What do you usually bring to a picnic or camping trip? Pre-made hot dogs, burgers, and dry snacks? These are good, but they make you feel a little off when you only eat cold food outside. There is now a portable pizza oven that you can bring on your next trip to make it more fun. Finally, you and your family or friends can enjoy hot, fresh pizza while you're camping.
But pizza ovens are usually big and heavy. Is it really a good idea to bring one camping?
Quick Answer
Yes, without a doubt.
It is possible to bring a pizza oven camping, and it's also easier than you might think. Heavy, fixed brick ovens are a thing of the past. These days, portable gas pizza ovens are made to be taken with you.
These units are made of durable stainless steel, are lightweight, and have legs that can be folded up so they are easy to store in a car trunk or RV. For wood-fired ovens, you have to carry around bags of pellets or logs. A gas oven, on the other hand, can connect straight to the propane tank you probably already have for your camp stove. It is the cleanest and fastest way to get fresh, hot food outside without a lot of trouble.
What You Need to Take For Camping
To be successful, you need the right tools. You can't count on the tools at the campsite to help you make pizza. The process will go smoothly if the kit is ready.
What Pizza Oven to Choose
Three factors matter most for camping ovens: fuel type, weight, and how easy they are to put together.
1. Gas Power over Wood
Many campgrounds have rules against fires, like not allowing wood or charcoal fires when it's dry outside. Most of the time, propane appliances can stay in use because they have an off switch. Also, gas ovens burn cleaner, so there won't be any ash or smoke at your campsite. For a gas oven, you can use fuel that you already have, like propane for your camp stove.
2. Compact Design
Pick an oven with legs that can be folded up. There is only so much room in a car. It's easier to pack an oven that can be folded up into a smaller shape.
3. Size
The best balance comes from an oven that is 12 or 13 inches wide. It has enough space to cook a full-sized pizza but is still light enough for one person to carry.
Other Cooking Accessories
The oven heats the food, but you need specific tools to handle it.
Foldable Pizza Peel: You need a peel to move the dough onto the stone. Standard wooden peels are long and hard to pack. A metal peel with a handle that folds up is easy to store in a bin.
Infrared Thermometer: The weather changes outside. The wind and the temperature of the air around the stone change how it warms up. An infrared thermometer tells you the exact temperature of the stone's surface. For cooking, the stone needs to be at least 700°F. You have to guess without this tool.
Rolling Cutter: A sharp wheel cutter makes it easy to cut pizza quickly on a camping table.
Long Tongs: If you don't have a turning peel, you can use long metal tongs to rotate the pizza safely so that it browns evenly.
Sturdy Table: When it gets really hot, plastic folding tables can bend. A camping table made of aluminum or a stainless steel cart can safely handle the heat.
Camping Essentials
Aside from cooking tools, you still need site management gear.
Propane Adapter: Bring the right adapter hose if your oven connects to a 20-pound tank but you like to carry 1-pound green camping bottles.
Headlamp: Cooking is often done after the sun goes down. It's hard to keep an eye on the crust inside the dark oven without hands-free lighting.
Fire Extinguisher: Cooking over high heat needs extra safety measures. Make sure you can access a fire extinguisher.
If You Have Kids and Pets
Both kids and pets find pizza ovens fascinating. The glowing light and delicious smells draw their attention.
Establish a Safety Zone: Mark a perimeter around the cooking area. Put down coolers or chairs to block access.
Visual Warnings: Tell the kids that the metal exterior is very hot.
Pet Control: Dogs will follow the smell of cooking meat around. Pets should be on a leash or in a pen while you're cooking to keep them from getting hurt.
How to Pack Camping Food
The hardest thing about camping pizza is getting it to where you need to go. To keep them fresh and safe, dough and toppings need to be handled in a certain way.
Dough Management
It's hard to make dough at a campsite because the temperatures change quickly and there aren't any clean surfaces.
Freeze the Dough: Make dough balls at home, put them in oiled containers or bags, and freeze them.
Dual Purpose: In your cooler, these frozen dough balls will keep things cool. They help keep perishables cold. They slowly thaw over 24 to 48 hours. They are ready to stretch by dinner time on the second night.
Topping Preparation
There isn't enough room in the camp kitchens to do a lot of chopping.
Pre-Cut Everything: You can cut up peppers, onions, and mushrooms at home. Keep them in airtight containers that can be stacked.
Cheese Strategy: If the cooler gets warmer, the shredded cheese can stick together or melt into a ball. You can shred mozzarella at home and keep it in a sealed bag. Put it in the coolest part of the cooler until you're ready to put the toppings on. When cheese is cold, it melts more evenly than when it is warm and greasy.
