Mount Etna Pizza Stone c/w Pizza Peel

The Mount Etna Pizza Stone is cut from natural igneous lava rock quarried on Sicily's Mount Etna, and its porous surface draws moisture out of the dough as it bakes so the base crisps instead of steaming in its own moisture. The set includes a birchwood pizza peel for loading and unloading the pizza, and the stone works in a conventional oven, on a stovetop hob or set over a barbecue grill. Made in Italy.

How the Lava Stone Gets a Crisp Base

A metal tray traps steam under the dough as it cooks, which is why a pizza base often stays soft in the middle even once the top looks done. Lava rock is porous, so it pulls that moisture straight out through the base of the dough while the stone's stored heat cooks it from below, and that combination is what gives a properly crisp crust rather than one that only browns on top. Put the stone into a cold oven and bring it up to temperature together with the oven, rather than transferring it into one that's already hot, so it heats evenly instead of taking the shock at the surface, and let it cool the same way before washing it: it's the sudden change in temperature that cracks stone, not the heat itself. Once it's up to temperature, slide the pizza on using the birchwood peel.

Pairs With

For the rest of the setup, the Beechwood Pizza Dough Roller flattens dough evenly before it goes on the stone, and the Beechwood Dough Scraper is handy for lifting and portioning a wetter dough. Browse the full Pizza Making collection for peels, cutters and more.