I’ve been getting requests for gluten free crust and am going to start offering this option this summer at the events I take part in.
It seems like there a couple ways to do this:
Make your own dough. I saw Tom L’s receipt on PMQ and this is likely the tougher of the options given the crust has to be placed on a solid pan and par baked first due to the batter like consistency of the crust.
The other option is to buy premade shells from a gluten free bakery. I haven’t seen GF dough balls for sale and this is likely due to the batter like dough consistency mentioned above. Perhaps there are receipts that produce a more traditionally textured dough ball? Has anyone gone down this path and found products or methods they found best or a specific shell that works well?
There were quite a few par baked gluten free doughs at Pizza Expo. I went with one that comes frozen in its own pan. My customers claim it is the best they have tasted.
GF is a fad for some and a way of life for many.
I carry a parbaked crust from http://theglutenfreebistro.com/ and they ship anywhere…but are also distributed by Roma now too.
The extra cost of the crust is just passed along to the customer as an upcharge. The people of which GF is a way of life don’t have a problem when it means they can still eat pizza.
I tried several options and this one actually tastes like dough. Had one that was more like eating a pizza atop hashbrowns.
People with hard core Celiac are not going to come near you anyway so there is very little risk otherwise in carrying them and offering them.
We had all our toppings certified to be gluten free and ones that are not are not on my GF menu at all so my phone person wont make a mistake and sell something not GF.
Dale, I disagree with your statement
People with hard core Celiac are not going to come near you anyway
I can only speak from anecdotal experience, from a former employer and several gluten-free friends.
The friends say they would gladly go anywhere that had gluten-free offerings, realizing that those offerings will have less variety. Most major cities seem to have several gluten-free bakeries. I know that a couple of them in KC and St Louis deliver to restaurants.
The former employer is doing at least 2-3 gluten free crusts a day. Well worth it.
It’s not practical to try and make your own gluten-free dough, UNLESS you can dedicate a room to nothing but that. Some will even question baking gf pizzas in a full-line oven. No one I’ve asked has said that is much of an issue. But, in a normal pizza restaurant atmosphere, there is simply too much ambient flour to risk making it yourself.
Dale, i went to the link u provided (bistro…) - they sell 6 crusts for 36 dollars. so u paying 6 dollars per ten inch crust? that seemed insane expensive to me… Daddio, where you buy yours? do they ship? Also how do you have your toppings certified to be GF?
I get cases of 12 shells 10" or 12" and they costs about $3.20 per shell. I charge $4 upcharge on the shell to the consumer. Mine are distributed through Roma but I was getting them direct from the at first.
As for getting ingredients certified I just got letters from them. Obviously some items are known like veggies but as for my cheese and meats I get them to send me letters.
My comment was to dispute that some think you have to be completely gluten free in your restaurant to serve the product. That is not true at all. But people with Celiac disease normally would not be able to even shake your hands if you have flour on them at all.
But GF pizza is for serving the folks (who are more than we think) who have some kind of gluten intolerance and have a hard time digesting after eating.
I sell 6 to 7 per day in all my stores. I see that as 30 pizzas a day I would not have sold if I did not carry them as an option.
Making your own opens up all kinds of issues as if you do not have a sterile environment you could get someone really sick who does have severe gluten issues.
I get my GF through GFS it is a product made by Rich’s. All I have is the Canadian contact info.
Ditto Daddio…seems like I do that a lot! Most any distributor will carry the Rich’s brand. We use them, one size only, they come in their own baking pan and run me about $1.81 ea. last case I bought.
It’s not a huge item for us, but I do have 3 families that come in and order them for at least one member of their clan. I suppose you could reason that because we offer it, I not only sell that GF pizza, but also the meals to the remaining family who don’t eat GF. It’s a no brainer for us.
We do NOT advertise ourselves as “Gluten Free”, others have stated the reasons why, but we do let folks know that we offer a Gluten Free dough alternative at no additional cost if they are interested. We stress when we speak with them that we use the same table, oven, cutter etc. and I’ve not had one problem with anyone to date. (knock…)
we have tried Rich’s crust, no disrespect but YUCK! the ones I tried tasted like rice cakes
Venice bakery In my opinion makes the best GF crust, $34.00 a case of 20. Roma and sysco both can get them
Thanks for the feedback. I tried several brands that are available in my area and the Venice Bakery shells are by far the best. They come in 10", 12", and 14". I’ll be offering the 10". Got them through Roma at $30.64/24 count or $1.28 each.
Also tried Udi’s 10" shells but they are a bit chewy and have a strange element to the flavor profile.
@rockstar. I agree with you on Venice bakery. That is a very nice product. Unfortunatly, they are not available in all regions through US or Sysco. In my area they are not. It depends on whether Venice is delivering anything to the regional distribution center. In my case they do not.
Gotta say it again, remember to have a dedicated area, with dedicated tools for making those GF pizzas, and a small dedicated oven isn’t a bad idea either. Then be sure to discuss your plans with your insurance agent as they may have some input too. Lastly, don’t forget the disclaimer.
Also, it may not be a bad idea to put all of your assets into Uncle Henry’s name, leaving the store in your name, just in case.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor