The oven makes the pizza
60 to 90 seconds over the fire, a dough with resting time and a hot stone floor: that's how we get the airy crust you instantly recognise on a wood-fired pizza.
A pizza from the wood-fired oven tastes different because it's baked differently: the heat comes from all sides, the dough barely has time to dry out, and the crust rises before the centre firms up. We explain what happens in these short moments in the oven — and how you can tell the result later on the plate.
What the heat does to the dough
In the wood-fired oven, the fire burns beside the pizza, not beneath it — the heat comes simultaneously from the dome, the stone floor and the flame.
Radiant heat from the dome
The dome stores the heat of the fire and radiates it downward onto the topping. This is why the crust puffs up and gets its dark spots, while the tomato and mozzarella only briefly come to a simmer.
Bottom heat from the stone floor
The pizza lies directly on the hot stone, without a tray. It draws moisture out of the dough and gives it the firm, dry base from below that makes a pizza sturdy enough to hold.
Flame at the edge
The burning wood lies at the oven's mouth. Our pizza makers turn the dough several times so that every side has been close to the flame once and the crust browns evenly all around.
Dough and resting time
A dough processed on the same day can't withstand the heat of the wood-fired oven — which is why we start it well before service and let it mature slowly in the cold.
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Mixed the day before
Flour, water, salt and very little yeast are combined into a rather soft dough. The less yeast involved, the more time the dough needs — and the better its flavour becomes.
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Cool maturation
The dough rests covered in the cold. During this time it develops flavour, the gluten network becomes elastic, and the future crust gains the tension that lets it rise in the oven.
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Shaping into balls
Before service, we divide the dough into individual balls and let them come up to room temperature. A ball that's too cold tears when stretched and stays tough in the centre.
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Stretched by hand
The ball is pressed outward from the centre with the hands, never rolled. This keeps the air in the crust — a rolling pin would press it out and keep the cornicione flat.
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Into the oven
Toppings are added only shortly before baking, so the tomato doesn't soak the dough. The pizza then goes into the oven on the peel and is turned several times inside.
Flour, water and a crust with air
- Fine wheat flour with strong gluten keeps the gas bubbles in the dough instead of letting them escape — the crust doesn't collapse right after baking.
- A higher water content makes the dough softer and harder to handle, but lets it rise noticeably more in the oven.
- Salt slows down the yeast and gives the dough structure; that's why it never goes into the bowl together with the yeast.
- When stretching the dough, the rim is deliberately left untouched — only the centre is pressed flat, so the air stays in the dough at the edges.
Two approaches
Wood-fired oven versus electric oven
Both types can bake a good pizza, but in different ways.
The electric oven heats evenly from top and bottom, while the wood-fired oven works with three sources at once: the stored heat of the firebrick stone beneath the dough, the radiant heat of the dome above it, and the draw of the flame at the side. How to tell the difference: by the unevenly distributed dark blisters at the crust and the smoky note that remains in the dough.
Scroll table sideways
| Feature | Wood-fired oven | Electric oven (stone plate) |
|---|---|---|
| Baking temperature | around 430 to 450 degrees in the baking chamber | usually 300 to 350 degrees |
| Baking time | 60 to 90 seconds | 4 to 8 minutes |
| Heat sources | stone floor, dome radiation, flame draw | top and bottom heat, evenly |
| Crust (cornicione) | rises quickly, blotchy dark blisters | more even, flatter browning |
| Aroma | light smoky note from beech wood | neutral |
| Method | pizza is turned twice in the oven | tray stays in place |
| Preparation | preheat oven for two hours, replenish embers | heats up at the push of a button |
From the kitchen
Terms and common situations at the oven
Various terms come up at the oven that aren't explained on the menu. Here are the most important of them — along with the situations that come up most often on a busy evening, plus the approach our pizzaioli take.
Craving pizza from the wood-fired oven?
Reserve a table and experience the difference for yourself.