Hans Grill Rectangular Pizza Stone with Peel, 15 x 12 Inch Cordierite Stone

Why it's worth it

This rectangular cordierite stone comes with a wooden peel and a recipe guide, so a first-time pizza maker has everything needed on day one. It's rated to 1112°F, which covers oven, broiler and grill use without drama.

If you've never made pizza at home, buying a bare stone leaves you one crucial item short. Getting a topped, raw pizza off the counter and onto a 500°F surface is the single hardest step, and a peel is what makes it possible. This set hands you both for less than most steels cost on their own.

The cordierite here is rated to 1112°F, well past anything a home oven can do, and it works on a gas or charcoal grill too. Owners report the biggest gains on frozen pizza, where a hot porous surface turns a soggy supermarket crust into something with actual crunch.

From our review of 8 pizza stones and baking steels, by David Sinclair, Managing Editor

What we like

• +If you've never made pizza at home, buying a bare stone leaves you one crucial item short
• +The cordierite here is rated to 1112°F, well past anything a home oven can do, and it works on a gas or charcoal grill too
• +Staining is normal and Hans Grill says so up front
• +At 15 by 12 inches it fits comfortably in a standard oven with air space on the sides, and at under 8 pounds you can lift it out…

What to know

• –The included peel is the weak link
• –The handle on that peel is also short, which puts your knuckles closer to a hot oven than you'd like
• –As with any cordierite stone, thermal shock will crack it