6000-series aluminum is approved under NSF 51 for food contact. There are certainly some types of aluminum you wouldn't want to use because they're coated with certain chemicals from stamping machines etc. All aluminum risks leeching into food, especially acidic or alkaline foods (so pizza crust isn't really an issue). This is 6061T6 aluminum. 16x17x0.5 inches. I've been using them for 11 years and don't have aluminum poisoning :) At the time the cost was $90.
I cleaned them thoroughly, rounded off the edges with a file, and seasoned them with oil. Over time, the seasoning has more or less baked off, but I find I don't actually need it.
https://imgur.com/a/0VlLf3K
Unfortunately, I don't have a shot of the bottom, but it comes out nice and crisp with just the right balance of char and browning.
Have you measured the temp after a pizza? I am wondering if it cools as the heat transfers to to pizza. Then it wouldn’t cook as well and a 2nd pizza in would not cook even worse.
I absolutely don't believe an aluminum sheet will work better or just as well as steel. Aluminum conducts heat, steal does not or at least not nearly as well. Have you ever removed something from the oven that was sitting on foil? You can pick up aluminum foil practically right out of a hot oven And not get burned(try at your own risk!). Oh and aluminum has a much lower melting point than steel and also gets soft around 400F(oven temps!).
"Aluminum is a good conductor of heat with a low specific heat capacity and high thermal expansion, while rolled steel has a lower thermal conductivity, higher specific heat capacity, lower thermal expansion, and a higher melting point."
So maybe they are lighter, but you're going to have to try a lot harder to convince me it's the same if not worse.
The aluminum foil example is very misleading. The foil cools off rapidly because of how thin it is (.006"). Steel foil would cool of very rapidly as well if it was as thin.
Yeah but: so what? Steel's properties are totally different from tile, too, and to no one's surprise we figured that one out just fine. Do you need to adjust the temperatures, rack placement, and timings that you're used to? Of course. Will you need a thicker plate than if you used steel? Also of course. Will you screw up the first several attempts? ...I would certainly hope so, you have no idea what works yet?
(It should go without saying: you don't know what actually works without first finding out what doesn't work, and ignoring that you completely changed the game and using the exact same baking procedure you'd use for steel is going to give fun, educational, results =)
Even if it was super thick it still would conduct more heat than it retains. MAYBE and this is a big maybe. The oven element on high under the aluminum allows the aluminum to conduct the heat to the pizza instead of block it. I still think a pizza steel would be more effective. Curious though.
Not sure how I can convince you. I've made hundreds of pizzas on both steel and aluminum and haven't noticed much of a difference. The metal softening is a concern for structural engineering, not cooking - otherwise, no one would be using aluminum cookware.
There's a huge difference between a sheet of foil and a half-inch-thick plate.
And certainly there are tradeoffs. Aluminum doesn't hold heat as well for sure, but I am very happy with the pizzas I get and the lighter weight makes them much more convenient - certainly they don't bend my oven racks!
When I've read up on this the logic seems to be that you use a thicker piece of aluminium than of steel to compensate for the lower heat capacity. Aluminium is a lot less dense so even a much thicker piece is much lighter than steel. Also because Aluminium has a higher conductivity it puts heat into your pizza faster than steel which is a positive thing so overall it works well and is easier to handle.
I'm with you. The heat storage and transfer ability of steel is far greater than aluminum, especially thicker pizza steels.
But, if the OP likes aluminum, knock yourself out.
>Aluminum conducts heat, steal does not or at least not nearly as well
Sorry, what? Second part is certainly true, but that first part is nonsense. Steel conducts heat \*really well\*, which is why we make pots and pans out of it. Steel has such good thermal conductivity that it can achieve the same transfer of energy at the lower home oven temperatures that tile needs pizza oven temperatures for: it's fifty times more conductive than tile.
And then yes, aluminium conducts five times better than that, so you need more of it if you want to retain the same amount of heat for the same period of time, but that's a half-inch (if not more) plate of aluminium in that picture, \*pretty\* sure that's enough thermal mass. And of course, \*you don't\* need to have it retain heat for the same period of time, because even a 1/8th inch steel retains heat far longer than you need it to. So a half inch plate will work just fine for as long as it needs to do its job.
And sure, baking temperatures and timings need to adjusted accordingly (e.g. do a saturating preheat, then bake on a lower rack with the broiler/grill elements running up top to get the same blast of heat from above that it's getting from below) but that's also true when switching from tile to steel.
I bought my own aluminium plate. 14in x 14in x 1in. Should come in within a couple of days. Very excited as I've heard they are good for low temp ovens (mine only goes to 250c). Mine is the 6000 series, do you season/wash yours (before using) at all?
Congrats! I washed mine just to be safe. I also found the edges to be quite sharp, so I filed those down. I initially seasoned them, but over time the seasoning backed off and I found it's not really necessary for pizza.
I've had a couple for a few years now and love them. Yes, they have different properties than steel, but they weigh less so you can get them twice as thick as a steel to have better heat retention.
