Whether it is from a large pizza chain or home, pizza is a staple in many countries worldwide. A standard range of ovens can be used for cooking a variety of different food items. However, pizza is a dish that requires special cooking. A perfect pizza needs to be cooked in a commercial oven with the perfect heat settings to cook the crust, brown the cheese and toppings to perfection. If you are looking forward to starting your pizzeria and making delicious pizzas in no time, this article will let you know about the different types of ovens used commercially.
Why Choosing the Best Pizza Oven is Important for starting a Pizzeria?
If someone is planning to start a pizza selling business, a perfect pizza oven is the most important investment one can make. There is several good quality ovens like the Middleby Marshall pizza oven that are popular for their perfect features. The pizza ovens are simple, versatile and come with a wide range of facilities for your day-to-day use. Also, these ovens can be used for preparing many other food items as well. So, if you are running a restaurant with many food items along with pizza, you will find ovens advantageous. From steaks, pies, bread to grilled cheeseburgers, you can prepare many different things.
Most ovens are wood-fired but run on gas, charcoal, and even on electricity. These types are primarily for commercial use. The different fuelling options give them different and unique tastes.
5 Main Types of Pizza Oven
The individual models may vary in design and specifications. There are the five common types of commercial pizza oven:
- Brick pizza oven
- Conveyor pizza oven
- Deck pizza oven
- Convection pizza oven
- Countertop pizza oven
The different types of pizza ovens differ from each other by three factors. How they operate, how much they cost, and how much space they require. Let’s learn about each type in detail to help you decide about the benefits and challenges you will experience while investing in each class.
Brick Pizza Oven
This type of pizza oven makes the most authentic pizzas. Those looking to make the pizza the same as original Italian pizza find this type the best. It can give the pizza that rustic look, feel and taste that no machine can provide. This type of oven uses the traditional wood-fired method to cook the pizza. It gives the pizza a slow and even optimum temperature required to make a perfect Italian crust. These ovens allow you to choose between the gas and wood option. However, the stove itself is made of bricks that heat the cooking cavity.
The preheating of this oven requires up to 45 minutes to give the pizza a nice browning effect and crispy crust. It can reach up to a temperature high enough to cook the pizza in three minutes. You will find this oven with an option of one cooking cavity or multiple decks. You can also design your brick pizza oven as an outdoor pizza oven. They offer the same wood-burning and awesome flavors. The pizzerias and restaurants with attractive outdoor spaces can take great advantage of this oven.
Conveyor Pizza Oven
It uses a convection cooking system on a conveyor belt. The pizza is placed on the belt that moves in the oven. After the completion of the cooking process, the pizza is moved to the cooling area on the other side. It provides rapid cooking, which is ideal for restaurants or pizzerias looking to make larger quantities quickly. Some models of the conveyor oven increase production capacity by stacking up to four pizzas at one time. You can purchase the electric or gas style as per your requirement. However, it is ideal for a place where efficiency is a priority.
The one deck on a large conveyor oven produces up to 100 pizzas in an hour. The medium-sized conveyor oven produces 75 pizzas each hour as it takes five minutes for a conveyor oven to cook a pizza. Most models are wide enough to hold two pizzas side by side. It takes a lot of floor space to fix the conveyor oven in space and accommodate the extended belts.
Deck Pizza Oven
This type of oven is much similar to the traditional brick oven as it uses conduction heating. The surface of the deck is made out of stone or steel that provides the perfect temperature for the pizzas. The stone option is better as it absorbs the moisture from the crust and makes it crispy and brown. This oven heats the pizza evenly, giving the perfect brown pizza. The steel option is also good for the extra crispness and browning. The stainless steel option is more affordable than the stone one. You can find it in both electric and gas options depending on the condition of your space. These ovens are best for making traditional pizzerias and dining restaurants.
Since the hot stones directly heat the crust, these ovens are ideal for cooking pizza. These ovens also employ radiant heat waves that provide the pizza with even heat, preventing the crust from burning. Deck ovens are a great investment because they last for years, even decades. Maintaining it is also easy. Moreover, these ovens rarely require professional repairs as they have no moving parts.
Convection Pizza Oven
It works a lot like a convection unit. These ovens circulate hot air inside the cooking unit to cook every side of the pizza in less time. This type of pizza oven is the least expensive option to buy and maintain. Small businesses save enough money by using these ovens. With the proper maintenance and cleaning, you can cut down on repair costs. The convection pizza oven can cook approx. 40 pizzas in 6 minutes. Preheating this oven requires 15 to 20 minutes. Overall, these ovens are a good option in less price.
Countertop Pizza Ovens
The countertop version of conveyor, convection and deck ovens can save you money and space. The number of pizzas a countertop oven can make depends on the type you are using. Most of the countertop pizza ovens are electrically operated, which allows you to install them anywhere there is an electrical outlet. Not only this type saves you space on the floor, but you can also stack them on top of each other to save counter space as well. The concession stands and food trucks find it the most convenient option. The cooking timing of countertop pizza ovens depends on the type and size of the oven. The time required for preheating is up to 12 minutes. These are best for heating frozen pizzas, making New York and Neapolitan pizzas.
Conclusion
Choosing a pizza oven for commercial use can be daunting because of the availability of so many options out there. Consider the space, cost, operation, using method, capacity and convenience before investing in one. Don’t go for the larger size if you have less space in the commercial kitchen. Hopefully, this article will help you make the best decision.
