Pizza peels are a simple, and yet extremely valuable tool to have if you specialize in pizza. A pizza peel is essentially a large paddle connected to a handle. A pizza peel may be wood, a composite material (which performs similarly to wood) or metal (commonly made out of aluminum, but sometimes made from stainless steel) and their handles come in a variety of lengths to suit the size of your oven. Pizza peels come in different shapes, from perfectly round to more of a rectangular shape with square corners. Many cooks like the rounded head because it's easier to maneuver a pizza from all corners of a large oven, versus a square-headed peel that could be more difficult due to the angle. At Tundra Restaurant Supply, we carry over one hundred different pizza peels from the industry's leading manufacturers like American Metalcraft, Winco, World Cuisine and many more. Browse our selection of pizza peels below!
Wood Pizza Peels
Pizza peels come in a variety of materials. Wood pizza peels are known for their durability and are often preferred when it comes to prep peels. Many find that it's easier to slide pizzas off of a wooden pizza peel versus a metal peel. Few things are worse than having all of your toppings slide off of your carefully assembled pizza! A wooden pizza peel is also thicker than its aluminum counterpart, which could prove challenging if you are trying to rotate a half-cooked (or even fully-cooked!) pie from the oven.
Also take care in finding out what type of peel is preferred by your health inspector. Some municipalities frown on wood pizza peels due to challenges with cleaning and sanitation. Wooden peels are prone to warping if they're not dried after washing, and they should be rubbed regularly with mineral oil to prevent staining or absorbing odors. And while a wooden peel doesn't conduct heat as efficiently as an aluminum peel wood, it certainly is not fire proof!
Metal Pizza Peels
A metal pizza peel, like an aluminum pizza peel, is popular in many restaurant due to being easy to clean and easy to use. The problem many find with aluminum pizza peels, however, is that raw dough is more prone to sticking on it. Some ways to work around this problem is to dust the peel generously with flour or corn meal prior to prep, or to even use a wooden pizza peel for prep in its place. Aluminum pizza peels are noticeably thinner than their wooden counterparts, making it easy slip under pizza either on a stone or on the grill.
