Solo Stove Pi Prime review: Propane-powered pizza oven supreme

Cooking pizza with a wooden fireplace requires a specific amount of artistry. You need to craft the pie itself, however tending to the hearth is a talent all its personal. The flame lives and breathes because it burns, which was a key promoting level for Solo Stove’s first pizza oven, the Pi. Unfortunately, for culinary dunces like myself, that romantic Neapolitan fantasy usually ends with unhappy, burnt pizzas and a name to Domino’s. That’s the place the Solo Stove Pi Prime is available in. 

This 30-pound, propane-powered oven doesn’t require wooden fireplace in any respect. Push the electrical starter, and the built-in burner churns out a constant flame that burns with relentless consistency and ruthless depth. The finish end result: Crispy crusts and charred pepperonis which might be scrumptious sufficient to justify the additional Tums you’ll have to digest them. No follow mandatory.

Overview

• The follow-up to the unique Solo Stove Pi, the Pi Prime solely works with liquid propane such as you’d use in your fuel grill. Wood fireplace isn’t an choice. 
• It cooks 12-inch pizzas at temperatures as much as 900 levels Fahrenheit on a detachable Corderite pizza stone. 
• It weighs simply 30 kilos and comes with a sturdy cowl, so it’s straightforward to lug round in a typical automotive trunk.
• It prices $349 instantly from Solo Stove, however we advocate upgrading to the $469 starter equipment, which comes with important equipment that make cooking a lot simpler.

Pros

• Electric begin will get the hearth going immediately, and it heats up in lower than quarter-hour
• It reaches extraordinarily excessive temperatures. We learn over 900 levels when cranked. 
• It burns roughly one pound of liquid propane per hour when set to max (which you gained’t want), so it prices lower than $1 per hour to function
• Relatively straightforward to hold round and matches in a typical automotive trunk
• Removable pizza stones and stainless-steel development make cleansing easy
• Cheaper than the fire-based mannequin
• Accessories enable for cooking different meals in addition to pizza
• Monolithic design makes it simpler to move than different pizza ovens with tall chimneys

Cons

• Stainless metal outer floor will get very popular and stays that method for greater than an hour after cooking
• No built-in thermometer
• Culinary dorks will let you know how a lot they like fireplace higher and the way the pizza was “totally amazing” after they went to Napoli (which they’ll pronounce in an annoying method)

Verdict

This is an ideal choice for cooks who need to spend extra time selecting elements, stretching dough, and truly making pizza as an alternative of fussing round with sticks in a wooden fireplace. It’s easy, transportable, straightforward to scrub, and usually an amazing addition to any quiver of outside cooking gear.

The Solo Stove Pi Prime construct

If you’re accustomed to Solo Stove’s glorious fireplace pits, the design right here ought to make sense. It’s a chrome steel cylinder with a gap reduce within the facet to slip the pizzas in. It weighs roughly 30 kilos, so it’s comparatively straightforward to hold round. It stands simply 15 inches excessive and 20.5 inches throughout, so even my 14-year-old son had no hassle lugging it round on his personal. It does require a liquid propane tank, nonetheless, so that you’ll want to contemplate the majority and weight of that if you happen to’re going to move the Pi Prime.

It appears and looks like a Solo Stove, which is an excellent factor in our guide. 

The Solo Stove Pi Prime setup

The Pi Prime can sit on any non-flammable floor (it has ft to raise the new components above no matter floor you select). For my check, I merely sat it on a wall manufactured from patio stone in my yard. But I’d advocate getting the devoted stand to go together with it if you happen to can abdomen the $250 worth. You continually have to look into the oven to observe the pizzas as they prepare dinner rapidly, so that you need it at a peak that doesn’t require infinite bending. 

Once you discover a spot, the remainder of the setup course of requires little greater than attaching the propane tank through the built-in hose, putting in the Corderite pizza stones (which encompass two items to make them simpler to maneuver), and pushing the electrical ignition to get the hearth going. 

