Derek Gaughan
I’m thrilled to have finally picked up an Effeuno P134HA, a 240 volt fully electric beast that reaches over 950 degrees. The A and HA models are basically the same oven, with the HA having a taller chamber allowing you to cook a variety of foods. But it also has an extra 200 watts of power in the top burner to make up for the added height. So the two units should cook very similar.
Being this is 240 volt, I’ll be making pizza in the laundry room (dryer plug). It’s a small sacrifice in order to test 3,200 watt pizza ovens.
I’ll tell you right up front, Effeuno makes the best indoor oven you’ll find. Let me show you why.
VIDEO: Effeuno indoor pizza oven review
Recommendation: If you want the Rolls Royce of indoor pizza ovens, this is it. It performs as well as many outdoor ovens, and that’s the best compliment an indoor oven can get.
Unboxing
I got this through Black Rock Grill, the only US importer for Effeuno ovens. It’s delivered on a pallet even though the package only weighs 66 pounds, because these Biscotto stones are really fragile compared to cordierite. Not to mention 3 layers of glass on the front door.
By the way, the freight shipping costs a bit, but they were having too many damaged ovens from standard shipping. So it’s the best way to make sure an imported product gets delivered whole. But here’s some good news, Black Rock created a custom 5% discount code (PALAPIZZA5) for any of you guys who want to make the leap for one of these. I can’t remember them offering a coupon code for these ovens before.
The refractory stone inside the oven is best used for New York styles. The Biscotto clay stone, which comes in a separate box, is what we’ll want for Neapolitan. If you remove the refractory stone before adding the other, the oven will preheat a bit faster. But I’m leaving it in just for convenience; just make sure the smooth side is facing up.
Design
The overall design of this oven is very commercial, with a body that’s largely stainless steel but a sleek black glass front. The dials look a bit dated in a similar commercialized fashion. Upon looking inside, it’s amazing how much room this oven offers. Since there are no gas burners or wood fire, everything is useable space. And the Biscotto clay stone is a huge 15.7″ x 13.5″.
The overall size and weight (55lb) makes this a bit more difficult to stash away if counter space is a concern. I’ve seen a few owners who built a small kitchen cart to set it on, allowing you to wheel the whole setup into a closet/laundry/garage, and might steal this idea.
Electrical Requirements
Alright, let’s talk electrical. I am not an electrician, so please consult one instead of listening to me. But most homes have a 240 volt wire run for their dryer, at a minimum, which is what I’ll be doing today. Black Rock ships the oven with a US NEMA 6-20 15 amp plug. So I grabbed this converter on Amazon to plug into the dryer outlet. It works perfectly and only costs 20 bucks. If you have a different dryer plug, they also sell variations of this converter.
I have a 240 volt induction cooktop in the kitchen, but it’s hardwired in. So down the road, I’ll probably add an outlet so I can choose between the cooktop or pizza oven.
Performance
I started preheating the oven slowly to bake in the Biscotto stone, but the oven completely shut off when it reached 750 degrees. I investigated a bit, and found out there’s a built in temperature safety, but my sensor fell out of the clip here, so it was touching the top burner, which made the oven think it was overheating. I just popped it back in and then reset the safety button on the back.
Neapolitan Test #1
And now it’s creeping over 950 degrees. I launched my first Neapolitan and baked it for only 75 seconds. Incredible results for my first pizza. The top burner is so powerful… Honestly, this looks like it came out of an outdoor oven.
Neapolitan Test #2
By the time I made my next pizza, it actually reached over 1,000 degrees. The stone temp doesn’t drop much at all after a pizza, you can really crank a lot out of this for a party. This one only cooked for 65 seconds.
My favorite pizza
This right here is my favorite pizza to ever come out of an indoor oven. I topped this one with some sliced basil and jamon. And it probably beats half of the outdoor ovens I tested. The performance of this oven just blows me away.
New York Style Test #1
If you wanna cook New York style, just pull the Biscotto stone out and cook directly on the refractory stone. Biscotto stones are intended for very hot temperatures and don’t work well for crispy-bottomed New Yorks. I first tried setting the dials around 600F, but the actual stone temp ended up over 700. So the bottom ended up cooking faster than the top
New York Style Test #2
I found out the best NY bake was set to 250 celsius, which resulted in a stone temp between 575 and 600 fahrenheit. The result was beautiful. A super crispy edge crust and bottom.
A lot of you know that I also love the Breville and Ooni Volt indoor pizza ovens. This Effeuno is clearly superior, but it’s hardly fair to compare a 240 volt oven to a 120 volt one. If you are able to meet the electric requirements of the Effeuno, and want the best of the best, then it’s a no-brainer. As of the time of this article, the Effeuno is tied with the Ooni Volt for best indoor pizza oven.
