I took this to a new thread 'cause it is a specific conversation. You can approximate, get kinda in the neighborhood with a home oven turned to 550F and using TWO pizza stones. It won’t be the same, but you can get in the neighborhood enough to get the right idea.
I actually use a stone and a huge cast iron skillet to improve my home bake until I get proper stones cut. Set two racks about about to 7" to 8" apart generally centered in oven and put one stone on each rack. Preheat oven for at least 45 minutes . . . 60 to 90 is better. The key is getting every molecule of that oven hot and radiating heat. Too short, and it just isn’t the same.
Bake the pizza as you normally would . . . . either start on screen an “deck” to finish, or peel it right onto the BOTTOM stone. This makes a sort of imaginary stone deck oven at home, with radiance, convection and so on. It ain’t perfect, but give it a try.
Before using that screen for pizza (I am assuming it is bright and shiny right now) you need to season it. That means a smokey process of wiping/spraying the screen with oil and baking it at 400F or so until it smokes a bit and the oil makes a golden brown patina/coating. Do it two or three times. You can do it on your outdoor grill, and you will be glad you did. This is seasoned like a cast iron pan now, and never use soap to clean it . . . never scour it. Use a stiff bristle brush to remove dried on stuff . . . drop in oven to bake off onything not dried out.
Nick, thanks alot! Really really appreciate your help/insight. I wish I would’ve asked about the pizza screen about a week ago! Lol let’s just say my house was super smoky!! This website and you guys are awesome. Thanks again.
Has anybody tried putting a piece of steel plate in an oven to simulate a deck?
A 14" x 14" x 7/16 thick plate would weigh 24 pounds, about the same as a big turkey with stuffing.
I’d rather get a piece of Corderite or thick baking stone. Steel simply loses heat too quickly got me. the stone gives good thermal mass and low thermal loss to more approximate the stone decks of pizza ovens.
1/2" steel is hard to argue with, though. It can double as your griddle on a gas fire