The Solo Stove Pi Prime efficiency

You’ll discover the conspicuous absence of a thermometer on the Pi Prime. Solo Stove sells an instant-read infrared thermometer on Amazon and as a part of its pizza oven packages as an alternative of integrating a temperature monitor instantly into the system. I believed that will be extra of a draw back than it turned out to be in follow. I began my check by merely turning the fuel to medium/excessive and letting it rip for about 20 minutes earlier than placing within the first pizza. It labored out simply tremendous. 

The burner is localized to the again of the oven, so it’s clearly a lot hotter again there than it’s up entrance close to the opening. As a end result, you must give the pizza fixed consideration to make sure every quadrant of the pie will get the correct quantity of char. This could sound tedious, however pizzas take roughly 90 seconds to a most of three minutes to prepare dinner at these temperatures. It offers novice cooks like me an opportunity to get in there with the turning peel (an adjunct I completely advocate) and actually participate within the pizza-making course of. After the primary pizza, I used to be completely hooked on the method. I believed that should be how different well-known pizza cooks, like Charles Entertainment Cheese, should really feel. It’s a rush.

After about seven pizzas, I did want to show the ability down barely as a result of the warmth was getting too intense within the chamber. If you’re going to be doing prolonged cooks, the infrared thermometer actually is a should. The similar is true if you happen to plan on doing any correct baking since that course of is much much less forgiving. 

Once every thing is heated up and operating easily, every pizza takes about 90 seconds from when it first slides into the oven till it comes out effervescent from a 750-degree chamber. Times differ relying on toppings–including contemporary mozzarella takes longer due to all of the moisture. Overall, although, it’s very nice and meditative. 

Cleanup

The worst half about cleansing the Solo Stove Pi Prime is ready for it to chill down after you’re carried out cooking. Once it’s comfy to the touch, you’ll be able to take away the stones, which are available in two items so that they’re straightforward to slip out and in of the chamber. The stones are delicate to water, so you’ll be able to’t submerge them. You need to scrape the unfastened particles off after which gently wash them. They will stain—that’s inevitable. But it doesn’t have an effect on the efficiency.

The remainder of the system could be very easy to scrub. It’s all stainless-steel, so you’ll be able to wipe it with a moist rag and sauce, cheese, and no matter else comes off very simply. The solely half that gives any actual problem is the roof of the cooking chamber, which could get some goop on it in case your dough bubbles excessive sufficient that the toppings contact it. Even that’s comparatively fast to take care of, nonetheless.

Solo Stove Pi vs. the Solo Stove Pi Prime

If you’re contemplating each of Solo Stove’s pizza choices, the selection must be comparatively easy, relying in your wishes. Both ovens are almost similar in measurement and weight, however the authentic Pi prices $399, $50 greater than the $349 Pi Prime’s retail worth. The authentic Pi can work with propane, however provided that you purchase the non-obligatory burner accent that you simply’ll want to put in. That provides one other $129 to the full price. 

I’m solely actually occupied with propane cooking, so the selection is apparent for me. If you need the pliability, it might be value spending the additional cash upfront so you’ll be able to fulfill your culinary whims. I don’t have culinary whims. I would like pizza. That’s what makes the Pi Prime work for me.

So, who can buy the Solo Stove Pi Prime?

For $349, this is among the most transportable, sturdy, and versatile gas-powered pizza ovens accessible in the meanwhile. It weighs greater than an identical mannequin from its essential competitor, Ooni, but it surely’s additionally cheaper, and I like the shape issue higher total. While some critical cooks could discover the dearth of wooden fireplace assist limiting, I’m grateful for it. And I feel different enthusiastic novices will really feel the identical method. Pizza ovens aren’t definitely worth the cash they price and the storage house they occupy in the event that they’re too annoying to make use of. The Pi Prime is so easy, fast, and efficient that I used it far more than I’d have initially thought. Sure, I did barely burn off my fingerprints once I carelessly touched the stainless-steel outer floor that’s clearly marked “hot,” however I additionally made and ate a bunch of nice pizzas. And that’s what outside cooking is admittedly all about. Just top off on Tums if you add it to your cart. Those pepperonis will get you.