Gozney's portable oven doesn’t come cheap – but it could be the perfect option for anyone who wants to take their homemade pizza to the next level, writes Adam Maguire.
Thoughts of al fresco cooking may seem very far away at the moment, but it won’t be too long until warmer weather tempts out our inner garden (or balcony) chef once again.
And while outdoor roasting or grilling is already relatively accessible, matching what you can get from a good pizzeria tends to be far harder to achieve.
But doing so has now become far easier – at least for those willing to splash out on a portable pizza ovens like the Gozney Roccbox (€469).
With a footprint of roughly 53x47cm (and 41cm high when its legs are tucked away) the oven is extremely compact. It weighs in at 20kg – which detracts somewhat from its portability – but overall it’s well-suited to being picked up, put to use and then put away again.
The oven’s opening is about 34cm wide – meaning it can accommodate anything up to a 12 inch pizza – and it comes with attachments that allow it to be fired by either wood or gas. It’s recommended that you heat it to 400-500 degrees centigrade before putting a pizza inside but there’s also a handy, built-in thermometer on the side to let you know when it’s gotten there.
Once sufficiently heated the oven can cook a pizza in roughly one minute – so you wouldn’t want to wander too far away once you’ve put your creation inside. And assuming you’ve timed (and turned) the pizza, the results are superb.
The oven’s thick stone floor means the base bakes to a superb crunch within seconds – while the flame rolling above gets everything bubbling just as quickly, ultimately giving the crust a delicious char.
It means that even the most haphazardly arranged pizza is going to come out of this thing tasting good – even if sub-par dough-stretching technique means it may not look the best!
Of course, Gozney isn’t alone in the portable pizza space. Its main competition is Ooni, though making a direct comparison between the two companies’ offerings is tricky.
Ooni’s cheapest oven, the Fyra, costs €299 – a €170 saving on the Roccbox. But it’s only fired by wood pellets, making it more limited than Gozney’s offering.
If you want an Ooni that can work with both fuel types you’ll need their Karu which, when bought with a gas attachment, costs €448.
Add in the cost of a pizza peel (which comes included in Gozney’s set) and suddenly the Ooni may actually work out as the more expensive option.
But beyond price the Ooni and Gozney options are still hard to compare, with each one offering different advantages and disadvantages.
The Ooni Karu weighs around 12kg – making it more portable than the Roccbox – while it is also inclined to get to the adequate temperature in far less time.
However a large part of the Roccbox’s extra heft – and longer warm-up time - is down to its heavy insulation. The advantage of this is that it holds a consistent temperature for far longer.
That, along with a silicone exterior coating, also means that the oven is less of a hazard when in use. It still gets very hot to the touch – but there’s far less chance of getting a bad burn if you accidently brush off it while preparing your food.
The Gozney’s built-in thermometer also makes it easier to keep track of your oven’s temperature, while it requires a little bit less set-up than the Ooni when going from its packed-away to pizza-ready form.
And, while this is a matter of personal preference, there’s a strong case to be made that the Roccbox is the better-looking option for would-be buyers too.
There’s no getting away from the fact that a portable oven like this is a bit of a luxury – especially when it has limited use beyond pizzas (and maybe flatbreads) . But that may be a price worth paying if you know you’re going to put it to regular use.
And it’s hard to deny the quality of the end results – with this little oven packing a serious punch that elevates a basic bit of dough, sauce and cheese into something restaurant-quality.
Adam Maguire was sent the Gozney Roccbox for purpose of review.
