Ever wonder if you can clean your pizza stone with soap? Will it damage it? Will soap ruin your pizza stone? Well, we have the answers and explanations on how to clean your pizza stone!
We all love pizza, right? The pizza stones normally act as a portable brick oven. It is efficient for producing pizza crusts that are delicious and crispy.
Transform your kitchen into a pizzeria, it doesn’t matter where you live as long as you have the perfect pizza stone with you.
I recommend taking special care of these stones for them to give you perfect results. The advantage of pizza stones is that you do not have to soak them overnight like in cases of casserole dishes.
? Avoid at all times soaking your pizza stone in soapy hot water. Pizza stones should be exposed to as little water as possible, and keep the soap away from them.
Whatever happens, never use soap on a pizza stone to clean it. The only cleaning agent you should use consistently on your pizza stone is water, and even water should just be used on the pizza stone infrequently or in moderation.
The pizza stone has become a baking surface of choice to create a tasty pizza dish, which is one of the world’s most favorite foods.
It holds heat evenly, and its porous surface extracts water out of the wet areas of the pizza dough as it cooks.
Additionally, when the pizza stone is preheated, it transmits to the dough an effective burst of heat which will puff up the crust.
Now, returning to the event when you have washed your pizza stone with soap before anyone warns you, what will happen?
Its pores will take in the soap and you will taste a bit of it when you cook your next pizza. The moral lesson is, be careful before cleaning your pizza stone with anything, like soap or any cleanser.
This is because you will be able to taste the cleaning agent that you used the next time you make a pizza again. It will disturb your appetite.
Water is Still The Best Pizza Stone Cleaner
Good old water is still the safest and only moisture you would want to come into contact with your pizza stone when cleaning.
But there are some people who would like to use vinegar paste or baking soda to clean it off. But as mentioned, whatever you clean on the stone stays on with the taste of your next pizza.
A good scraper like this one is perfect for cleaning your pizza stone with a little water.
Be Proud Of Your Blackened Pizza Stone
Perhaps your greatest motivation as to why you panicked and used soap to clean your dirty pizza stone is when it is blackened because of constant use.
Don’t be embarrassed by this because a blackened pizza stone symbolizes that you are a total pizza lover. You use it over and over, that’s why it has attained its blackness.
Your Pizza Stone Blackened Won’t Affect Tase
Any stain on your stone will not affect how your pizza tastes. It’s simply the ingredients you put in, the right crispness of your dough, and the right cooking time which will eventually determine the success of your pizza.
What To NOT Clean Your Pizza Stone With
Soap, cleaning chemicals and oils should not be used to clean your stone.
From the food you cook alone on the stone, oils will build up on it and make it a non-stick surface which will make your cooking easier for you.
But don’t let the pizza stone get too wet because the pizza crust will not be baked right.
This means that your pizza stone, after cleaning, should not be used immediately. Instead, it should be completely dry before using it again.
You can use a damp towel to scrape away crumbs on its surface, but the important thing is, the stone should be completely dry before being used again.
Some people put the stone in the oven to make the drying process quicker, but this is a mistake. Any trapped water in the stone, while in the oven, can cause the stone to crack.
Speaking of, check out our comparison of the Ooni Pizza Oven to the Roccobox, it’s not as simple as we thought!
How To Clean Your Pizza Stone With Water
Without the use of soap, ever, and with a sink that’s full of water, here’s the process:
Put a small stream of hot water on the pizza stone’s surface. Use only a small dose because you still need to completely dry the stone before you use it again or before storing it away.
Then, wipe away with a damp fabric food particles on the surface.
Now, use a stone brush to scrub the stone thoroughly.
Allow the stone to air dry or you can use a dry towel to erase any trace of moisture.
But remember that you don’t even need water to clean the stone after you have removed the food particles.
When completely dry, store the pizza stone in your oven to decrease the chances of it breaking between uses. Additionally, it will be seasoned when you use the oven.
Cleaning Pizza Stone Stains
Don’t be bothered at all by stains on your pizza stone. Stains are marks that you love your pizza stone. You use it over and over and it helps your pizza become tastier and crustier.
But if you really need to get the stains, remove food debris first by scraping them away with a brush or spatula.
Create a paste that contains equal parts of baking soda and water. Scrub this paste on the stains with a brush and work in circular motions. Do this until the stains are removed or you’re content with the quantity of stain removed.
Wipe the stone with a damp cloth and allow it to completely dry.
Don’t worry that baking soda will affect the taste of your pizza. Unlike soap, baking soda is effective in getting stains off without influencing the flavor of your future pizza creations.
What To Do If You Already Used Soap On Your Pizza Stone
It might happen that you already cleaned your pizza stone with soap before anyone with the right sense could advise you.
If you bought it from a thrift store and the price was so affordable, you might just throw it away and buy another one and charge what happened to experience.
You don’t need to throw it away. It’s not too late.
One thing you can do is to rinse it well and let it dry for a few days. Then smell if you sense any soap scents coming out.
If you’re still suspicious of a soapy smell, you can still slide your pizza on the stone with a sheet of parchment in between. In this way, there is still no direct contact with soap (if it is still left).
Once the pizza spends a few hours in the oven, any soap residue might well have disappeared on its own.
Take care of your pizza stone, don’t worry about its blackness or its stains, and never ever wash with soap.
Other Tips To Clean A Pizza Stone Without Soap
Many times we ask ourselves these questions, will my pizza stones have germs or will it not start stinking if it is not cleaned occasionally? Pizza stones survive high temperatures that help kill germs.
Pizza stones are flat and are made up of porous materials either cast iron or stone. It absorbs substances that I use to clean and I noticed over
time, my pizza stones started to absorb the substance I used to clean. The smell impacts the flavors of food being prepared. On the other hand, the moisture on the stone affects the crust texture of the pizza.
Moisture is usually absorbed from the dough while heating the pizza, thus making a crispier crust. Once there is water in the pizza stone, it makes it difficult to get a good crust.
Take time before cleaning the stone to allow it to cool down. Sometimes heat is trapped on the stone and can burn you if you are not careful.
All the tools you need to clean are found in your kitchen. Use a thin tool that can easily slide to remove stuck particles or food leftovers.
