If there is one smell that will bring everyone running, it's that of fresh pizza. Admit it, your mouth just started watering a little. Now imagine the smell of fresh pizza intermingled with that of your grill.
Drool!
Learning how to build an outdoor pizza oven is a pretty simple job. It will take time and some sweat but the pay off is certainly worth it as you become the king griller of the neighborhood.
The first thing you need is a flat level surface to start building. If you have a cement patio you're set. If not you might want to pour a slab of concrete.
Pouring a slab of concrete doesn't take much except time.
All you need to do is remove a layer of topsoil slightly larger than the foundation footprint.
Level the area that's going to be poured.
Build a framework for the slab. All you need are some 4-inch tall strips of wood squared and level set in the footprint.
Pour the concrete.
Use a scrap piece of wood longer than the pour to scrape and level out the fresh cement by raking it along the framework.
Let it dry at least 24 hours.
Congratulations! You've now built a great sturdy base for the new outdoor pizza oven.
You'll need a lot of bricks for this baby so have the hardware store deliver them as close to the concrete pad as possible. You want to build an oven, not tote bricks from one end of the yard to the other.
You don't need anything gigantic for a perfect pizza. A simple 36-inch square base is more than large enough.
Start stacking bricks to make a nice square pattern. Make sure nothing is loose or wobbly.
Once you've stacked up to a height of about 30 inches it's time to build the firebox.
Simply lay a single layer of bricks stacked on end along the outside edge of the back and sides of your oven. Leave a spacing of 4 bricks along the back wall. So the smoke has a way out of the firebox.
Once you've finished stacking the bricks cut a piece of sheet metal to size and place it on top of the wall.
Stack another layer of bricks on top of the sheet metal. Once again stack bricks lengthwise along the back and sides of the pizza oven. And lay another piece of sheet metal on top of them. This will be the oven portion of your outdoor pizza oven.
Add another layer of bricks on top of the sheet metal and voila! Your outdoor pizza oven is complete. Just light the fire. Get the pizza oven up to temperature and slide in a fresh pizza, calzone, or whatever will make the neighbors jealous.
Learning how to build an outdoor pizza oven is time consuming but so worth it once you taste that first slice of fresh pie. The neighbors will be beating down your door for the great taste of homemade outdoor pizza.
