Pizza Stone Care? - Discuss Cooking

TheNoodleIncident · 05-07-2009, 10:18 AM

anyone have tips on cleaning a pizza stone? seems like it has soaked up some oil and maybe other burnt stuff. i know i cant use soap, but what about bar keepers friend? other methods?

my stone is looking kind of nasty at the moment - fortunately, it has not affected performance, and does not smell bad or anything like that....since it's essentially just cosmetic at this point, im not too interested in cleaning by of soaking and resoaking in water for hours (plus, i dont think my sink is big enough)

so if anyone has any quick and simple suggestions, i would love to hear it....if not, i can live with my ugly stone and the memories of past pizzas

GB · 05-07-2009, 10:22 AM

Barkeepers Friend is soap so that is a no go.

If your over is a self cleaning over then leave the stone in the oven and run it through a self cleaning cycle. It will come out looking almost like new. Other than that you can use a flat edged tool to scrape any stuck on pieces off, but that won't help for the oil stains. Those you will just have to live with if you don't have a self cleaning oven.

TheNoodleIncident · 05-07-2009, 12:43 PM

yeah, i thought about burning it up in the oven...ill have to give that a try

my oven does not have a self cleaning cycle - what kinds of temps does it reach? could i just crank mine all the way up (500*, i think) and leave it for a while?

what about putting it under the broiler? for some reason, that doesnt seem like the best idea to me...

TheNoodleIncident · 05-07-2009, 12:48 PM

hmm, just did some searching myself and it looks like the self-cleaning cycle gets up near 900*

i wonder if it would do something if i left the stone at 500* for long enough?

kitchenelf · 05-07-2009, 12:50 PM

Most pizza stones cannot take a really high temperature. Also, your stone will develop a patina, which is perfectly natural. It is what helps give it its non-porous quality that we want in our stones. Find a rubber scraper to scrape anything that is stuck on and simply use water. If it is still greasy you can "wash" with cornstarch. But you don't want to remove all the parts that have become browned.

justplainbill · 05-07-2009, 12:53 PM

Soak surface with a paste made from Arm & Hammer baking soda. Then scrape with a flat nosed wooden spoon. If you don't have a flat nosed wooden spoon, you'll probablyhave one after you're done scraping. Dry stone for 5 - 6 hours at under 200F.

justplainbill · 05-07-2009, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kitchenelf

Most pizza stones cannot take a really high temperature. Also, your stone will develop a patina, which is perfectly natural. It is what helps give it its non-porous quality that we want in our stones. Find a rubber scraper to scrape anything that is stuck on and simply use water. If it is still greasy you can "wash" with cornstarch. But you don't want to remove all the parts that have become browned.

Would'a thought the porous attribute was a plus because it helps prevent soggy bottoms.

TheNoodleIncident · 05-07-2009, 01:02 PM

i dont know if i would call what i see a "patina"....i would prob call it a "splotchy, spotted, random mess of stains ranging from dark to light" haha

GB · 05-07-2009, 01:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kitchenelf

Most pizza stones cannot take a really high temperature. Also, your stone will develop a patina, which is perfectly natural. It is what helps give it its non-porous quality that we want in our stones. Find a rubber scraper to scrape anything that is stuck on and simply use water. If it is still greasy you can "wash" with cornstarch. But you don't want to remove all the parts that have become browned.

I love you dearly KE

but I have to disagree with almost everything in your post. Pizza stones can take very high heat usually. Mine has gone through the self cleaning cycle countless times and that is about as hot as you are going to get in a home kitchen. I also disagree about wanting the stone to be non-porous. It is the non-porousness (is that a word?) that allows moisture to be drawn away from whatever you are baking on them giving your food that wonderful crispiness.

kitchenelf · 05-07-2009, 01:31 PM

I think I have different stones GB (and thanks for loving me dearly

). We need to talk...I need more info on your stones. Mine say don't put in an oven over 350 degrees F. I did that one time and I had this beautiful grape tart all over the bottom of my oven.

I had a piece of aluminum foil under the stone to catch any drips and I think the heat from the aluminum foil cracked the stone.