How to cook the Perfect Pizza on a Kamado Grill
Kamado Grills are a very versatile type of grill and in this post we are going to discuss everything about how you can cook the perfect pizza on a Kamado Grill.
This method is going to help you make wood-fired pizza on a kamado grill so check out this post to get that nice authentic wood-fired pizza oven.
You can smoke meat, grill, and sear on them due to the power that they give off.
Pizza, which is one of the most loved delicacies in the world, is no exception.
Kamado grills is inspired by the ancient cooking technique from China, where you cook with convection heat that ceramics retain to make the most out of the available fuel.
It has spread worldwide ever since, and many companies are making a lot of money to add innovations to these amazing traditional cooking styles.
Pizza, on the other hand, also has an interesting background.
From being one of the most looked-down foods to being the most popular Italian food that everybody is now beloved.
So the worldwide spread alone makes pizza and Kamado Grills perfect for each other.
You can cook pizza in any type of oven that you want.
But what if we tell you that you can make pizza using a grill? This way, you will not need to bring out another appliance when you have a barbecue in your backyard.
So if you own a Kamado grill and you want to mix it up by bringing pizza to your grilling, then we can help you with this guide that we have in this post.
Making pizza is not that hard, but it is the technique and things you use to make it perfect and be enjoyed by everyone.
Setting Up The Kamado Grill
Kamado Grills are heavy, so you will need some help from your friends when you want to bring them out in the yard.
But if you have your Kamado grill already set up outside, you should proceed to the next steps.
Make sure that all the needed items are available near you or are ready to be used.
The first thing you need to do is to fire up the Kamado Grill.
You will need to preheat it along with the heat deflectors and the surface you are going to cook the pizza on.
This way, you will get as much oven spring as you can to cook your pizza the right way.
See, most grills cook food from the bottom-up, but that is not the case for Kamado grills.
Kamado grills come in a big egg-like shape, so you should take advantage of this shape.
With that, the grill produces convection heat that evens out the temperature inside it.
This means that when you are cooking with the Kamado grill, the pizza will be cooks from both top and the bottom part, giving even cooking.
One piece of advice that we can give you is to put an extra elevation.
This means that you add some sort of additional heat deflector on the grates of the grill.
This way, you will not make a mess when making pizza.
The char will hardly gather on the crust of the pizza, and it will cook more evenly.
Use A Pizza Stone
Pizza stones are an amazing piece of cookware. They are porous, so they gather most of the pizza from the pizza, making the crust crispy.
If you are cooking in a Kamado grill and want to use a pizza stone, you should apply what we have just said by putting extra space between the grates and the stone.
See, although beneficial, pizza stones do not have a high tolerance when it comes to direct heat.
They are very susceptible to thermal changes, which makes them prone to breaking.
So as much as possible, when you use a pizza stone, put it as far from the flames as possible.
The pizza will still cook perfectly, and the pizza stone will not break.
If you do not have a pizza stone, you can always resort to a cast-iron skillet or a pizza pan which is more durable when they come in contact with flames.
Heat Deflectors
Sticking to the notion of using a pizza stone, you will need as much of a heat deflector that you can to prevent breakage.
As you already know, Kamado grills produce even heat, so it does not matter how high you put the pizza stone on.
In fact, the higher it is, the better the results will be.
So one technique is putting the heat deflector dedicated to the kamado grill.
These heat deflectors help create even heat inside the grill.
Then put another form of heat deflector by placing firebricks on the grates of the grill and then put the pizza stone on top of the firebricks.
Firebricks not only help the pizza stones go higher, but they are also great in conducting and retaining heat.
So when you preheat the grill, make sure that you put all the heat deflectors and the pizza stone in.
This way, the pizza stones are elevated and are closer to the lid.
The lid also produces a lot of heat once done preheating the grill, so the lid’s heat will melt the cheese and cook the toppings.
The fire bricks also add thermal mass to the grill. This means that the grill will be better at keeping the heat inside even if you open it.
Preheat the Grill
Preheating is a very important step when cooking anything on a Kamado Grill.
When preheated, the grill will be more consistent with the temperature that it produces.
Kamado grills have thick ceramic coating for amazing heat retention and insulation.
