The Igneus £10 Pizza Night Challenge

There’s no getting away from the fact that everything’s getting more expensive. Whether it’s the cost of a holiday, a meal out at a restaurant, or even a loaf of bread in the supermarket! However, with your Igneus pizza oven, you can make restaurant-standard pizza without compromising on quality ingredients at a fraction of the price. That’s why we came up with the ‘£10 Pizza Night Challenge’, where you can feed a family of four for less than a tenner, and give your local takeaway a run for its money in the process. Let’s go.

The Real Cost of a Homemade Pizza

Pizza was initially invented as humble street food, designed to be delicious, fast, and cheap. So, if your go-to toppings are the finest aged prosciutto and freshly shaved truffle, you may have to park that this time! A pizza is mostly made up of flour, water, yeast, and salt, and for a 10”-12” pizza, you’ll need approximately 150g of flour per pizza.

Next comes the tomato sauce, which again, only adds a matter of pennies to the budget. Of course, you can opt for the finest San Marzano tomatoes, which we’re big fans of if you’re going all out, but a middle-of-the-road 400g tin of peeled tomatoes is perfectly fine for most.

Cheese is often the main variable and an area that can really push up the price per pizza. We recommend not compromising too much on quality, but using it sparingly. You don’t need loads for great coverage, and the whole pizza doesn’t need to be covered in cheese anyway for an authentic Neapolitan-style pizza.

Next comes the toppings. You can, of course, stick with a classic pizza Margherita, which would see you complete this challenge way under budget, but we’ve got plenty of cash left in the coffers at this stage! What makes a real difference is agreeing on a set number of toppings that everyone enjoys. For example, if most people in your family like chorizo, you can make that your main ingredient and then vary the cheaper second and third ingredients around that for each person. Stick to the rule of three for each pizza and limit the total number of toppings to 4 or 5 to stay under budget. If you’ve got cash left after this, you could even push the boat out and buy some fresh basil to garnish the pizza, which really elevates the flavour of the pizzas to the next level.

To help with keeping under budget, use this quick maths template with your own supermarket prices.

• Dough: (grams of flour per base × price per gram) + a tiny allowance for yeast/salt

• Sauce: (grams of tomato sauce per base × price per gram) + a tiny allowance for salt, olive oil and basil (if using)

• Cheese: grams × price per gram

• Toppings: total cost of all toppings ÷ number of pizzas you’re making

Plug in your numbers and you’ll see why homemade pizza usually lands far below restaurant and takeaway pricing, especially when catering for 4 or more people.

Top Tips for Sticking to a Budget

Dough

• Aim for a hydration level of around 65% (i.e. 650g water per 1kg flour).

• Use ‘00’ flour. You’ll find quite big variations in terms of price in the supermarkets, but any ‘00’ flour is okay. Supermarket own brand often comes in way cheaper!

Tomato Sauce

• Crush good tinned tomatoes or use passata for ease.

• Season with a pinch of salt, a drizzle of olive oil, and basil if the budget allows.

• Don’t cook it out, there’s no need as the fierce heat of the pizza oven will sweeten and concentrate flavours naturally.

Cheese

• Whether you’re using buffalo mozzarella or a block of mozzarella, we recommend tearing or slicing it down into small pieces so it not only melts easier, but also spreads more evenly over the top of your pizza. 

• Remember, you don’t need tons of cheese for authentic, restaurant-standard pizza!

Low-cost toppings

We mentioned earlier about using one ‘hero ingredient’ that all your family can agree on (if possible!). Then pair that with low-cost, but still creative, toppings. Here are some of our favourites.

• Roasted peppers/courgette strips (cook them in the oven first)

• Mushrooms & thyme (cook off your mushrooms first to remove the water).

• Caramelised onions

• Olives or capers (a few go a long way)

• Garlic oil & sliced chillis

• Fresh basil leaves

Final Thoughts

With a little planning, your Igneus pizza oven can turn pizza night into the best-value meal of the week! Try our ‘£10 Pizza Night Challenge’ at home and let us know how you get on across our socials. Batch make the dough, keep your toppings simple, and let that unmistakable wood-fired flavour do the talking.

As always, if you have any questions about using your oven or want to explore the ovens in the Igneus range, our friendly team is here to help. Just give us a call on 01423 575885 or browse our full range of ovens and accessories here.