One of the most common questions we get asked is, how do you light a pizza oven? So, we’ve decided to share our method with you.

Step 1: Pile the kindling in a tower in the middle of the oven, towards the front of the oven. Try and keep the stack as central as possible to optimise the airflow. If you’re struggling to get it to stay lit, you can use a natural firelighter in the centre of the kindling or some paper. Note: NEVER use lighter fluid or chemical accelerants to light your pizza oven.

Step 2: Set light to your kindling and ensure that the fire is spreading to the other pieces.

Step 3: As the fire burns, keep adding kindling until the fire gets to a reasonable size and the heat begins to rise. The size required will depend on your ovens size and construction.

Step 4: Keep adding wood over the next 5 minutes to ensure the fire maintains once it’s moved. Once you’ve done this, slide the fire to the back of the oven.

Step 5: Once the fire has been pushed back, add 3 to 4 pieces of natural hardwood such as oak, beech or ash. The pieces should be approximately 15cm x 3cm, this will again vary depending on the size of your oven. If you want to find out more about cooking with wood and the effects it has, check out our blog: “What are the advantages of cooking with wood?”

Step 6: You should now have a bed of red embers and a healthy flame, so you’re ready to start cooking! We’d also recommend getting a heat deflector to ensure the fire doesn’t collapse onto your food, these can be found here!

While Cooking:

- Keep adding wood every 10 to 20 minutes if you feel the temperature is dropping, this will help maintain the fire and prevent it over smoking or getting too cold.

- Many pizza ovens including our own come with thermostats so you can keep an eye on the temperature.

- Control the air flow using a vent or the door.

If you’re interested in giving pizza cooking a go, check out our wood fired pizza oven here!