Sauce Storage
Transporting glass jars is risky as they break easily. Put pizza sauce into a plastic squeeze bottle. This method keeps the jar from breaking and lets you put sauce on the dough without a spoon, which makes cleanup easier.
Where to Place the Pizza Oven
The right placement guarantees safety and the best cooking results.
Level Ground
The pizza stone needs to sit flat. The dough will slide if the oven tilts. To make the table legs level, use flat rocks or wood shims. If the surface is steady, the pizza won't slide off the stone or into the burner.
Wind Considerations
Gas ovens are greatly affected by wind. If there is a strong breeze coming into the oven, it will disrupt the flame barrier and cool the stone.
Positioning: Turn the oven opening so that it faces away from the wind. The back of the unit should act as a shield.
Airflow: Don't block the rear vents, but make sure that the wind doesn't push air down the chimney.
Clearance
Radiant heat rises. Tents, sleeping bags, and flammable fabrics should be 3 to 5 feet away from the oven. Do not put the unit right under low tree branches or nylon tarps.
Starving Stomach Can't Wait for Long!
After a day of hiking or swimming, you'll be very hungry. It takes 30 to 45 minutes for a regular charcoal grill to reach cooking temperature. When a family is hungry, they don't always have time to prepare charcoal.
This problem can be fixed with a high-quality unit like the Big Horn Outdoors® 12" Portable Gas Pizza Oven. It is designed to heat up quickly. The temperature inside can reach up to 900°F in about 15 minutes.
The cooking goes even faster once it's turned on. It takes less than 90 seconds to cook a pizza. In less than 15 minutes, you can feed four people. The design makes it easy for heat to spread, which quickly makes the crust crisp and the cheese melt. When cooking at camp, this speed is faster than almost all the others.
You can cook more than just pizza, too. What else could you make? Chicken wings, drumsticks, burgers, etc.
Clean Up Quickly
When you clean up after a meal, you usually have to scrub off grease and soot. A better option is a pizza oven that runs on gas.
Pyrolysis Cleaning
High heat cleans the stone.
- Burn Off: Leave the oven on high for 10 to 15 minutes after the last pizza is done cooking. The high heat burns up spilled food and turns it into ash.
- Cooling: Turn off the gas and let the unit cool down all the way.
- Wiping: Use a brush to remove the ash from the stone. Use a damp cloth to clean the stainless steel exterior.
- Packing: Fold the legs up and disconnect the gas.
There is no need to scrub the grates or get rid of the hot coals.
Make Camp Pizza Tonight
Camping lets people connect with nature, but the food isn't always very good. Bringing a pizza oven changes the way things work. It lets you make fresh, hot meals that are just as good as restaurant food, even if you're in the middle of nowhere.
As always, preparation is key. Outdoor pizza baking is easy if you have the right tools and know how to store your food. The Big Horn Outdoors® 12" Portable Gas Pizza Oven has the power and portability that you need for this. It's a quick, clean, and useful way to cook outside.
Upgrade your camp cooking. Visit Big Horn Outdoors to check out the 12" Portable Gas Pizza Oven and start making plans for your next outdoor menu.
FAQs about Camping Pizza Ovens
Q1: How to move an outdoor pizza oven?
To avoid getting burned, make sure the unit is cool before you move it. Remove the stone so it doesn't move or break while it's being transported. Fold the legs under the body to make it more compact. Since the oven is small and lightweight, it's simple to move from your car to the camping picnic table.
Q2: How long does it take to cook a pizza in a portable pizza oven?
It takes about 15 minutes for the oven to get hot enough to reach 900°F. At this heat, a pizza cooks in 90 seconds. It's best to rotate the pizza every 10 to 15 seconds so that the top gets crispy and doesn't burn.
Q3: Can I use an outdoor pizza oven in the rain?
It's not a good idea. Even though the oven is made of durable stainless steel, it cools down very quickly when it rains. This makes it hard to keep the temperature high enough to cook. It's even worse when cold rain hits a hot cordierite pizza stone. The quick change in temperature can cause it to crack. If it starts to rain, move the oven to a safe place or cover it (after it's cool).
Q4: Can the Big Horn pizza oven stay outside?
You can use the Big Horn Outdoors® 12" Portable Gas Pizza Oven outside, but don't leave it out for too long if it's raining or snowing. Keep the burner clean and store it in a dry area like a shed or garage when not in use. If you have to leave it outside, put something waterproof over it to keep dirt and water out.
Q5: Do you need ventilation for a pizza oven?
Yes, it is very important for air to flow well. These ovens produce carbon monoxide when burning fuel. You have to use the oven outside, in the open. It shouldn't be used in a tent, RV, or enclosed space. Make sure there is a lot of open space around the unit to keep the flame steady and the area safe, even if there is no wind.