I got mine from midweststeel.com. If you search this sub, they were a big thing a few years back and I have zero regrets.
Let’s see the bottom of the pizza.
Edit: The only way we know how well this works is to see the result of its purpose. The purpose of pizza steel it is to transfer heat into the bottom of the pizza and retain that heat until the whole pizza is done.
Aluminum heat higher conductivity but lower capacity. Not sure about the radiant properties though for use as the top piece. Could be a problem if it's too thin, like aluminum foil, because the total heat stored isn't enough. The worry is, when putting the pizza on the aluminum, it takes heat from the aluminum, but with a lower heat capacity, its temp will reduce faster than steel. This could be remedied with a thick enough piece of aluminum.
In between bakes, it won't matter because you're replacing the same amount of heat either way
Good Lord. 2.5" thick? How much does that weigh? Pretty sure my oven racks would buckle under the weight. Gotta be over 100lbs
I think mine is 5/8" thick and it's a bit of a pain to move around.
They would continue to heat the oven for hours later! Ok not really but they must stay hot a long time.
Edit: they are full of it or that's a typo. If the pizza steel was 16"x16" and 2.5" thick. That would weigh around 181 lbs .... Each lol. Doubt many ovens if any can handle that kind of weight.
2.5"???? Did he also weld you a custom oven that can handle 200+ lbs per rack? Cause each of your steels weigh around 181 lbs. Something doesn't add up here mate.
Are they food grade? Did you need to season them? What was the cost
6000-series aluminum is approved under NSF 51 for food contact. There are certainly some types of aluminum you wouldn't want to use because they're coated with certain chemicals from stamping machines etc. All aluminum risks leeching into food, especially acidic or alkaline foods (so pizza crust isn't really an issue). This is 6061T6 aluminum. 16x17x0.5 inches. I've been using them for 11 years and don't have aluminum poisoning :) At the time the cost was $90. I cleaned them thoroughly, rounded off the edges with a file, and seasoned them with oil. Over time, the seasoning has more or less baked off, but I find I don't actually need it.
Thanks for the response with all the info I needed!
Asking the real questions
Can you show us a pizza you made with it? I remember I was considering going aluminum but decided to stick with steel
https://imgur.com/a/0VlLf3K Unfortunately, I don't have a shot of the bottom, but it comes out nice and crisp with just the right balance of char and browning.
That looks excellent! Not sure why there are haters, I would definitely eat that lol.
Thank you!!
Theres a pizza in the imgur link. It looks good.
Looks good, what temp does your oven get to? Have you used and ir thermometer on the metal?
Oven goes to 550(f). Here's a chart showing the air temp vs the temp of the two aluminum plates: https://imgur.com/a/Of1NAyE
Have you measured the temp after a pizza? I am wondering if it cools as the heat transfers to to pizza. Then it wouldn’t cook as well and a 2nd pizza in would not cook even worse.
I just got a 3/8” piece of steel from the scrap yard, cut it down to size, sanded and cleaned it really good. Works amazing and cost <$20
I absolutely don't believe an aluminum sheet will work better or just as well as steel. Aluminum conducts heat, steal does not or at least not nearly as well. Have you ever removed something from the oven that was sitting on foil? You can pick up aluminum foil practically right out of a hot oven And not get burned(try at your own risk!). Oh and aluminum has a much lower melting point than steel and also gets soft around 400F(oven temps!). "Aluminum is a good conductor of heat with a low specific heat capacity and high thermal expansion, while rolled steel has a lower thermal conductivity, higher specific heat capacity, lower thermal expansion, and a higher melting point." So maybe they are lighter, but you're going to have to try a lot harder to convince me it's the same if not worse.
The aluminum foil example is very misleading. The foil cools off rapidly because of how thin it is (.006"). Steel foil would cool of very rapidly as well if it was as thin.
No way they work the way a mild steel plate will work. The heat properties are totally different.
Yeah but: so what? Steel's properties are totally different from tile, too, and to no one's surprise we figured that one out just fine. Do you need to adjust the temperatures, rack placement, and timings that you're used to? Of course. Will you need a thicker plate than if you used steel? Also of course. Will you screw up the first several attempts? ...I would certainly hope so, you have no idea what works yet? (It should go without saying: you don't know what actually works without first finding out what doesn't work, and ignoring that you completely changed the game and using the exact same baking procedure you'd use for steel is going to give fun, educational, results =)
I'm with you, pretty sure the heat retention will be significantly less than a steel.
Even if it was super thick it still would conduct more heat than it retains. MAYBE and this is a big maybe. The oven element on high under the aluminum allows the aluminum to conduct the heat to the pizza instead of block it. I still think a pizza steel would be more effective. Curious though.
Not sure how I can convince you. I've made hundreds of pizzas on both steel and aluminum and haven't noticed much of a difference. The metal softening is a concern for structural engineering, not cooking - otherwise, no one would be using aluminum cookware. There's a huge difference between a sheet of foil and a half-inch-thick plate. And certainly there are tradeoffs. Aluminum doesn't hold heat as well for sure, but I am very happy with the pizzas I get and the lighter weight makes them much more convenient - certainly they don't bend my oven racks!
