Then, the manual instructed me to place one “all-natural firestarter” on top of the pellets and ignite with a lighter.

But in our tests, we found that the perforated peel left the same amount of blackened powder bits on the cooking surface as the wooden peel. It’s a delight to use for a fun dinner for two and amazing as a centerpiece of a party once you get a handle on your personal system and best practices.

The Koda 16’s larger cooking surface and wide opening not only let you make bigger pies but also afford you more maneuverability inside the oven. We also looked at extra fuel burners for the portable ovens that supported them—for example, a wood-burning attachment for a propane oven and vice versa.

Only our top picks tested in 2023 qualify for the 2023 tried-and-tested badge, but this doesn't mean we recommend the other models any less. After a few dry runs of heating the oven and maintaining the temperature, I was finally confident enough to actually cook in the Karu. After two-and-a-half minutes, our 12-inch pizza was hot and bubbling with gooey cheese and lightly browned toppings. I cooked the pizzas once the stone reached anywhere between 750 and 850 °F, observing the general heat zones in each oven and identifying hot spots. None of them reached their peak advertised temperatures during that time, but it was cold outside, and there’s only so much these little things can do.Fueled by a propane gas hookup, the Koda is as easy to use as a standard gas grill—just turn a dial, wait for the oven to heat up, and you’re off to the races.

This was considerably longer than expected, but feel this was due - in part - to the fact that the door didn’t stay on. Once connected to the gas (butane), it lights like a gas hob – simply press and hold the flame and ignition buttons together – and heats to temperature in 15 minutes. The oven space itself is fairly thin, you wouldn’t be able to roast a chicken in there for example, but you could make naan breads, slide in a tray of skewers or even a slab of steak. But for anyone focused on making great pizza, the Koda 16 works better than a standard grill, and its versatility and ease of use makes it a great value compared with its competitors. a decadent hamper filled with everything you need to get started making pizza, from OO flour and yeast to tinned tomatoes, mozzarella and pepperoni.Also, just like with lump charcoal, you need to keep refueling your oven with hardwood for it to stay at the correct cooking temperature. A big outlay, but a purchase that should serve you well for years to come and take outdoor cooking to the next level.

Pellet, hardwood, and charcoal models do need a little extra care when it comes to cleaning, since they have chimney pipes where soot can build up. This oven also comes with a built-in thermometer that will allow you to check the temperature of food. If you have a small garden and don't plan to cook pizza that often, a portable pizza oven would suit your needs. But once cooked, our 12-inch pizza had a pillowy, leopard-spotted crust, a crisp base and perfectly melted cheese on top. However, there's ample space in the cavity, meaning it can be used like a standard oven for cooking joints of meat and vegetables.

Gas-fired pizza ovens are generally cleaner to use as there is no need to sweep up any ash after use. To cook with the Ooni Fyra pizza oven, you must set it up outdoors on a flat surface (the company recommends wood, stone, or metal tables, which it also sells) at least 3' from a building. A narrower oven opening doesn’t allow you as much mobility to move and twist your baking pie compared with a wider one.