How to Season a Baking Stone

First Step to Better Baked Goods!

Some things get better with age, but we don’t always see it that way because we are focusing on the wrong thing!  Ok… sorry for the deep analogy, but it couldn’t be more true when it comes to baking stones (also called pizza stones).   I was given this stone by a dear friend of mine when I told her that I wanted one for making pizza.  She had this one that she wasn’t using and gave it to me!  I have the best friends btw.  🙂

The first time that I used it I thought that I had ruined it!  I made pizza that night and there was burned cheese and other food that had made their mark on the once pristine stone.  I started looking up ways to get it off when I came across a video about seasoning a baking stone.  Wow, was I relieved!  Not only did I NOT ruin my baking stone, but the burned food on top was a part of the seasoning process.  Seasoning a baking stone is pretty much the same as seasoning a cast iron pan.  As the oils from the food burn off they leave behind a black non-stick surface.

 To season your own baking stone you will need:

Some type of oil.  (Olive, Vegetable, Canola, Coconut and Crisco are all good choices)

Directions:  Put a thin layer of oil on stone using a clean washcloth or other towel.  Put stone in while pre-heating!  (otherwise the stone may crack). Bake stone at 425 degrees F for about an hour.  Stone should change a shade or two after seasoning.  Stone will get darker with age (as you use it).  Do this every time that you bake with it and it will continue to darken.  side note: As the oils bake they REALLY smell… turn on the vent or open a door when following this method.

Alternate method:

Cook some type of oily bread or cookies on top of the baking stone.  The oils in the food will start the seasoning process.  Just make sure not to bake something too smelly like fish on a baking stone (it will leave behind a yucky smell and flavor).

This is after the stone was used about 10 times.  You can see that it is now almost black!   The surface is much more non-stick than when I first received it.   Just last night I made an amazing pizza that just slipped right off when I needed it to.

Here are pics of that pizza:

The cheese was perfect and stringy!

 The crust was just right… with spots of brown!

 A wonderful “at home” pizzeria quality pizza!   I will let you in on the other tips for making the perfect pizza pie soon!!!  Until then… get a cheap pizza stone and season it to perfection!

It may not be the prettiest stone on the block, but it has amazing abilities ! 😉

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