Can You Cook a Steak in a Pizza Oven? Everything You Need to Know

Yes, you can cook steak in a pizza oven. A properly heated Chicago Brick Oven gives you radiant heat for cooking and a hot pan or grill for searing. The key is to match the cookware and technique to the oven, then use a food thermometer—not the color of the crust or a fixed number of minutes—to check the steak.

Why Cook Steak in a Pizza Oven?

Live-fire cooking can produce a browned crust while letting you prepare vegetables and other sides in the same oven. Cast iron holds heat for searing; an appropriate grill gives a different finish. Neither method requires putting meat directly on the refractory hearth.

Choose Your Cut

Ribeye, New York strip, T-bone, porterhouse and filet mignon are all options. Look at thickness and marbling as well as the name of the cut. Similar thickness across a steak makes cooking easier to manage. A thin skirt steak will cook differently from a thick ribeye, so adjust placement and check the internal temperature rather than using one timing rule for every cut.

Choose Cookware That Protects the Hearth

The CBO wood-burning oven manual instructs you to cook foods other than bread or pizza on or in a cooking accessory. Use suitable cast iron or the appropriate CBO grill setup, and follow the accessory's temperature limits. Pre-warm accessories before placing them in a hot oven to avoid thermal shock. The manual also describes an oven rack to keep a pot or pan off the hearth.

If using a grill grate, place a griddle underneath to catch drippings. Keep grease, water and marinades off the hearth. Do not sear a steak directly on the oven floor or assume a Tuscan-style grill is compatible without checking its fit and instructions.

How to Cook Steak in a Pizza Oven

1. Prepare the oven. Begin with a properly cured oven and follow the wood-fire starting guide and your model manual. Build heat gradually. Choose the cooking temperature for your recipe and cookware rather than firing to the oven's maximum.
2. Prepare the steak. Season with salt, pepper and any herbs your recipe calls for. Keep raw meat refrigerated until preparation; marinate in the refrigerator. Keep raw-meat utensils separate from cooked-food utensils.
3. Pre-warm your cookware. Use heat-resistant gloves and appropriate long-handled tools. Position the pan or grill so you can manage the food safely without placing it in the flames.
4. Sear, turn and monitor. Watch browning and move the cookware away from intense heat if the outside is cooking faster than the center. Thickness, starting temperature and oven conditions all change cooking time.
5. Check with a food thermometer. USDA recommends whole beef steaks reach at least 145°F before leaving the heat, followed by a rest of at least three minutes. Insert the probe into the thickest part, avoiding bone. Touch, color and juices are not reliable safety checks. See the USDA safe-temperature chart.
6. Rest and serve. After the required rest, slice across the grain where appropriate and serve with herb butter, roasted vegetables or a fresh salad.

Make the Most of the Same Firing

Plan sides around the actual oven temperature. Potatoes and vegetables need suitable cookware, and a lower-temperature recipe may need the oven to cool first. For bread, seafood and dessert ideas, see what else you can cook in a pizza oven.

Watch the Steak Tutorial

The original guide's CBO steak tutorial remains available as cooking inspiration. Follow the current model manual, accessory instructions and food-temperature guidance above for safe operation.

After Cooking

Follow the shutdown and ash-disposal instructions in your model manual. Let the fire burn down naturally; never use water to cool the hearth. Allow the oven and cookware to cool safely before cleaning or covering. For Hybrid cooking, use the applicable Residential Hybrid or Commercial Hybrid instructions, including the requirement to keep the doorway open during gas operation.