top of page

the baking steel blog
Discover the science behind better baking, from steel to crust.


Why Does My Pizza Dough Tear When I Stretch It?
There’s nothing more frustrating than spending hours preparing pizza dough, only for it to tear apart as you’re stretching it. Fortunately, tearing dough is a common problem and usually easy to fix.


The Most Common Baking Steel Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
The Most Common Baking Steel Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)


How to Season, Clean, Maintain & Store Your Pizza Steel (Complete Guide)
How to season, clean and safely store your carbon baking pizza steel


Why Hydration Is Critical in Pizza Dough (and why I think 65% Is the Sweet Spot for home ovens)
Pizza dough hydration is one of the most important - and most misunderstood variables in pizza dough. It affects everything from oven spring and texture to how your pizza behaves in a home oven, especially when baking on a carbon steel.


Why Your Baking Steel Darkens - and Why That's a Good Thing
A patina on a pizza steel is the thin, darkened layer that naturally forms over time as oils, heat, and repeated cooks interact with the metal. It isn’t damage, in fact, it’s a sign of a steel that’s being used properly. This patina develops because tiny amounts of oil polymerise when exposed to high temperatures, bonding to the surface and creating a tougher, more non-stick, more heat-efficient finish. Over time, your steel becomes better seasoned, more resilient, and easier


Why You Should Use a Pizza Dough Calculator (and Which One I Recommend)
If you bake pizza at home - especially on a pizza steel - you’ve probably discovered one simple truth: good pizza starts with great dough. And the easiest way to get consistent, professional-quality results is by using a pizza dough calculator.


Pizza Stone vs Steel: Which Is Best for Your Domestic Home Oven?
If you’ve started making pizza at home, you’ve probably heard two recommendations for a great bake: a pizza stone or a pizza steel. Both promise crispier crusts and better browning - but they actually work very differently. Here’s a quick breakdown to help you make up your mind when choosing what to use. Charge Time: How Long They Take to Heat Stone: Typically requires 45 - 60 minutes of preheating for best results. Steel: Heats in 20 - 30 minutes, half the time (metal is a f


Your Guide to the Ultimate Pizza Base: Tomatoes & Cheese Explained
When it comes to great pizza, toppings are where you get to be creative - but they can also make or break the final result. Get the sauce right, choose the right cheese, and suddenly your home-oven pizza tastes like it came from a real pizzeria in Italy. So in this post, let’s talk through the basics - tomato, cheese and what options you have available in the UK. Choosing the Right Tomatoes Your tomato base is the foundation of the entire pizza. Even with incredible dough and


Best Home Oven Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe
This pizza dough recipe is tried and tested, utilizing the optimal hydration that's suitable for home oven temperatures. Enjoy making authentic pizzas right at home with your carbon baking steel! Ingredients (makes 2 pizzas) .025g fresh yeast, or 0.1g instant* 190ml water, straight from the tap 290g '00' pizza flour 9g fine salt Extra virgin olive oil (for coating) * Use a dough calculator app to determine the correct yeast amount - it is based on the ambient room temperature


Welcome to the ScratchMadePizza blog!
Here you can find recipes, tips, tricks and pizza baking inspiration to help you make the most of your carbon baking steel. Hi, I'm Tim - founder and owner of ScratchMadePizza. Making authentic pizza at home has always been a passion of mine since I was about 10 years old. But - no matter how carefully I followed recipes or how fresh my ingredients were, the crust never quite reached the crispiness and texture I craved. After years of experimenting, I discovered that the secr
bottom of page
-Small-Transparent_edited.png)

