 16 as it would make large enough pizzas to feed a group. Keep in mind they cook in just a few minutes. In 10 minutes you could have 3 pizzas out! I just cannot wait to add Pizza as one of our meals on a Google Docs sign up sheet

All good choices. I used Vito Iacopelli's YouTube as well as other YouTube video reviews of home portable pizza ovens. Just like any oven, and in conditions of wind or cold weather, any tool requires practice.

My choice for the Roccbox over the Ooni was concern for a chimney in the wind if using wood, and the asymmetric heat although this is true of all of the ovens, and the turning peel takes great significance there. I also liked how some food trucks use this as their solution sensing this may give a hint to its durability.

 

[JHUrbina]

I’ve made great pizza in my dutch oven. Probably to simple for tech weenies though

Nope. I have heard of folks using it two ways, upside down with the lid as a pizza "steel" and the top as the oven, and as a Chicago style. I do have only one 14" GSI aluminum DO, as well as a 12" I carry, and still suspect that I would have to have several repeat uses of at least one if not both to feed 16 hungry Grand Canyon/Colorado River folks. I do find that I make more cakes, cobblers, and baklava for dessert, and that my 14" makes sure I gluttonize my crew to the point of supreme content. I would be very interested in your technique and especially your dough, as well as technique and amount it feeds

 

[JHUrbina]

I've only homemade pizza a couple times, on a stone in my Weber charcoal.
But in regards to doing it under a Pop Up.... Don't you want the heat UNDER the pizza? Seems like someone could fab up a SS origami dome to go OVER the pop up pit, and give a better result.
'Course there would have to be care taken to not melt the Pit....

Just thinking out loud, here.

I would if using this solution use a pizza steel on top of the grill, although I worry about bending this under high heat as I have done in my home oven using a heavier pizza stone than the normal 1/2" (these don't seem to last a year for me). I did beta test this technique on a large gas grill and my results were spotty, but then again I didn't practice further (8000' elevation, wind and fall chill).

 

[JHUrbina]

No worries about space! We have a 16 footer for just camp kitchen stuff . Can bring that green egg shiter no problem! Can bring pony k gs too! How bout a row of them on a side and can have a swim up bar??

My dream is the ultimate kitchen boat. My penance for going in 2020 before the pandemic was to go to Europe this year, and I have atoned to be able to save up for a boat of my own. I liked on my last TL journey in the Grand Canyon having a flotilla of boats (8 boats 3 kayaks) for ice purposes alone, and prefer shoulder seasons for the temperatures as it allows me to use the ambient night temperatures to cook most of my next day's lunch and sometimes breakfast things at night, making morning cleanup easier.

I have talked about my dream on other threads and have had advice from multiple in the Buzz, and am thankful for this. I look at the overlander type designs and wonder how I can be more organized, less brought to the beach, and much more streamlined in my approach. Also think it should in the end be motorized. I like your concept of a bar, I really need more ice to be able to plan cocktails better.

 

[JHUrbina]

I just had a genius idea.....two pop-up pits bunkbed style with the pizza in the middle.

I've always wanted to make a propane dutch oven setup where you have a burner for the top and bottom for those trips with a fire ban or if you don't want to deal with the charcoal mess (I burned a couple holes in a bucket last trip after being impatient with the charcoal from a breakfast DO meal).

I also just thought of finding a pizza stone that fits perfectly inside your DO.

Lastly.... use something like the Partner Lasagna Pan or Rome Cooker to make a Detroit style rectangle pizza. I actually really wanna make something that can make a load of biscuits or cinnamon rolls or other things you'd normally do in a large rectangular baking pan at home. The lasagna pan is almost it...but want it even a bit bigger and more DO focused.

Bring a wood oven sounds great and is great.... but they take up a bunch of space and are kind of a unitasker.... which I try not to do on river trips.

Oh...and this is the one that someone brought on the trip we did wood fired pizzas....

View attachment 83214

It worked pretty well....but it took up the entire front of the guys raft. Worth it for a short trip (it was a August or September Lodore I think)...but worth it. They made a load of No-Knead pizza dough the night before. It was kind of surprise but I wish that it hadn't been because everyone could have brought their favorite toppings and we could have had more variety. It was still pretty awesome though.

