Ok, go to your oven right now and take whatever baking stone you've been using out, and throw it away. Pampered Chef baking stones, stones from Sur La Table, even the Emile Henry baking stones are nowhere near as heavy and versatile as these stones. If you are like me, you're suspicious of the low price and the fact that they're four separate stones. But lemme tell ya... I don't know how they do it, but at least for my purposes these stones are far and away the BEST quality on the market. You can configure them in a multitude of ways in your oven to accommodate a Boule, a Baguette, Pizza -you name it. And let me tell you about the CRUST you get. I am currently working a modified starter loosely based on the LaBrea method, and never in my entire life have I been able to get these results from my home oven. Crackly crisp crust, enviable "custardy" open pores, baked perfectly through without char or damp spots or slumpy profile. My other stones didn't produce anything close. The BEST loaves of bread, ever-my husband wants me to hang a shingle out front and start selling them from the house. Absolutely wonderful.
I like the darker color of these stones; I don't know if perhaps that might be contributing to the amazingly even heat, but just in terms of vanity -they don't look nearly as stained and funky as the lesser stones do, and I've been putting them through a rigorous trial. There was a disclaimer in the box that little cracks might be present or develop that don't affect the performance, but so far I see none. I am sure part of their superiority is partly that these stones are easily twice the thickness of the stones you buy anywhere else--I almost laughed when I opened the box-they're like bowling ball heavy. The construction just puts anything else I've ever used to shame. The ribbed backside makes them "grip" the oven rack nicely too--especially nice when you're transferring dough or trying to remove a finished loaf and everything is blazing hot. I haven't tried them on the grill yet, but I can't wait to do it this summer as we grill a fair amount of pizza. I've always put dough directly on the grill, which really is taking chances with hot spots and split second timing (and lots of apologizing on my part to hungry guests if I fail and we resort to delivery pizza). And I've never had a stone I thought was really up to the challenge. But I think we might buy a second set of these, just for pizza-on-the-grill purposes. Good grief, at this price?? We'll make that back in like two skipped delivery pizzas from the gourmet place up the road.
In short, this was one of the best culinary purchases I believe I've ever made, and I have no reservations recommending these to anyone who wants to take their baking to the next level.
First, these were shipped lightening fast accompanied by exacting communication from the company( a hurricane was coming and they apologized in advance for any tardiness). The tiles were well packed and are well made and thick. The photo on amazon is a little misleading due to the angle it was shot atthe stones are not square but rectangular which matters if one wants to make large, round pizzaswhich won't fit and one would probably do best to order 2 sets keeping in mind the size of one's oven. Using them primarily for bread in an oven this does not matter much to me and i would suppose the shape is most advantageous to those who will be using them on a grill.
My first bake was in fact a pizza, square, and the crust was absolutely perfect-evenly cooked, golden colored bottom, chewy inside. Having appropriately manufactured( scored as they should be on the bottom) pieces rather than as one big slab may lessen the chance of having shattered stones and makes them easier to store and handle. Highly recommended product which cooks beautifully with the added plus that the vendor/manufacturer seems very responsive.
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First: Were Shipped very quickly, well packaged. Could not have done it better.
The Product: Good Thick tiles, 4 tiles instead of one larger tile, so easier to deal with moving them in and out of the oven. These are my second set of pizza stones, the first were thin and broke into peices, these shouldn't have that problem. They say they heat up in 20 minutes. I think you are better off to give them 30 minutes. The whole trick to cooking a NY style pizza is to allow the stones to be so hot that they take the liquid in the dough and turn it to steam, which gives you all the fluff and air bubbles on your crust edge. The other thing to realize: NY Pizza crust is sourdough. Put some flour into water, cover it with a towel, leave on the counter over night. Dump half, refill with flour and water, cover with a towel over night. AFter four or five nights you have your starter. Add some of it to your dough mix, refill it with flour and water. You can then just keep it in the fridge and refresh it every two or three weeks. It will give your dough that chewy pull of an NY Pizza. Having grown up in NY, I am not fond of the local pizza, and having a nice set of stones like these allows me to create a great NY style pizza when I want. Absolutely love them!
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I've read all the reviews for these stones and, from my own experience, every word was true. They allow you to bake a pizza with a near-perfect, al forno-style crust in under 10 minutes. The four smaller stones (bricks/tiles actually) are lighter and easier to use than a single large stone. But I found this modularity also presented the product's one failing. Like all bricks they are first cast in molds and then fired. As a result, there are raised ridges running the length of the long edges. This means that the bricks never sit really flush. There are gaps wherever two long edges abut one another. It's no big deal with pizza or a hearty bread, but this is could be a problem when baking bread with a really soft dough, such as a ciabatta. It took me more than 2 hours of close hand work to eliminate the ridges and thus the gaps. The factory could, and I believe should, have done it as part of the manufacturing process. Then this product would truly be the perfect home baking stone.
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I wanted to like this and thought it sounded good (making 4 individual pizzas, etc), but the reality of it is that these are pretty small to fit a homemade pizza on. And I find them awkward to work with when I try to put them all together as one large stone. I ended up getting another large size stone (one solid piece) that rarely leaves my oven and I use it all the time. These are in a cabinet never being used.
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I adore this lil' pup, all stainless steel, and built to last. I sharpened the end slightly for better results. This isn't a throw away item like many others at Amazon are [at about $9 a pop]. This litle injector will give your grilled meats that something extra. I also use it on firm fleshed fish (say that 3 times!) as well as poultry cutlets & fryers (whole turkey or turkey breast). This tool really makes the difference in the flavor and I enjoy the raves when I have guests over, lol!
