TRADITIONAL WOOD-FIRED OVENS

These ovens have been used since ancient times primarily for baking bread and occasionally for a roast.

Pizzas were baked occasionally – usually with bread – in Armenia, Southern Italy and Greece.

In general, the firing was done with thin branches for baking bread and thicker wood for roast.

Materials used for the building of the ovens

• For clay ovens – clay
• For mud-brick ovens – mud-bricks; and, clay for the mortar
• For brick ovens – house bricks; clay or sand with lime and cement  for the mortar; and, clay with straw for insulation.

Information

For information and enrolment in Oven Building classes by Mark Dymiotis contact the Centre for Adult Education http://www.cae.edu.au/web/. The course covers planning, design, building techniques for a clay or brick or mud brick oven, firing principles and the baking of a roast.

Other CAE classes by Mark Dymiotis include Bread making (called sour dough nowadays), Vegetable growing (organic), Olive Oil and Olives, Legumes, Edible Wild Greens, Natural Wine making (without commercial yeast and preservatives).