Pizza Today -March 2023 - 21

T
here are many debates surrounding
pizza. What defines a style,
what cheese to use, what's considered
traditional or even just what constitutes
a pizza? One of the main topics of
debate I hear about these days is to par
bake or not to par bake. When it comes
to pan pizzas specifically, par baking is
a hot topic.
Now, what even is a par bake?
A par bake is a partially cooked
dough without any sauce, cheese or
toppings on it. I have also heard them
referred to as shells. I normally see
this technique with pan pizzas. But in
some cases, like slice shops, a par bake
can also refer to a partially cooked
pizza that is sold by the slice and
reheated or has the final part of the
baking finished when it is ordered. I
want to specifically look at pan pizzas
and the pros and cons of using a par
bake. Traditionalists and purists swear
against par bakes saying that it isn't
true to form. But then again, no two
people are doing everything the same,
so who's considered correct? In my
opinion, to each their own.
When I think about par baking,
I ask myself where and when do I
have the most control? Ultimately, I
want to make the best possible pizza
I can, but let's be real; pizzerias can be
chaotic, and do I have the most control
at 7 p.m. on a Friday or Saturday
night? Often that's a no. A par baked
shell means you've done all the work
on the front end of the prep. In the
morning if you're making bread and
pan pizzas, these are some of the first
things that get prepped. All your pans
get stretched and then left to sit and
rise. At this point you have a list of
opening procedures and other items
to make that you go about doing and
when the timer goes off and the pans
are ready, you par bake them. Par
baking is normally done at a lower
temperature than what you cook at
and the pans are only cooked for a
few minutes. For larger Sicilian pans,
it can take as much as 8-10 minutes
around 475-500 F. For thinner pizzas
like Detroit and Grandmas, they'll
only take 6-8 minutes. Once partially
baked, they can then sit on racks or
shelves awaiting orders.
If I'm par baking, I not only use
timers but I'm looking for color
cues. Shells should not be fully
browned but only show the beginnings
of color. When shells show full
color, they are usually smaller in size
than the pan because all the moisture
has been cooked out, but it also makes
it difficult when you cook the pizza
the second time after it has been
topped. The crust will most likely
burn before the cheese and toppings
have had time to cook. This is actually
a split-second decision I teach all new
pizza makers learning to par bake.
When you have many shells to choose
from, you always take into consid
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Pizza Today -March 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today -March 2023

Pizza Today -March 2023 - CT1
Pizza Today -March 2023 - CT2
Pizza Today -March 2023 - Cover1
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Pizza Today -March 2023 - SG1
Pizza Today -March 2023 - SG2
Pizza Today -March 2023 - SG3
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Pizza Today -March 2023 - SG5
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Pizza Today -March 2023 - Cover3
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