An outdoor pizza oven is a great solution for making homemade pizza without putting extra strain on your air conditioner. When you crank up the temperature in your oven to melt the cheese and crisp the crust, it can cause your AC to work harder, especially during the summer months. Additionally, if you prefer restaurant-style pizza, which requires a higher temperature than most standard ovens can handle, an outdoor pizza oven is the perfect choice.
Discover the top outdoor pizza ovens to replicate the delicious pizza from your favorite restaurant in the comfort of your own home. These ovens allow you to create artisan pizzas with your preferred toppings, and their versatility extends to cooking fish, meat, roasted vegetables, and bread, making them perfect for hosting events. Check out our selection of the best outdoor pizza ovens available.
5 Best Outdoor Pizza Ovens
Pizza ovens are able to reach higher temperatures much more quickly compared to regular ovens. This intense heat is what gives homemade pizzas a crispy crust that rivals those from a professional pizzeria. Additionally, a patio pizza oven is versatile and can be used to cook various other dishes. It might even outperform your top outdoor grill.
Solo Stove Pi Pizza Oven
The Pi pizza oven, manufactured by Solo Stove, will impress you with its attractive design and consistent cooking performance. Options are available in a wood-fired oven or dual-fuel oven, featuring Solo Stove’s iconic stainless steel exterior. It excels at producing high temperatures of over 700 degrees, ensuring fast cooking and achieving crispy crusts.
One standout feature of the Pi pizza oven is its spacious opening, which makes it effortless to place and rotate pizzas. With just 10-20 minutes of preheating, you can swiftly cook a pizza with charred, crisp edges and wonderfully melted cheese in just 1-2 minutes. Once finished, you can quickly flip the baking stone for a clean cooking surface, eliminating any mess.
KettlePizza Pizza Oven
The KettlePizza is a genius accessory for charcoal grill users who either have limited space or appreciate efficiency. Made of stainless steel, this insert effortlessly transforms ordinary charcoal grills into outdoor pizza ovens. Simply place it onto the grill grate and it will effectively maintain and circulate heat from a combination of charcoal and wood fuel sources. Within just five minutes or less, crispy pizzas are ready to enjoy.
Furthermore, the KettlePizza is incredibly easy to assemble and use, making it a great gift for grillers. Despite not being a traditional pizza oven, it produces exceptional pizzas.
Ooni Karu 16 Multi-Fuel Pizza Oven
Ooni revolutionized portable pizza ovens over ten years ago with their original design, which has since been imitated by many. The latest model, the Karu 16, has the capability to cook 16-inch pizzas using either propane or wood as fuel. The newly added locking door with a transparent window ensures consistent temperatures inside the oven. Additionally, the Karu 16 is equipped with a digital thermometer to monitor the air temperature. A practical pizza peel, essentially a sheet of metal that fits the oven’s opening, is also included.
While using the propane burner is extremely convenient, the Karu 16’s spacious firebox for wood allows for a more intense flame that covers the entire top of the oven.
Authentic Pizza Ovens Pizzaoili Brick Pizza Oven
The high heat of brick ovens produces some of the best pizza. And this authentic Italian-style Pizzaoili brick pizza oven excels at creating homemade pizzas in 90 seconds or less.
This oven is accompanied by a beautiful Portuguese ceramic baking dish that complements its functionality. With its inner layer of real brick and mortar, covered by refractory cement, this oven ensures top-notch insulation and delivers a true restaurant-quality experience. Additionally, a thick layer of Rockwool Insulation, held down by metal batting, is applied before another layer of refractory cement.
While it may come at a higher price, this remarkable oven has the potential to be cherished by future generations as it yields the best pizzas around.
Vevor Wood-Fired Pizza Oven
If you’re in search of the best budget outdoor pizza oven, look no further than the Vevor Pizza Oven. This versatile oven allows you to use wood pellets, wood chips, or charcoal as fuel, giving you a wide range of cooking options. From delicious pizzas to juicy steaks and flavorful vegetable dishes, this oven can do it all. With its 12-inch cooking space, it can quickly whip up mouth-watering dinners for two. The oven is lightweight and portable, making it ideal for backyard cooking or bringing to tailgating parties. It can reach an impressive temperature of 932 degrees and even comes with a built-in thermometer, removable legs, and various accessories.
Additionally, its stainless-steel exterior is not only attractive but also easy to clean. Don’t let the budget-friendly price fool you, the Vevor Pizza Oven is a top-notch outdoor cooking companion.
What To Look For In A Pizza Oven
When thinking about purchasing an outdoor pizza oven, there are a few things you should think about. These include the type of oven, how many pizzas it can cook, where you will put it outside, the style you prefer, and how well it works.
Fuel Source
At-home pizza ovens can use either gas or wood as fuel. Gas can be supplied through natural gas or propane, while wood requires burning. Some ovens can be upgraded or have separate attachments to use both gas and wood. Each fuel type has its pros and cons.
