A pizza steel, also called baking steel, is the single most important investment for a home pizza chef. And with proper care, a pizza steel, will last you a lifetime. One of the keys to making it last is to season the steel, which can be done in a few easy steps.
Do You Need to Season a Pizza Steel ?
Yes, just like a cast-iron skillet, your
Most pizza steels are made from stainless steel, but there are more than 150 grades of stainless steel. And some of these are more prone to rust than others. So even if a type of steel is considered stainless, it doesn’t mean your
If you have some experience with baking on pizza steels, you probably know that pizza doesn’t really stick when you bake at a high enough temperature. However, having a
What Does It Mean to Season a Pizza Steel , and Why Do You Need It?
Seasoning, in the context of cookware, is the process of adding a high smoke point oil, followed by exposing the
To season iron or steel, you apply a thin layer of oil and then expose it to heat for 30 minutes to an hour. What happens when you expose it to heat is polymerization and carbonization of the oil. This process is what creates the protective layer on the surface.
What Do You Need to Season a Pizza Steel ?
The only thing you really need to season is a
Cleaning Equipment
To clean a
A High Smoke Point Oil
To season the steel, you need a high smoke point oil. Smoke point refers to the temperature where the oil starts to burn and smoke. And a high smoke point is generally defined as 350°F (175°C) or more. The reason you want a high smoke point oil is that you don’t want the oil to burn when you place the
Some good high smoke point oils for seasoning a
- Coconut oil
- Grapeseed, oil
- Peanut oil
- Canola oil
- Sunflower oil
I recommend Cast Iron Sam’s 100% Natural Cast Iron Seasoning Oil made from refined coconut.
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An Oven For Baking The Steel
You also need an oven that can reach 350°F (175°C). But if you own a
How to Season a Pizza Steel
If you have experience seasoning cast iron, the process is essentially the same for pizza steels. Here’s how to season your
1. Clean The Pizza Steel
Before you season the steel, make sure it’s clean and dry.
When you bake pizza at high temperature, excess flour, melted cheese, and sauce tend to burn to the steel. You can use a bench scraper or spatula to get rid of the biggest chunks. Then use a sponge or nylon brush to clean it properly. If that is not enough, you can use steel wool or EarthStone Cleaning Block.
When you’ve got rid of the worst parts, clean the
Using soap on your
If you want to know more about how to clean your
2. Apply a Thin Layer of Oil
When the steel is clean and completely dry, it’s time to add oil. Spread a thin layer of high smoke point oil on the surface of the
3. Bake the steel in the Oven
Next, place the
During baking, the steel can get darker but don’t worry, this is natural. When you use, and especially when you season, your
4. Cool Completely
When the time is up, leave the
5. Store the Pizza Steel in a Dyr Place
Store your
The most important is to store your
I usually store my
Some steels also come with a protective cover, I recommend using that if you have one.
How Often Should You Re-Season a Pizza Steel ?
How often you need to re-season your
I use my
Do You Need to Season a Pizza Steel the First Time You Use It?
Most pizza steels come pre-seasoned when you buy them. It’s therefore not necessary to season it before you use it for the first time. It does however not do any harm to season it, so if you’re not certain, just go ahead and season your steel before you start using it
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Thanks for the helpful guide!
But: two things…
You can get cheaper steel wool from almost any grocery or hardware store. Secondly, there are so many typos. The best one is “leave your piss steal in the oven to cool.”
I’m happy to hear that you found it helpful. I’ll fix the typos and improve the article. Thank you for your feedback, I appreciate it!
Got my 16×16 1/2 inch pizza steel in the mail today. It weighs about 50 lbs so cleaning was a task. Good info on how to clean and season. Since the steel thicknesses range from 1/4 to 1/2 inch, does seasoning time differ based on this?
Hi, great question! Seasoning is a treatment of the surface of the steel. Therefore, a thick pizza steel doesn’t require more time than a thin pizza steel.
I have a sheet metal friend. Could I get a 1/4” x 14 x 20 piece of stainless (rounding the edges!) from him, season it, and I’m ready to go? If not, any pizza steel recommendations. Thanks for your info!
Yes, that should work great!
But if you want to buy one, the Conductive Cooking Square and NerdChef Steel Stone are great pizza steels
What is your week to week maintenance? I bake pizza 1X per week so do I need to scrape the big stuff and wash with hot water every week? Or should I just leave it and season every 90 days or so?
I usually remove as much as possible and clean it with hot water after each use. But if you bake often, and don’t spill anything on the steel, I’m sure you’ll be fine not washing it every single time.
What if my steel does get rust on it? What do I do?
It depends on how bad the rust is, but I would start with steel wool. If that’s not enough, you can try using sandpaper. Then re-season your pizza steel and store it in a dry spot to avoid more rust to develop.
Hello, i seasoned my pizza steel with coconut oil and it smoked like crazy. Had the oven at 350. Will it smoke every time i use it? I’m a little discouraged.
The initial seasoning process can involve the some smoke, particularly if the oil layer is a bit thick. But the smoke problem should get better as you use the steel, and it becomes more seasoned. Ensure good ventilation in your kitchen when seasoning or using the pizza steel the first couple of times.