# Long over due. But here's my first Ooni run.



## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

I bought the Ooni Koda 16" back in November 2020. After 10 weeks it arrived. With the weather and work and all. I didn't get a chance to fire it up. That finally changed yesterday. I bought a cart for it. And made a wood top for it.








Next, I got all the goodies needed to make it happen. Gotta have a brew! Oven warming up. It took about 15 minutes to hit 950. Then I backed it down to around 500.







First pizza was for my son. He only likes cheese pizza. Which made a perfect test pizza.







Man. it cooked fast...real fast! Came out well with a bit of char on the crust. Chris loved it.

Next was mine and Ann's. Pepperoni and mushroom.







My first cup pepperoni! I'll need to lower the temp a touch more. And rotate it sooner. This pizza took about 90 seconds.







Crisp bottom with decent voids in the crust. Simple pizza dough I made in the bread machine. I'll post if anyone is interested.
Bottom line. I'm really liking this oven. Yes, there is a curve in understanding it. But not near as bad as some implied. Just don't walk away from it.


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## goldendogs (Mar 26, 2021)

I'll take any one of those , they look real fine to me.


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## DRKsmoking (Mar 26, 2021)

Steve H said:


> It took about 15 minutes to hit 950. Then I backed it down to around 500.


Hi Steve, i really like that oven, and very fast cook. I wonder how it would work on a thicker ( say the works  ) pizza with lots of fixins on it. I Cooked in pasta shops for many years. We had our big propane pizza ovens with the stone cook area. We kept them at 450- 475 degs. 



Steve H said:


> This pizza took about 90 seconds.


Your right , not even enough time to mix a good stiff drink
Big like 
David


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## indaswamp (Mar 26, 2021)

Nice Steve. I had never heard of an Ooni....now I want one! LOL!


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## tropics (Mar 26, 2021)

Steve nice it looks great to me!! I like your shop 
Richie


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## Winterrider (Mar 26, 2021)

Looks great! Boy I guess don't walk away, if its cooking them that quick. Sure would be rapid fire for a pizza party. 
Thing would probably do a good job of searing a steak or roast, 900° that's crazy. Looking forward to additional posts.


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

DRKsmoking said:


> Hi Steve, i really like that oven, and very fast cook. I wonder how it would work on a thicker ( say the works ) pizza with lots of fixins on it.



That should be doable. After I get a few more cooks on it I'll be looking into that. I'd imagine it could do it. Just not in 60 to 90 seconds!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

Winterrider said:


> Looks great! Boy I guess don't walk away, if its cooking them that quick. Sure would be rapid fire for a pizza party.
> Thing would probably do a good job of searing a steak or roast, 900° that's crazy. Looking forward to additional posts.



Thanks! A lot of folks use it for searing. I bought the CI plate for that purpose.


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

goldendogs said:


> I'll take any one of those , they look real fine to me.



Thanks!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

indaswamp said:


> Nice Steve. I had never heard of an Ooni....now I want one! LOL!



Thanks!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

tropics said:


> Steve nice it looks great to me!! I like your shop
> Richie



Thanks Richie! I need to make an addition to my shop. It's getting cramped in there!


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## JCAP (Mar 26, 2021)

Oh boy, that looks phenomenal!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

JCAP said:


> Oh boy, that looks phenomenal!



Thank you!


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## MJB05615 (Mar 26, 2021)

Steve, looks great, especially for the first time!  90 seconds, wow.  That's efficient.  Great work, it's breakfast time, but I'm craving pizza now, lol.  Once you get it dialed in, you'll be turning out some more great stuff.
Thanks for sharing.


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## SmokinAl (Mar 26, 2021)

Nice job Steve!
It looks like another cool toy!
The pizzas sure look good!
Al


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## xray (Mar 26, 2021)

Aw man that pizza looks great Steve, especially the pepperoni!

Glad to see that the Ooni has worked out for you, I see a lot of delicious pizza in your future.

Is your garage expansion going to be an outdoor kitchen!?


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## robrpb (Mar 26, 2021)

That pizza looks great Steve. Good job.

Rob


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## smokerjim (Mar 26, 2021)

That's some good looking pizza Steve


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## chopsaw (Mar 26, 2021)

Looks like it works great . Nice pizzas .


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## chef jimmyj (Mar 26, 2021)

The pizza looks great. I have been following Ooni since they were a crowd funded startup. They have come a long way and have gained a good reputation. This summer I am looking forward to playing with the Kettle Pizza/Rotisserie attachment 

 tx smoker
 gave me for Christmas. But the convenience and speed of the Ooni certainly has my attention. Best of Luck with the new toy...JJ


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## Brokenhandle (Mar 26, 2021)

Glad you got to use your pizza oven finally! Pizza looks really good! Looking forward to more!

Ryan


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## SmokinVOLfan (Mar 26, 2021)

Steve for the win! That thing is awesome man and those pizzas look off the chart good. LIKE!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

MJB05615 said:


> Steve, looks great, especially for the first time!  90 seconds, wow.  That's efficient.  Great work, it's breakfast time, but I'm craving pizza now, lol.  Once you get it dialed in, you'll be turning out some more great stuff.
> Thanks for sharing.