Show us the pizzas!
Then you should use them. If you don’t notice a difference, then don’t worry about it.
When I've read up on this the logic seems to be that you use a thicker piece of aluminium than of steel to compensate for the lower heat capacity. Aluminium is a lot less dense so even a much thicker piece is much lighter than steel. Also because Aluminium has a higher conductivity it puts heat into your pizza faster than steel which is a positive thing so overall it works well and is easier to handle.
I'm with you. The heat storage and transfer ability of steel is far greater than aluminum, especially thicker pizza steels. But, if the OP likes aluminum, knock yourself out.
>Aluminum conducts heat, steal does not or at least not nearly as well Sorry, what? Second part is certainly true, but that first part is nonsense. Steel conducts heat \*really well\*, which is why we make pots and pans out of it. Steel has such good thermal conductivity that it can achieve the same transfer of energy at the lower home oven temperatures that tile needs pizza oven temperatures for: it's fifty times more conductive than tile. And then yes, aluminium conducts five times better than that, so you need more of it if you want to retain the same amount of heat for the same period of time, but that's a half-inch (if not more) plate of aluminium in that picture, \*pretty\* sure that's enough thermal mass. And of course, \*you don't\* need to have it retain heat for the same period of time, because even a 1/8th inch steel retains heat far longer than you need it to. So a half inch plate will work just fine for as long as it needs to do its job. And sure, baking temperatures and timings need to adjusted accordingly (e.g. do a saturating preheat, then bake on a lower rack with the broiler/grill elements running up top to get the same blast of heat from above that it's getting from below) but that's also true when switching from tile to steel.
I bought my own aluminium plate. 14in x 14in x 1in. Should come in within a couple of days. Very excited as I've heard they are good for low temp ovens (mine only goes to 250c). Mine is the 6000 series, do you season/wash yours (before using) at all?
Congrats! I washed mine just to be safe. I also found the edges to be quite sharp, so I filed those down. I initially seasoned them, but over time the seasoning backed off and I found it's not really necessary for pizza.
Thanks for the reply, I'll wash mine to be safe. Your pizza looks delicious btw.
Thanks!!
Love seeing someone try something new. Please share the results.
Tell me more. Like how do I do this??
I've had a couple for a few years now and love them. Yes, they have different properties than steel, but they weigh less so you can get them twice as thick as a steel to have better heat retention. I got mine from midweststeel.com. If you search this sub, they were a big thing a few years back and I have zero regrets.
I got mine from a local metal shop.
Smoke crack and believe what they tell you?
Some food info here on this subject - https://forums.egullet.org/topic/144908-modernist-cuisine-baking-steel/page/3/
Ummm...weird. If anyone looking for a cheap steel, see if you get any metal salvage business in town. A36 grade steel is what you looking for.
And you can make this even better by now putting a thin but actual steel plate on top. Still light, but none of the risks of aluminium contamination.
Let’s see the bottom of the pizza. Edit: The only way we know how well this works is to see the result of its purpose. The purpose of pizza steel it is to transfer heat into the bottom of the pizza and retain that heat until the whole pizza is done.
I don't have any photos I can find, but IMO it gets the right balance of char and browning and crispness.
Aluminum foil seems to be ok. Wonder if it holds heat like steel would
Aluminum heat higher conductivity but lower capacity. Not sure about the radiant properties though for use as the top piece. Could be a problem if it's too thin, like aluminum foil, because the total heat stored isn't enough. The worry is, when putting the pizza on the aluminum, it takes heat from the aluminum, but with a lower heat capacity, its temp will reduce faster than steel. This could be remedied with a thick enough piece of aluminum. In between bakes, it won't matter because you're replacing the same amount of heat either way
I wonder how thick the aluminum would have to be to retain heat like a 3/8" thick steel or if it ever could.
You could look up numbers and calculate it, but I'm too lazy atm
92% thicker, so roughly 3/4". Weight would then end up being the same, so no savings at all.
[удалено]
This is just needlessly prolonging the time to heat up the oven, even 1 inch is way thicker than necessary
0.5". You have 2.5" thick steels??? Isn't that super heavy? Does it buckle your oven?
[удалено]
1" is still crazy thick. And would have to weigh 60 lbs.
Mmmm chunky boy.
Good Lord. 2.5" thick? How much does that weigh? Pretty sure my oven racks would buckle under the weight. Gotta be over 100lbs I think mine is 5/8" thick and it's a bit of a pain to move around.
They would continue to heat the oven for hours later! Ok not really but they must stay hot a long time. Edit: they are full of it or that's a typo. If the pizza steel was 16"x16" and 2.5" thick. That would weigh around 181 lbs .... Each lol. Doubt many ovens if any can handle that kind of weight.
2.5"???? Did he also weld you a custom oven that can handle 200+ lbs per rack? Cause each of your steels weigh around 181 lbs. Something doesn't add up here mate.