Build your own wood-fired cob pizza oven.
Have you tried every cooking tool imaginable? How about one made of dirt?
Kyle Isacksen, director and lead instructor of the Reno nonprofit Cobitat, published the book Build it with Earth: The Cob Pizza Oven in December. In it, he explains how to build a beautiful earthen oven — the materials and process — and about the joy of using it. Cob is a mud-and-straw-based building material, much like adobe. But instead of forming bricks, the builder layers mud with various insulation and natural materials to provide structure.
“Natural building is awesome because we’re using locally sourced material, so you don’t have to go to Home Depot,” says Isacksen, who also runs the nonprofit Be the Change Project. “I can dig up the soil in my backyard, run up to the desert, grab sand, and then harvest straw or dry grasses.”
Isacksen loves building earthen structures, such as ovens or even entire houses, because it “connects us to place,” he says. “It [helps us avoid] going to big-box stores and spending our money on a system we don’t want to support.”
How To Build an Earthen Oven
In brief, building a cob pizza oven starts with creating a foundation of rocks and layering clay-rich soil in a dome shape.
Then it’s time to add straw, newspaper for insulation, and a combination of gravel, fire bricks, sand, and plaster. For step-by-step details, check out Isacksen’s 84-page book full of pictures and diagrams, available in paperback on Amazon.com.
“The actual building of it is really fun,” Isacksen says. “It’s kind of childlike because it’s building with mud. We’re shaping this cob, these balls, into something functional. Sometimes we use our feet, doing it barefoot, and it’s just an enjoyable process. It naturally lends itself to community work.”
While Isacksen prefers collecting the building materials in nature, his book also recommends home and farm supply stores if people don’t have easy access to the various earthen supplies needed.
Cob Oven Cooking
Once the DIY project is complete, it’s ideal for pizza parties where people craft personalized pies and take turns throwing them into the oven throughout an entire afternoon. When the oven reaches maximum temperature — about 1,000 degrees F — Isacksen says the first few pies will cook in 60 seconds, with the last few only taking a few minutes. After that, the oven stays warm for a few days, which makes it perfect for gathering around at night or baking bread in.
“Building an oven isn’t overwhelming,” Isacksen says. “You can work on it over a couple weekends and finish, and it’s fun to show off, throw a party, and cook 20 pizzas while being with people around a fire.”
Cob ovens are a gateway to more earthen construction, he adds. Isacksen built an entire cabin in his backyard, where his son lives, and is currently working on a second guesthouse. He says it stays warm in winter and cool in summer, without electricity.
Isacksen will lead a class to build the cob pizza oven (followed by a pizza party) July 22 and 23 through Cobitat and Be the Change Project. Up to 10 people can join for $320. Learn more at Cobitat.org/versaterrapizzaoven.
Mike Higdon is the chief storytelling officer at Flanz Media, a local storytelling and strategy agency. He loves learning about people and niche topics in Reno, then telling everyone all about them in the magazine, on the web, or around the fire with a slice of ’za.
