PIZZA PEEL - WOOD or ALUMINUM

[xfire]

I am installing a 40" oven.

I see aluminum and wood peels are the two choices we have.

Which is the "correct" way to go and why?

Is it just a personal choice?

Also, I am thinking that the length should be at least 36" to be long enough to grab pies in the back of the oven and still be manageable to work with during preparation.

[david s]

As a general rule add the depth of your entry to the diam of your oven and that is about how long your handle needs to be.
Generally most people use the wooden peel to prepare and place the pizza, while the Aluminium peel is used to turn and remove them. Some people use the metal peel to slide under the prepared pizza and use it to place the pizza too. I prefer a stainless steel peel to an aluminium one, but I think this is just a personal preference, either will do.

[xfire]

I like information on the length.

A S/S sounds very good but I have not been able to find any for sale yet.

[brickie in oz]

Originally Posted by xfire

I like information on the length.

A S/S sounds very good but I have not been able to find any for sale yet.

So make your own.

[david s]

For stainless use 1.2mm thick. Any thinner and it's a bit too floppy, any thicker and it saps the oven of too much heat every time you put it in. Also a good idea to round off the leading edge so it doesn't catch soft dough if you are sliding it under a fresh base.

[Aussie Pete]

i'll be making a thin stainless peel, have used one like this before, works really good, easy & light to put in & take out, and haven't had anything stuck on it yet.
was thinking of aluminium, but not sure which would be better.

[Derkp]

In high School shop my son made 2 peels out of maple. They looked great. I agree with a previous post, use the good looking to place the pie, but to turn and remove use a metal, His beautiful maple peels could not stand up to the pizza heat, eventually charred, warped and delaminated.

Derk

[Pizza Fermentor]

You know when, after the pizza is just about done, some people raise the pizza to the top of the dome in order to finish/brown the top? If you do this with a wooden peel, the peel burns. Trust me. For that reason alone...place the pizza in the oven with a wooden peel, but remove it with a metal one.

[xfire]

It would appear from everyone's replies that the only way to get a stainless steel peel is to build it yourself ?

Looks like that the route I'll take

Now I'll have to design a bracket to mount the handle.

[kmrice]

You can buy a stainless steel "turning" peel. See Round Pizza Turning Peel - 8-inch w/ 40-inch Handle.

Forno Bravo sells what I think is the same thing, but their site says it is aluminum. I bought one from them in 2010 and what I got is stainless steel, although they may have changed suppliers.

As others have said, you want to load the pizza into the oven with a larger peel. Wood works well although Forno Bravo and other sites also sell an aluminum peel with cutouts which many like. I bought one but soon went back to using a simple wooden one.

A turning peel is smaller than the pizza. You can't use it to load. It is excellent for turning the pizza in the oven, and, once the crust has set, for doming the pizza. I'd consider some sort of metal turning peel a must have tool.

Karl