Thought of this solution and other variations of it. My dough is a 68% hydration, and 100% flour leads to 166 g per 10" pie, and from my math 5 kg of bread flour would be reasonable to get a bit less than two pies each for 16 people. A plastic dough proofing box with a lid in a dry bag (or two of these) for the 30 doughs. I would likely make the doughs over a two day period of time unless in summer where I made naan within two hours (better flavor with cooler temps). 2% salt is just right. All would be pre weighed and the water would be weighed in the end as well (a bit less than 3.5 L). I would premix the salt in the flour, and vacuum seal this mixed with the dry yeast as well. Autolysis would be allowing the water to soak into what would be a slurry, then one can actually in a plastic bin like the proofing boxes flip and fold instead of kneed with rests.

 

[JHUrbina]

I'm more artistic about it.... but have settled on 50% (2 to 1) flour to water ratio, a tablespoon of salt, and 1.5 tablespoons of yeast and a glug of olive oil. I use King Arthur bread flour (12-13% gluten). It comes out more like a NY style pie more the Napolitano style. That makes 4 doughs that are good for a ~12" pizza.

The no-knead recipe is nice since you just kinda mix it into a shaggy dough and stick it in a container to rise overnight and then just shape into balls and let rest for an hour the next day. I have nightmares of kneading sand into my pizza dough, so I'd either make it in advance or go no-knead on the river. The no-knead is a bit delicate and tears due to less gluten development but is still pretty good.

On my last trip last week I brought a dough I had made a few days before the trip instead of garlic bread, intending to make a focacia style bread stick thing to go with my Lasagna but it got too thin in the middle so it turned out to be more like a garlic and butter pizza. It got a little crispy in the middle and a bit overdone, but no one complained. I did it with a DO stack and probably left it on a bit too long. Oh well...live and learn.

50% easier to work with. 65% about where I like to be and I find if I can control the temps well, about 600-650 F gives me NY style, 700-800 F gives me napoletana. I do prefer a preferment either a biga or a poolish, and I do like to use only a small amount of yeast if possible to allow for a longer fermentation. I believe in a shoulder season around nights in 30's and days in 40's-70's it would be perfect. My flour tortillas are 56% hydration (23% butter, 2% salt), and are unleavened. I have been planning pizza for about 3 years now, have been beta testing, and getting ready to test at Christmas in Rhode Island outside (I am in Maine) and I will see how things go for 4 people and about 8 pies.

 

[JHUrbina]

I have a 156r and it’s giant. If one this size was just the cook boat you’d have everything and more than one sink. One guy could easy have his camp stuff and still have a 120 cooler two giant boxes or 3 and bow and stern for bar propane egg pizza oven corn hole you name it! You can borrow it if you get a permit and test out my theory! Can you use a outboard on a raft as motor season or is that just for snout rigs? A snout kitchen would e off the hook. I know someone on gear had refrigeration and a ice maker lol!!! Now that’s some first world shite right there! Lol!!!

My dream is a snout riff, JPW El Tigre tubes, panels of fiberglass over foam to make it almost like a sea worthy vessel in bays and along rivers like we have up here in Maine but also for the Grand Canyon, with boxes in which the coolers will sit with lids to have dual protection from the sun. Two coolers, likely Canyon 150s, although Engle and Yeti are on the table. Similar with semi dry storage using fiberglass, and pre-built with the unit on the bottom to prevent problems with the tubes and the eventual outboard when my shoulders give out and all I am doing is being the support boat for kayaks and folks who want gourmet during summer when we can motorize. Yes I have thought of the Engel fridge. No I have not come up with the correct solution for energy yet (I suspect wind is where it is really at). I want to be more organized with less weight to carry to the beach, and more compartmentalized with less rigging in the morning

 

[JHUrbina]

That is part of my inspiration. I do not want a complete chuck wagon, but holly mother of....This dude on the Gates of Lodore trip I did this summer brought an entire chuck wagon. The Kitchen Box "Aka Big Bertha" had 3 Dutch ovens even. But ANYTHING you wanted to cook he had a tool or piece of cookware. But throwing in a pizza oven would just be a fun addition if someone else is bringing the primary kitchen set up.