Wood-fired
Wood-burned pizza has an incredibly delicious and authentic taste. Just like grilling over charcoal versus using gas, it’s hard to find anything better than a pie cooked in a wood-fired pizza oven. However, the downside is that wood-fired ovens can be quite inconvenient. You’ll probably need a special tool to start the fire, and these ovens take longer to get hot. Additionally, wood-fired ovens produce more smoke than gas ovens and require extra cleaning because of the ash.
Gas-fired
Pizza ovens that use gas are simpler to operate and heat up more quickly compared to wood-powered ones. They are also effortless to clean, usually requiring only the removal of burnt remnants of pizza.
Multi-Fuel
If you can’t decide or if you like what both fuel types offer, then choose a multi-fuel model. While you can’t cook with gas and wood simultaneously, we believe that each fuel is perfect for different situations. Cook with gas when you have guests and want to make consistently delicious pizzas for a group. For relaxed evenings with your closest family and friends, use wood and enjoy a leisurely cooking experience.
Portability
Do you plan on keeping your pizza oven in one place on your patio or deck, or do you want the ability to take it with you on trips or easily store it away? If you want portability, look for a lightweight pizza oven that can use multiple fuels and is compact. Pizza ovens with folding legs and chimneys are especially convenient for traveling.
If you anticipate making pizza regularly and have the space in your garden, a larger pizza oven may be the best choice for you. These larger ovens don’t need to be permanently installed (which can be costly). You can purchase freestanding, large pizza ovens that can be moved around but still have enough capacity to cook multiple pizzas at once. Many of these ovens come with protective covers, but you may need to purchase the cover separately.
Temperature Range
In order to achieve the restaurant-quality pizza you desire, it is important to have an oven capable of reaching temperatures between 800-900ºF or even higher. These high temperatures swiftly enhance the crispy outer edges of the crust and melt the cheese, while maintaining a soft and fluffy bread base. Ovens with lower temperature ranges can still produce satisfactory pizza, but it may not meet the exceptional quality you are seeking.
Durability
Investing a good bit of money in a pizza oven warrants the need for durable and long-lasting options. Look for pizza ovens that are extensively insulated and constructed using robust materials such as heavy-gauge stainless steel, stone, or brick.
Cooking Surface Size
When selecting an outdoor pizza oven, it is crucial to consider the size of the cooking surface. Take into account the size of the pizza you plan on making and ensure that the surface or pizza stone is spacious enough to accommodate it. Typically, portable outdoor pizza ovens have a surface size ranging from 12 to 14 inches. If you desire a larger pizza, you may have to consider purchasing a permanent outdoor pizza oven structure.
Additionally, it is important to have enough space to cook, turn, and remove the pizza from the heat.
Accessories
One crucial accessory to check for when selecting your pizza oven is a pizza peel. This tool, resembling a spatula, is used to transfer the pizza into and out of the oven. A desirable aspect is finding an outdoor pizza oven that includes a peel of matching dimensions, saving you the need to buy one separately. Another highly valuable feature is a temperature gauge, providing you with the means to know when your pizza oven has reached the optimum temperature for cooking. Additional characteristics to consider are waterproof covers, stands, wheels, and detachable legs to ensure convenient storage.
Where Should I Place My Outdoor Pizza Oven?
When selecting a spot for your outdoor pizza oven, it is crucial to prioritize keeping it dry at all times as rain and moisture can harm garden pizza ovens. To prevent the internal stone from cracking when it heats up, it is essential to keep it covered. This is because the porosity of the wet stone causes it to expand with heat, leading to the potential for cracking.
To ensure the oven’s longevity, consider purchasing a cover for it or placing it in a well-ventilated patio. Additionally, moving the oven to a covered area once it has cooled down after use is also a wise option.
Invest In An Outdoor Pizza Oven For Perfect Homemade Pizza
If you are an avid pizza lover and enjoy making pizza at home, investing in an outdoor pizza oven is definitely a wise decision. Unlike indoor ovens, which struggle to reach the required temperatures for creating truly exceptional pizza, outdoor pizza ovens excel in this aspect. The finest garden pizza ovens allow you to effortlessly craft deliciously charred and crispy pizzas. While they may come with a price tag, they are well worth it if you plan on using your pizza oven frequently, spending a considerable amount of time in your yard or patio, and are eager to elevate your homemade pizza creations.
So, bid farewell to indoor ovens and embrace the wonders of the best garden pizza ovens.
Colin Macmillan is a seasoned entrepreneur and the CEO of Riverwood Landscape, a leading landscaping company based in Canada. He has been at the helm of the company since leaving high school, demonstrating his strong leadership skills and business acumen.
Colin’s expertise lies in various aspects of landscaping, including lawn care, interlocking, sod installation, and commercial maintenance. His hands-on approach and dedication to the craft have been instrumental in building Riverwood Landscape into a reputable brand.
One of his most notable achievements is the creation of a successful landscape franchise that services multiple locations. This accomplishment underscores his strategic thinking and ability to scale operations effectively.
Colin has also had the privilege of working with Guelph Hospital for landscaping and maintenance, a testament to the trust and reliability that his company has earned over the years.
His professional mission is to offer the best services and experiences for customers, a goal that he tirelessly pursues. Colin’s commitment to excellence and customer satisfaction continues to drive the growth and success of Riverwood Landscape.