Thanks Mike!



SmokinAl said:


> Nice job Steve!
> It looks like another cool toy!
> The pizzas sure look good!
> Al


Thanks Al!



xray said:


> Aw man that pizza looks great Steve, especially the pepperoni!
> Glad to see that the Ooni has worked out for you, I see a lot of delicious pizza in your future.
> 
> Is your garage expansion going to be an outdoor kitchen!?


lol! Ann was thinking the same thing!



robrpb said:


> That pizza looks great Steve. Good job.
> 
> Rob


Thanks Rob!



smokerjim said:


> That's some good looking pizza Steve


Thank you Jim!



chopsaw said:


> Looks like it works great . Nice pizzas .


Thanks! It does a great job.



chef jimmyj said:


> The pizza looks great. I have been following Ooni since they were a crowd funded startup. They have come a long way and have gained a good reputation. This summer I am looking forward to playing with the Kettle Pizza/Rotisserie attachment
> 
> tx smoker
> gave me for Christmas. But the convenience and speed of the Ooni certainly has my attention. Best of Luck with the new toy...JJ


Thanks Jimmy!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

Brokenhandle said:


> Glad you got to use your pizza oven finally! Pizza looks really good! Looking forward to more!
> 
> Ryan


Thanks Ryan! Oh, there will be more.


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

SmokinVOLfan said:


> View attachment 490672
> 
> 
> Steve for the win! That thing is awesome man and those pizzas look off the chart good. LIKE!


Thanks John!


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## Bearcarver (Mar 26, 2021)

Looks Darn Tasty for your Maiden Voyage!!
Nice Job Steve!!
Like.

Bear


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## sawhorseray (Mar 26, 2021)

Grats on the new toy Steve, certainly looks as tho the maiden voyage was a huge success! Man, 90 seconds and done, that's crazy! RAY


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## tx smoker (Mar 26, 2021)

Sweet deal Steve!! Glad to see it finally fired up. Yep, you need to expand the garage and open a joint selling pizza, BBQ, and beer. I'd drive up there for one of those pizzas, that's for sure!! Looking forward to seeing what you turn out when you get it dialed in. That thing is a pizza cooking beast!!

Robert


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## Omnivore (Mar 26, 2021)

Looks awesome! Always looking for more dough recipes, especially ones that work at high temps. I make one called "Roberta's Pizza Dough" (google or nytimes cooking brings it right up) and it uses 00 which I think makes a huge difference. Everytime I make pizza I dream about owning an Ooni!


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## Steve H (Mar 26, 2021)

Bearcarver said:


> Looks Darn Tasty for your Maiden Voyage!!
> Nice Job Steve!!
> Like.
> 
> Bear


Thanks Bear!



sawhorseray said:


> Grats on the new toy Steve, certainly looks as tho the maiden voyage was a huge success! Man, 90 seconds and done, that's crazy! RAY


Thanks Ray! It is crazy quick!



tx smoker said:


> Sweet deal Steve!! Glad to see it finally fired up. Yep, you need to expand the garage and open a joint selling pizza, BBQ, and beer. I'd drive up there for one of those pizzas, that's for sure!! Looking forward to seeing what you turn out when you get it dialed in. That thing is a pizza cooking beast!!
> 
> Robert


Thanks my friend!  I'm thinking about an addition. But the limber prices are stupid right now.  



Omnivore said:


> Looks awesome! Always looking for more dough recipes, especially ones that work at high temps. I make one called "Roberta's Pizza Dough" (google or nytimes cooking brings it right up) and it uses 00 which I think makes a huge difference. Everytime I make pizza I dream about owning an Ooni!


Thank you! And thanks for the tip. I've heard a lot about this flour. But I can't source it locally. I may need to order some.


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## Central PA Cowboy (Mar 26, 2021)

Oh my, that looks really good! The Stella that is.


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## Steve H (Mar 27, 2021)

Central PA Cowboy said:


> Oh my, that looks really good! The Stella that is.



Thanks. That's high praise coming from you.


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## forktender (Mar 27, 2021)

Nice work Steve the pizza looks awesome, the reason it wasn't as hard as I described is because you backed it down to 500*.

Cooking anything at 500* compared to 900* there is a huge difference at 900* it acts like you're cooking directly on the sun. Once you dial in pizza cooked at 900* you will never go back to 500* the high temps do amazing things to the dough structure and oven spring. I'm just using this as an example dough cooked at 500* feels like I'm eating a bagel these days ever since I learned to cook pizza at 900*+ the dough is just so much softer and pillow like than anything I have ever eaten before. You will need a good 00 flour when you are cooking at the high temps to get that real pillowie* crust that I'm talking about. If you're interested in trying Central Milling CO offers great flour for anything that you need you don't need the pricey Italian made stuff. You don't want a malted flour when cooking at 700* and above or your bottom will scorch no matter what you do.

Which Ooni did you buy the Koda 16" or 12'' I've been looking for a 16" Koda on market place to pick up one will show up before summer time.

