The Benefits of Cooking with Wood Fired Pizza Ovens

Sometimes in life you have to move with the times and accept the old ways of doing things just aren’t as good as embracing new techniques and technologies. Wood fired cooking though, isn’t one of those things. It’s been one of the world’s favourite ways of cooking for a millennia. Although technology has moved on through the years and techniques for turning raw ingredients into delicious plates of food have become somewhat more sophisticated. Using wood fire remains a favoured method of cooking for pro chefs and home cooks around the globe.

Here at Igneus, we’re passionate about wood fired cooking. That’s why all the ovens in our range are solely wood fired. Not a gas canister in sight! In this blog, we’ll look at the benefits of wood fired cooking. Not just for pizza, but all kinds of food.

Flavour!

Why do you think chefs around the world still use wood as a method of cooking, when there’s all these modern methods available that are both quicker, more convenient and cleaner? Of course, you know the answer. It’s all about flavour. No other cooking method comes close to emulating the smoky, charred flavours and gnarly textures that you get with wood fire.

The difference between a piece of meat or a whole fish for example, that’s cooked in a wood-fired oven opposed to a conventional oven is massive. And the same goes for pizza to a certain degree.

We’re often asked about the pros and cons of wood-fired pizza ovens compared to gas-fired pizza ovens. The one thing that stands out above all else is the difference in flavour. Of course, if all you require is a quick, convenient method of cooking, there’s nothing at all wrong with gas pizza ovens. But if you want the real thing; that authentic, smoky flavour, you really cannot beat an Igneus Wood Fired Pizza Oven.

Bring Out Your Inner Caveman

Speaking of the real thing, one key benefit to wood-fired cooking that simply can’t be overlooked is the feeling and enjoyment that you get when going through the whole process of building the fire, nurturing the flames and cooking your chosen ingredients using this humblest of all techniques.

You really do channel the energy of your inner caveman! And let’s face it, having an excuse to play with fire (safely of course!) is just brilliant.

Speed!

No one likes waiting for food, do they? Wood-fired pizza ovens reach insanely high temperatures, often exceeding 500°C. When cooking pizza for example, you can have a Neapolitan pizza in and out in as little as 60 seconds. Talk about fast food! Even when cooking food other than pizza, whereby you’ll likely use a slightly lower temperature than 500°C. The intense heat still cooks meat and fish incredibly quickly.

Health Benefits. Really?!

Aside from the difference in flavour and taste that wood-fired cooking gives you, there’s also health benefits associated with it too. The speed element mentioned above plays a large part in this. The fact that food is cooked quickly means that nutrients and antioxidants are retained, rather than being lost in the cooking process. It’s a scientific fact that the longer that foods are cooked, the more nutrients are lost. This is especially true of fruits and vegetables. Yes, you can cook fruit and veg in a wood fired oven too!

Another consideration is that when cooking using wood fire, not a lot of extra cooking oils and fats are needed. Compare that to frying foods like chicken, steaks and fish, whereby you’d likely add in oils and butter in order to achieve the desired caramelisation. The intense heat of a wood fired pizza oven renders fat down quickly, meaning no extra fat needs to be added.

Final Thoughts

So, there you go. In case you needed any more convincing that a wood-fired pizza oven is a worthy investment, we hope we’ve managed to convince you that it absolutely is! Of course, it can be sometimes easier to use gas, or a conventional oven, but nothing at all beats the rugged authenticity of cooking with wood.

If you require any information about the Igneus range, contact us on 01423 575885. Or browse our full collection of pizza ovens online here,/u>.