ProCook has announced the launch of its brand new electric pizza oven air fryer. It's slim, versatile, and comes in at under £200. Who said summer had to end after the bank holiday weekend?
There's a nip in the air, leaves on the ground, and condensation on my bedroom window. That can only mean one thing: autumn is nearly here. Whilst we might have to wave goodbye to late-night wines on the terrace and Sunday sunbathing, there's one aspect of summer that you can move inside: your pizza oven.
ProCook has announced the launch of their air fryer pizza oven as part of their foray into kitchen appliances. They'll be going up against the likes of Cuisinart, Ninja, Ooni, and Gozney for the top spot on the latest kitchen appliance trends, but ProCook is offering something special. A killer deal.
Currently, the cheapest indoor pizza oven worth buying is Cuisinart's, which sits at around £299. You can slash a full £100 off the price of that one as well as add in the fact that it promises to cook other foods like the best air fryers on the market. We'll have to wait until September for a hands-on review, but here's what we know so far.
What do I need to know about the Procook Pizza Oven Air Fryer?
The ProCook Pizza Oven Air Fryer is a bit of a mouthful of a name, but it really does what it says. In September, the brand will release a 12-inch, worktop appliance that combines 20 different functions into one, slim design. And, you guessed it, this promises to be an expert at pizza making and air frying.
Included on the £199 price tag, you'll get a stainless steel basket (for air frying), a bottom tray, a pizza stone, a wire rack, and a cast iron griddle. So, if you haven't already worked out that this is exceptional value for money, hopefully that'll help.
Will the Procook Electric Pizza Oven be as good as my outdoor pizza oven?
I'll let you in on a little known fact about me. I started cooking pizzas in a woodfired pizza oven when I was 13. It was my summer job until the grand old age of 19, so I have some serious pizza snobbery baked into my soul. Without having tested the ProCook Electric Pizza Oven myself, I can't promise how good the pizzas will be, but it looks like they're setting you up for success.
One of the reasons that pizzas flop in normal ovens is because they don't get even, high heat across all of the base. By including a pizza stone with their electric oven, Procook takes care of any soggy middle sections and raw cheese issues. It can reach 400C which they promise will allow you "to create the perfect wood-fired style pizza from the cosy confines of your own home in minutes." It's true, your pizzas will cook in at most two minutes at those kinds of temperatures. And, with the right ingredients, they'll be delicious.
You might be thinking that 12" is a little small compared to big brands that offer bases up to 20", but let me tell you now that 12" is perfect, especially for families. If you've got a big appetite (and stretchy trousers on), you'll be able to demolish the whole thing. If you've got kids, just a half will be enough for them. I don't think it's by chance that ProCook chose a 12" set up for the inside.
Do I need any accessories to go with my pizza oven?
Not getting the right accessories will make or break your pizzas. You can have rolled the perfect, round, authentic Italian pizza, but if you can't get it into the oven properly, you'll end up with a messy splodge. I don't want to clutter up your kitchen with any needless extras, so here are the pieces I recommend for making the perfect pizza at home. Don't forget your essentials for cleaning a pizza oven too.
You won't get far making a pizza without a good pizza peel. This makes it easy to put the pizza into the oven (whilst keeping it circle) and then you can take it out or turn it without the need for oven gloves or any special equipment. The best part is that this is foldable too, so it won't take up too much space in your kitchen.
I have cut hundreds of thousands of pizzas (no exaggeration) and this is the best pizza cutter of them all. It deftly rolls through even the most crisp pizza bases and you won't get any toppings caught around the wheel.
Some people say that pizza should always be hand stretched, but if you didn't train beforehand, you'll just make a mess. Curved, handcrafted rolling pins like this Maple French model are really the only way to get a circular pizza at home.
What are the other indoor pizza ovens out there?
I mentioned earlier that Procook aren't the only ones making indoor pizza ovens. Whilst they're currently the cheapest, you can pick up some reasonable models from Cuisinart, Ninja, and Gozney. Here's a little more about each one:
This speedy, robust oven is made by none other than Sage. It comes with their signature stainless steel cladding, as well as a whole host of settings. You can cook a pizza in well under two minutes, but if you want to bake cookies or air fry instead, you can. In our tests, this gave the perfect leopard spotted base to our pizzas, so it got the w&h seal of approval. The only thing to note is that this is heavy and quite big too.
You'll know Ooni for their market-leading outdoor ovens, but they also move inside for the winter too. The Volt can cook a pizza in 90 seconds and, you can use the Boost function to get consistent cooking, even with back-to-back pizzas. Whilst it certainly boasts the performance of some of the best outdoor ovens, it comes with a hefty price tag.
This model is the closest to Procook's oven. It has a temperature range from 175°C to 400°C and comes with a 12.5" heat-conducting pizza stone. There are lots of nifty features, such as the foldable pizza peel that made this easy to keep in the kitchen.
We're on a waiting list to test the Procook Electric Pizza Oven as soon as it's available. As you can imagine, I can't wait to get my pizza-making mitts on this and I'll update you with my thoughts as soon as I can.