Awesome looking pie's.
Dan


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## Steve H (Mar 27, 2021)

Thanks Dan
I wasn't referring to you. I was talking about the pizza sight that I got the info from with lowering the temp. I have the 16 inch one. Appreciate the advice on the flour.


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## Steve H (Mar 27, 2021)

My next cook will be at 900 degrees. Hopefully with no issues


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## daveomak (Mar 27, 2021)

Steve, morning...  I hae some "00" flour...  would you mind sharing your pizza dough recipe with me ??    Me and baking are an "oil and water' experience...


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## Steve H (Mar 27, 2021)

daveomak said:


> Steve, morning...  I hae some "00" flour...  would you mind sharing your pizza dough recipe with me ??    Me and baking are an "oil and water' experience...



Morning Dave. This one is pretty basic. And I use my bread machine to make it.
3 cups bread flour
1 cup plus 2 Tbs warm water
2.5 tsp yeast. I use the stuff for bread machines. Though regular shouldn't be a problem
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 tsp pizza seasoning
2 Tbs Evoo
Place in this order in bread machine:
oil, water, mix the salt, sugar, and pizza seasoning in flour. And add that next. Then yeast. Put machine on dough setting. Takes 1.5 hours to make on the machine I use.
Take out of machine. Roll into ball and place in a bowl with enough EVOO to coat the ball. Cover and let it rise second time. About another hour. Then either store in bag in fridge. Or use right away.


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## hoity toit (Mar 27, 2021)

Steve H said:


> I bought the Ooni Koda 16" back in November 2020. After 10 weeks it arrived. With the weather and work and all. I didn't get a chance to fire it up. That finally changed yesterday. I bought a cart for it. And made a wood top for it.
> 
> View attachment 490653
> 
> ...


That's badd-ass, especially since it cooks so fast.
PS: I like your shop kitchen. looks great too.

HT


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## daveomak (Mar 27, 2021)

Thank you Steve....


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## forktender (Mar 27, 2021)

Steve H said:


> Thanks Dan
> I wasn't referring to you. I was talking about the pizza sight that I got the info from with lowering the temp. I have the 16 inch one. Appreciate the advice on the flour.


As soon as you see any color at all time to turn it, it goes  from brown to black so fast at 900*.
I swear I burnt the first three I tried, I was using the 12'' combo with wood and charcoal.
Come to find out that the flour I bought had malt added to it by mistake, I thought I was loosing my touch. LOL  Even with new flour I still burnt the bottom of a few, but we were pretty tuned up on beer margaritas  by the time we started cooking them. 

They are a well built oven though, I want one since I can't build the pizza oven here like I thought I was going to do. (long story)

I'm following this thread for sure.... Good luck.


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## Steve H (Mar 27, 2021)

hoity toit said:


> That's badd-ass, especially since it cooks so fast.
> PS: I like your shop kitchen. looks great too.
> 
> HT



Thank you! I only wish my shop was bigger!


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## Steve H (Mar 27, 2021)

Thanks again Dan. I'll be adding my cooks as I go.


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## Steve H (Mar 28, 2021)

I'm at work. But my son just made a pizza.







He used store bought dough. And ran the oven at 930 the whole cook.  Came out pretty darn good for his first time.


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## MJB05615 (Mar 28, 2021)

Looks good from here.  How long did it take at 930'?


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## Steve H (Mar 28, 2021)

MJB05615 said:


> Looks good from here.  How long did it take at 930'?



He said under a minute.


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## WaterinHoleBrew (Mar 28, 2021)

Steve, pizza looks awesome!  Glad you were able to break in the new toy!


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## chopsaw (Mar 28, 2021)

Steve H said:


> Came out pretty darn good for his first time.


Sure did . Looks great .


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## SmokeyLee15 (Mar 28, 2021)

My buddy has one and we always do a pizza night. The Ooni's cook time is unreal, almost too fast but the pizzas come out great once you get the hang of it. I had never heard of them until he got one, they are super cool!


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## Devo1 (Mar 29, 2021)

I owned the very first model and never did like it. Looks like they have improved them but Ooni has left a bad taste in my mouth so I will not be reinvesting in a new model. Give me my cast iron pizza pan and I am very happy with the results and I saved myself a fortune :)


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## Steve H (Mar 29, 2021)

Devo1 said:


> I owned the very first model and never did like it. Looks like they have improved them but Ooni has left a bad taste in my mouth so I will not be reinvesting in a new model. Give me my cast iron pizza pan and I am very happy with the results and I saved myself a fortune :)



It's always a crap shoot when buying an initial run item. From stereos to sneakers. Sorry to hear you had a bad experience.


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## GATOR240 (Mar 29, 2021)

Steve H said:


> He said under a minute.


Holy #@%&!!  Looks great!


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## Jimbo9414 (Mar 30, 2021)

I’ve been making pies at home for years and it was still a bit of a learning curve for me when I bought my Ooni 16.  I turn down the flames right before I launch.  Turn pie 120 degrees every 20 secs and it’s done. No sugar or diastatic malt ever. In find a 14 inch pie a bit more manageable...congrats and good luck on your journey to pizza greatness.
Jim


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## forktender (Mar 30, 2021)

LOL, I hate when the pie doesn't release the peel during the launch.


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