I have done the tower of three, I personally have the 14" and the 12", and find that the 14" is perfect for monster desserts, and huge lasagnas for 16, that the 12" is perfect for rice for 16 (7 cups, 10.5 cups water). Wonder about the discada, am toying with wok cookery and feel this needs to be there as well. I don't like too much equipment (he says with forked tongue), and thus I need to have a blaster that can double as a wok stove (more stable). Also am wondering about the low budget 75000 BTU stove Backyard Pro 32" Double Burner Outdoor Range - 150,000 BTU (webstaurantstore.com) I can see rocking two woks on this as well as blasting and griddle work

 

[JHUrbina]

That stove would work great....... if it rode on your boat.......but it wouldn't fit on mine. 😁

I am not advocating anybody schlep my shit. I bring the gear, and need to have a way to organize it better to bring what I need to the beach and not all of it. I like my four burner Partner steel but performance has been spotty in the wind (yes I have the wind attachment) at times especially with my Partner steel griddle especially for tortillas for 16. Of course I stopped hashbrowns on the griddle as the DO is better, same with bacon and sausage (again my 14" GSI DO doesn't fit as well as I like on the Partner steel). Wondering about the discada and see a lot of this. Pizza oven will be for desserts too as I can use the residual heat as it cools, also reheat or heat some things as it warms. Still working that one out too

 

[JHUrbina]

Dang you guys are at a whole 'nother level--I'm consistently moving from "average gear load" to "do more with less". This thread started as "which pizza oven" works good (IMHO even when pizza isn't great it's still good) and you've delved into perfect dough recipes for ideal pizza. I'm both intimidated and impressed!



OK, you're a nerd. Much respect!



I don't like those big flat top burners...you'd still need to add a wok ring to fit a disco or wok....BUT if you could justify it as a replacement for both your Partner and your blaster, it might be justifiable. A buddy of mine has a big 2-burner like that and I added a small center burner so they can perk coffee while the two large burners are busy with hashbrowns or eggs.

I am a disco geek. Maybe I can help? (or this might merit its own thread)

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This is somewhat of a "standard" disco burner and has enough BTU's (and a pot support) so may be a good blaster replacement. I like kitchen equipment that has multiple functions/uses.

Also IMO others need to embrace the disco (in their menu selections and cooking techniques) to justify bringing it on a river trip. I love mine...it lives on my back deck and I use it most of the year..but I've never wanted to bring it on a river trip. It takes a lot of space and its own burner, and that doesn't justify me bringing it for one meal. But if it's used for a majority of meals, by all means! It's GREAT for most breakfasts-pancakes, bacon, eggs, sausage, hash browns, etc (except biscuits/DO type breads) and most Mexican-style river meals (fajitas, tacos, quesadillas, etc). Especially for tacos where you can brown your meat in the center and warm tortillas on the perimeter. Also good for Asian-inspired meals (stir fry, fried rice, soba noodles, etc).

I use the Stanley 2 gallon bomb method. Feeds 16 coffee drinkers. Pot of water to boil that will fit in 2 gallon bomb, dump in1 lb of percolator ground coffee, stir and steep for 4-4.5 minutes, strain into bomb. Stanley Adventure 2-Gallon Fast-Flow Water Jug - Hike & Camp (backcountry.com)

 

[JHUrbina]

What do you use for a strainer? I've also seen a similar system using coffee socks to steep the coffee

I have a 1.5gal enamelware percolator. Was Dad's from elk camp and is probably 40 years old and is now mine for river use.

I don't think it is this one, it is a bomber restaurant style one, and of course doubles as the strainer for the dishwashing, although we rinse in boiling hot water at the end and before straining Vollrath 10 1/4" Double Mesh Fine Wire Strainer with 9" Wood Handle 47193 (webstaurantstore.com)

 

[JHUrbina]

Jeez me and my oat meal and crappy elk jerky….terrible. I think that I’d like to go with you guys!

Nope. Not terrible. Incorrect. I have a disease and it consumes me. My oatmeal (thick rolled) is in milk, cooked on a double boiler with salt very slowly, finished with butter, vanilla and cinnamon