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flimsy pizza

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I serve a large 18" thin crust pizza and it seems that after 5-10 mins. in the box its so flimsy its hard to eat. I cook them in deck ovens for about 6 mins. im wondering if i keep them in the oven longer if it will help stiffen them a little thanks.
 
when you put any pie in a box, it will create “steam” an that causes any/all pizzas to loose their crisp crust characteristics…
 
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Yep…that box does wonders for a pizza. Turns a nice crispy pizza into something that more closely resembles cooked pasta, and the really good news is that it doesn’t get any better after you stuff the box into an insulated bag…Ouch!
But…All is not lost, you might want to try baking your pizzas a little longer. This will provide for a drier crust which just might hold the crisp for a few nano-seconds longer. If you’re already baking at 500 to 525F your temperature is probably OK, if you have sugar in your dough formula, make a test batch without the sugar. This dough will not color up as quickly in the oven as the dough with sugar allowing you to bake the pizzas a little longer to get the same color. Also, if you are not already using one, give ripple sheets or Dri-Pie mats a try. These can help by holding the pizza up off of the box, allowing the steam/moisture to escape from the bottom of the pizza. Pizza Hut uses the ripple sheets and you can get the Dri-Pie mats from <www.dripie.com> Don’t hold your breath too long looking for a great improvement, but you might be able to improve things a little.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor
 
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I came across a thought the other day…Tom your thoughts please…

although the boxes are designed to vent, would additional “holes” or vents increase the crispness factor?

could you not have several “holes/vents” drilled into the sides of the box"

it may weaken the structure, but using a box lid support might solve that problem…

if you use heated disks, pie stay hot & crisp?

I used the dri-pie for several months…don’t think it really helped, once the pie hit the bag for 5 minutes…but combine it w/the “holy” concept?
 
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What has been suggested to me that I can’t seem to get my crew to do is to use bakers racks. Take the pizza out of the pan, place it on the bakers rack for like ten seconds then cut it on a pizza peel and place into the box.
 
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The heated disks or heated bags do help some in that the warmer air within the bag can hold more moisture than colder (non-heated) air. So, yes, they do help to some extent. My own personal feelings are in agreement with yours in that more holes in the box will serve to ventilate the warm, moist air away from the pizza, and this might also help. Get an Exacto Knife and begin cutting a few additional holes in your boxes to see what happens. Then there is the bag itself, my personal feeling is that we need to seperate the moisture from the warm air in the box. The technonlgy is there to do that, but I’ve not seen it done yet. The approach is to use a breathable membrane material like (GORETEX) as part of the bag. Think of a bag with a large Goretex panel as part of the top of the bag. The membrane allows moisture to escape from the bag (that’s a good thing) and the silver color of the material reflects the heat back into the bag to help keep the pizza warm (that’s a good thing too). I use this stuff all the time as part of my hunting clothes and it really does work the way they say it does, so I’m guessing that it might work just as well in this application too. Remember where you heard about this, I’ll take a 10% royalty on gross sales.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor
 
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I’m thinking you could use a hand drill w/a 3/8" “boring/wood” drill bit…

you could drill right thru 25 @ once, b4 folding them…

perhaps having a “seamstress” put some “vents/screens” in the sides od the bags, in addition to a heated disk system might be the answer…

sorry, no royalties on this scenario…
 
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Well, you can’t slight a guy for trying!
Go for it!
Let me know if you see any improvement.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor
 
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hey tom,

i might have asked you this before, years ago, but…
do you think the bag and circle are better than using the box. i know outside this area, the bag and circle are unheard of. i just think that using the bag and circle keeps the pizza crisper AND it won’t give it the “cardboard” flavor that the box does after it sits in it for 15 minutes.

just my unproven theory. i’m actually a box user, for the fact that the bag and circle is just too impractical… you can’t stack them. you can’t put them in a delivery bag. but i still believe the bag and circle are the best choice for quality.
 
CP;
I tend to agree with you. I think the box tends to confine that warm, moist air right close to the pizza where it can soften things up in a hurry. The bag, on the other hand had a significantly larger volume, and can hold more of the moist air without allowing things to go soft as fast. Think of putting the pizza in a box as large as a refrigerator. Good news, pizza won’t go soft as fast, bad news, pizza doesn’t stay hot as long either.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor
 
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Tom,
I was curious to know what your thoughts are concerning sprinkling cornmeal in the bottom of the pizza box-just before placing the pizza inside. I am thinking it would be a cross between dri-pie and nothing. Do you feel that this would add to the bottom of the pizza having some “breathing” room. Also, do you feel that it would affect the taste or quality of the pizza.
 
While I’ve not done this with raw corn meal, I would tend to agree with you, but I’m not so sure how wel lthe gritty, raw, corn meal might be recieved by your customers. I’m sure some of it wil adhere to the bottom of the bakid pizza, and that is the stuff I’m a bit concerned about. I’d say to give it a try with some select customers to see what they think about it. Don’t tell them about the corn meal, just tell them it is a slightly different crust and they have been selected to test it for you. Ask for comments on the crust, and alos ask for any other comments to see if they pick up on the corn meal.
It would certainly be a reasonably priced alternative to a high priced solution.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor
 
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if i got raw cornmeal on the pizza box under the pie, i would think the thing was made on the beach. if you are going to use cornmeal. use it the right way. unless you have one of those silly conveyor ovens, then by all means pile on the corn meal in the box, you might even trick the customer into thinking the pizza was actually BAKED in a real oven.

oh man, what gets into me , any chance i get i blast you conveyor people.
i’m sorry.
 
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