We recommend that you preheat the Kamado Grill to full fuel capacity and blast for at least one and a half hours to reach a temperature of at least 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
This will heat the grills and accessories inside the grill, such as the heat deflector, firebricks, and of course, the pizza stone.
Once you preheat the grill, it will release a burst of heat when your pizza is inside, making it rise and cook faster.
The Fuel
So Kamado Grills are usually powered by lump charcoal. This type of fuel produces a red-hot flame while emitting smoke that gives your food that tasty flavor.
To get the best type of charcoal, you should select the ones made from hardwood and, of course, fresh charcoals.
See, charcoal is better when they are fresh than charcoals exposed to humidity and moisture. But that is not the fuel that we will be talking about here.
Since the title says “Wood-fired,” you can step up a notch and use wood in Kamado Grills.
If you do so, we suggest that you use hardwood like oak or pecan wood.
Hardwood fuels will bring more heat to your grill, and they also last longer.
This way, you do not need to constantly refuel the grill and disturb the heat inside it.
Because you see, when you refuel a kamado grill, you will need to remove everything on top of the firebox.
The pizza stone, the grates, and the heat deflectors need to get out of the way.
Then, stir up the firebox to get rid of the ashes that might block the airway.
Then, reload the firebox with fresh wood cut in specific sizes.
You cannot put logs in a kamado grill since the firebox is limited.
So you will need to cut the wood at specific sizes to get as much fuel as you can inside.
Observe the Airflow
The amazing heat that bursts out of a kamado grill depends on the airflow inside it.
So if you want the temperature to go higher, you need to have a good air pathway.
Kamado grills usually have two vents that will help in producing heat.
The bottom vent is the intake, and the top vent will control the temperature.
So when you are preheating, it is recommended that you open the bottom vent fully so that the fire gets as much air that it needs.
Once you have preheated the grill, you can control the temperature by opening or closing the top vent.
Usually, this vent controls the temperature by ten or more degrees.
Clear all the chunks that are impeding the airway and use an ash basket.
This basket will remove the ashes itself without you having to open and clean the grill.
You can also use this to make sure that the heat deflectors do not impede the airflow.
This way, you get better air circulation inside and produce more evenly distributed heat.
Now the Pizza
Make it Thin
The dough of a pizza cannot be specified, so you can go as thick as you want. However, I recommended that you slice the toppings thinly.
Meat or vegetables, the toppings are better off when sliced thin.
This is especially applicable to meat toppings as they tend to cook longer than vegetables.
The fact that pizza cooks almost instantly inside a high-heat enclosure means that the toppings are sometimes left uncooked.
While this might be beneficial to vegetable toppings, the meat will need a longer time to cook, so you can make up for this by slicing them thinly to keep up with cooking speed.
Do Not Overdo The Pizza
Making pizza is so fun because you have all the freedom to make the most amazing pizza that you want.
You have a blank canvas that you can put any art on.
With that said, you should not overdo the pizza.
You would want the toppings to roast instead of steaming them.
So if you have just enough toppings with a thin layer, you are going to have that crisp that you want in every bite instead of soggy, hard-to-bite toppings.
Thick toppings will also damage the crust.
The toppings’ moisture will go down to the crust, making it soggy and not as crispy on the outside.
Experiment!
As we have mentioned above, you can be as creative as you want.
Make the perfect pizza by putting anything you want in it and then cooking it like a pro inside the Kamado Grill.
Pizzas can be repetitive, but you can also remove the boring flavor you are used to and change it up with other available ingredients.
If you and your family make your pizza and do it regularly, you can make it seasonal by putting the most abundant ingredients during a particular time of the year.
Conclusion
Pizza is such great food for bonding with your friends and family. With all the available flavors and ingredients, the only problem is how you can cook it.
Well, just like the ingredients, you can go with a variety of choices. You can cook it in a home oven or a pizza oven, but you can also go for the grill.
Kamado grills produce the needed heat for pizza as well as the smoky flavor that most people want. So go ahead and be creative; you can make the perfect pizza with just a few tries.
Follow the guides that we have mentioned above, and in no time, you will cook like a professional pizzaiolo with your Kamado Grill!
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