Wood for Pizza's

[Spruce Pirate]

I was reading another thread a few minutes ago about wood species which reminded me of this. I was asked by a local pub, a few years ago now, to supply either beech or elm for their Italian style wood burning pizza oven. They were very specific about it being elm or beech, I asked at the time why it had to be one of these species, but never got an answer over, "because it does". I had a bit of low quality elm at the time so it wasn't a problem to do it, but I always wondered why the species was so specific. Does anyone know the answer?

[muttley9050]

No idea, but I regularly cook pizzas in our wood fired oven, I chuck the usual hardwood mix in and have never had any complaints.

[Spruce Pirate]

I always assumed there was some basis for it but was never sure what that basis was. Personally I would assume that if you get it hot enough it doesn't matter what species it is, but perhaps I'm wrong.

[s.varty]

I,d of thought it has something do do with the odour given off by certain types of wood?

[TimberCutterDartmoor]

In a word - HAWTHORNE. The ultimate for baking bread.

[Spruce Pirate]

I,d of thought it has something do do with the odour given off by certain types of wood?

 

Could be. I think I asked him about that at the time, but didn't get much other than, "it has to be elm or beech" out of him. I wasn't sure if they burned particularly pure, ie almost complete combustion with very little emissions?

 

Are there any species preferred for cooking charcoal?

[breffni]

No idea, but I regularly cook pizzas in our wood fired oven, I chuck the usual hardwood mix in and have never had any complaints.

 

Did you build the wood fired oven yourself?

 

 

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[Justme]

Same reason as why everyone wants kiln dried hard wood.

 

The wood stove / pizza oven supplier said to only use that for fuel.

[Spruce Pirate]

Same reason as why everyone wants kiln dried hard wood.

 

The wood stove / pizza oven supplier said to only use that for fuel.

 

The oven was brick built, by my father-in-law as it happens, to a traditional Italian design (apparently), so there was no supplier as such. However, someone must have come up with the idea of how the oven was designed and they could well have said to use elm or beech. I have been to Italy, but don't remember noticing a lot of beech or elm, so not sure how "traditional" they are in this sense.

[JMPayne]

I use any hard wood in mine built it a few months ago out of odds and sods seems to do the trick