I’ve spilled the pizza topping all over the kitchen and got burned. 🙁

That’s when I’ve realized I need to buy myself a pizza peel. I immediately started the search for the best pizza peel on the market.

If you want to find out more about the usage of pizza peel and what are the best pizza peels on the market in my opinion – please continue reading.

What is pizza peel and why do you need it?

Pizza peel is a tool with a flat paddle and a long handle at one end. It is the safest way to put in and take out your pizza or bread from the oven.

I didn’t think about buying a pizza peel until I started to make home-made pizza more often. Due to a lack of free time, we usually ordered pizza. That is why I didn’t have it in my kitchen. Moreover, I’ve always thought of it as something that is used mostly in restaurants.

I already wrote to you about my good looking and good quality cookware and other kitchen tools that I have. If you read them, you will see that I like my kitchen tools to accommodate the style of my kitchen. In the past, I’ve found pizza peels not so pretty, but this search changed my mind.

The key to crispy and well-cooked pizza is the placement in the oven.

Moreover, you need to rotate the pizza a couple of times before you take it out of the oven. That way it is going to be cooked evenly. You should also check the bottom of the pizza to know if it is ready.

These are the situations when pizza peel comes to help and makes everything easier.

1. Materials

Two different materials are used for pizza peels: wood, metal or combination of both.

Both of these materials have advantages and disadvantages. Some of them can be surpassed easily if you follow a few simple rules.

Wooden pizza peel

Wooden pizza peels are easy to use, but hard to maintain. The biggest advantage of wooden pizza peel is that your raw pizza is not going to stick on the peel.

Sometimes I totally forget about putting the cornmeal or flour on the peel before putting the pizza. Wood will usually prevent sticking so you won’t have to worry about that.

Aesthetically, they are more appealing than their metal counterparts, so that is why many people buy them, not knowing their biggest advantage.

Unfortunately, not everything is great with this material. They can be thick, so it is difficult to rotate the pizza during the baking process. Moreover, they can absorb food odor and are hard to maintain.

That is why I am going to give you a couple of tips so your wooden pizza peel can last more:

Air dry them after washing
Don’t use them as a cutting board, especially with sharp knifes
Rub them with mineral oil occasionally

You should always look for the ones that are made of higher quality wood. Low quality wooden pizza peels can crack easily, even split in half.

These accidents usually happen while transferring a raw pizza into the oven, leaving you with a lot of mess to clean and without pizza.

Metal pizza peel

This type of pizza peel is usually made out of aluminum or stainless steel. If you want it to last longer, stainless steel is the way to go. They are thin, so you can easily rotate the pizza while baking and take it out of the oven.

More so, they are easy to clean and long-lasting. Just wash it after you’ve finished with cooking and you’re done. There are no stains, no odors, no air drying.

However, being made out of metal has its disadvantages. Raw pizza dough tends to stick to metal surfaces. The longer a raw pizza stays on the pizza peels, the harder it is to slide off of it.

Maybe it is better to prepare the pizza on another surface and put it on the metal pizza peel right before you plan to bake it.

You should also coat the surface of a pizza peel with cornmeal or flour before placing the raw pizza on it. That way there is less chance of sticking.

2. Shape

There are two different shapes of pizza peel: rounded and square-headed.

Professionals use rounded peels because of a small doorway and easy maneuvering of the pizza in large stoves.

On the other hand, square-headed are more practical for small ovens and grills, like the ones you have at home.

3. Size

The pizza peels come in more than one size. Usually, manufacturers only note the size of a paddle or a total length. This can be a problem, especially for those who have less space for kitchen tools.

The size of a paddle varies from 12 to more than 16 inches. Choosing the right size depends on the size of your oven. Usually, manufacturers make the same type of pizza peel in different sizes, so I am sure you will find the right for you.

If you are a beginner, it is best to get the smaller one, around 14 inches. I do not recommend anything smaller than that. With this size, you can learn to handle pizza peels easily. It is easier to rotate it during the baking process, and you probably won’t spill the pizza topping while transferring.

I don’t like to expose my hands to a really hot oven. That is why I recommend getting a pizza peel with a medium-size handle. Why medium size you ask? If the handle is too big, it will be harder to rotate the pizza while baking.

You should always look for a metal pizza peel with a wooden handle. Metal conducts heat easier than wood, so even if you take care, you can get burned.

Conclusion & My Recommendation

Heritage Acacia Wood Pizza Peel is, as I’ve already mentioned, my favorite when it comes to design and loading the pizza. However, if you want it to last longer, you need to take good care.

I would recommend you to buy one more pizza peel that is made of metal. Wooden pizza peels will never be as thin as metal counterparts.

The thinness of metal pizza peels makes rotating and unloading the pizza from the oven more practical, especially if you are a beginner. Sometimes even I have difficulties with sticking and handling.

Therefore, I make my pizza on the wooden one, then I slide it into the oven. When it’s baked I use the metal one to unload it.

And don’t forget to coat the surface with cornmeal, even if your pizza peel is made of wood. Just to make sure your pizza won’t stick. 🙂

Related reading: best wooden pizza peel.