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Come Gather 'Round the Fire
Now.
Start a fire.

Cru Cooking

  • Like any art form, cooking with a wood fire requires practice and patience. The satisfaction that comes with pulling a rustic sourdough out of the oven, slicing into the perfect pizza, or slicing through a wood fire infused steak. The passion for creating amazing food is what drives us, and we hope our passion will inspire you to get creative and craft your own incredible, wood fired meals. Scroll down to take a look at some basic techniques and advice that we have outlined to get you started. Even if you're a seasoned home cook, it is always worth revisiting the basics when trying out a new style.
  • Happy Cooking!
  • -Cru
Go to Basics

Pizza

  • Build a larger fire with high heat - and keep adding wood as needed to maintain temperature. Avoid excess flour on peel as too much flour may burn and impart a bitter taste. For best results use fine semolina flour for your peel as it has a higher heat tolerance than regular flour.
  • Keep an eye on your pizza as it cooks to prevent burning. Rotate pizza approximately every 20 seconds once crust firms on stone. Don't be afraid to experiment with different dough hydration levels. To get started, check out our recipe for 70% hydration pizza dough.
  • The higher the oven temperature, the less moisture is drawn out of the dough, resulting in a softer, more tender pizza crust. If you prefer a crisper pizza, cook at a lower temperature for longer, 500°F to 600°F for a little over 3 minutes.

From Naples to New York, a wide gamut can be made and baked as closely to the original because of the high wood fired heat the CRU Model 32 generates. True wood fired pizza is the best pizza.

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Bread

  • Bread baked in your Cru oven will usually take about 20-50% less time than in a conventional oven.
  • Build a robust fire and let the temperature fall to about 50 degrees above desired baking temperature  before adding bread dough and closing oven.
  • Add smaller pieces of wood to maintain heat. You want consistent heat - feeding with a large piece of wood produce an unnecessarily large and hotter fire and would cause the bread to burn.

Get those coveted old world authentic flavors from sourdough boules, artisanal batards, dinner rolls, bagels, and so much more! Save time! Bread baked in your Cru oven will usually take about 20-50% less time than in a conventional oven.

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Meat

  • Experiment with different types of aromatic wood for added flavors. Roast beef or pork in ceramic or cast iron pan. Cover during cooking with foil and brown at end.
  • Cook meat right on the stone, place directly onto hot coals or use a ceramic or cast iron pan inside your oven.  The Cru 32 Grilling Grid can turn your oven into a wood fired grill, broiler, or smoker.
  • Remember that you should adjust the temperature depending on the type of meat you are cooking. For tender steaks, use high temperature to achieve a delicious crust. For tougher cuts, low and slow will render melt-in-your mouth results. If you're unsure, ask your butcher about the cut in question.

Enveloping a beautiful cut of meat in aromatic wood fired heat produces a juicy, tender, and flavorful star of your meal.

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Poultry

  • Roast chicken in ceramic or cast iron pan. Cover chicken with a cover or foil if browning too quickly. Rotate approx. every 5 minutes.  Experiment with different aromatic woods for added depth of flavor. Expect to cook slightly faster.
  • Grill chicken right on coals or in grill basket or on Cru Grilling Grid.  Chicken tends to cook slightly quicker in your Cru oven then recipe may indicate. Check frequently during cooking.
  • If you intend to stuff your bird, try tying a truss around the legs to keep moisture in. If you're short on time, try spatchcocking.

Whether whole, spatchcocked, or cut into pieces, you will fall in love with roasting your fowl of choice in a Cru oven.

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Fish & Seafood

  • Roast in ceramic or cast iron pan or cook directly on the embers or whilst using a grill basket. Place small fish like fresh herring, sardines, anchovies, kippers, or sprats right on the stone
  • Don't be afraid to experiment with seasonally available aromatics to give your fish an umami flavor. Be sure to check with your grocer to see which herbs, fruits, and woods are in season.
  • Use a cast iron pan or dutch oven to stew shellfish, or use the Cru 32 Grilling Grid to grill larger shrimp or prawns.
  • Grill using Cru Grilling Grid on Cr. 32 experiment with different aromatics on the coals to impart umami flavor - herbs, wood, fruits

From salmon to sablefish, shellfish to crustaceans, and everything in between, cooking seafood in a Cru oven becomes a revelation of flavors.

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Vegetables

  • Roast vegetables are a delicious side or main course any time of year. Root vegetables are particularly well suited for fire roasting.
  • Use a pan, grill basket, or simply place vegetables directly onto the coals.
  • To ensure an even roast, build a large fire and the let the embers settle to around 350 degrees.
  • Remember: Vegetables are mostly water, so check on them periodically until they reach the desired level of done-ness.
  • Roast garlic and peppers in batches before preserving them in olive oil for later use on pizzas and more! Roasted garlic and roasted red peppers keep for at least a week in the fridge when they are preserved this way.

When we think of wood fire, we don’t immediately think of vegetables. Yet the variety of flavors that wood fired cooking reveals is an epiphany.

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Desserts

  • Cook loose small fruits in a grill basket, remembering to toss frequently as sugar can burn quickly
  • Cook larger fruits either in a larger grill basket or directly onto the embers or stone, checking frequently for caramelization

What a perfect way to end a meal - cooking your desserts in a Cru oven takes an already amazing meal to an unforgettable one.

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Go to Basics

Cru Cooking

Pizza

Bread

Meat

Poultry

Fish & Seafood

Vegetables

Desserts

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