Presto 03430 Pizzazz Pizza Oven

this little device has changed the way that i eat--at least a couple times a week! i use it to make my own pizza and i must admit IT IS THE BEST PIZZA IN THE WORLD! it always turns out perfectly with the PIZZAZ PIZZA MAKER--whether i use a store-bought crust or a tortilla. i also use it to make fantastic quesadillas and have even used it to make nachos by placing a disposable pan right on the pizza tray. EVERYTHING I MAKE ON IT TURNS OUT WELL--and i'm really not that talented (yet!) in the kitchen.

do yourself a favor and run to the nearest store that carries this handy device. you won't believe how good pizza can taste...


Single Man's Dream   December 8, 2003
Hard Maple (Emmett, ID USA)
As a single man who eats 2-3 frozen pizzas a week, this was a better purchase than my microwave. Frozen pizzas cook in 15 minutes or less, as compared to 20-23 minutes with a conventional oven. When you wait until the last minute to start cooking, 5 minutes is a long time. Additionally it cooks the pizza perfectly evenly. There are also controls that let you choose between crisp, normal, and light crusts.

**I still have mine over 3 years later and it works like the day I opened it. I sill use it 2-3 times a month (I'm married now, frozen pizza doesn't see itself on the menu 3 nights a week now), and have used it with almost all varieties and brands of pizza with equal success. The nonstick coating is a little scratched however (even though I've taken special interest in keeping it intact). But its still the best oven I own.**


Pizza Perfect   May 23, 2001
Dave Peck (Beverly Hills, CA)
23 out of 23 found this review helpful

I love pizza and as soon as I saw this item I picked one up. This oven cooks fresh pizzas as well as frozen pizzas from the grocer. Once you have one of these, you don't need to follow the individual frozen pizza instructions ever again. Cooking times are listed on the back of the Pizzazz unit, with 10 minutes being the average for most pizzas. Simply place the pizza on the oven, set the timer to 10 minutes, and watch the pizza cook as it rotates. If you want perfect pizza, this is the best way to do it because you have complete access to the pizza while it is cooking. The pizzas I've made with the Pizzazz have come out crisper and more evenly cooked then anything I've made with a conventional oven. This is mostly due to the fact that there are heating elements both above and below the pizza. If you love pizza, you'll love the Pizzazz.


Does an ok job   January 4, 2005
Reviewer from Louisville
23 out of 23 found this review helpful

I received this for Christmas and have tried it out using both regular and rising crust frozen pizzas. It does save time but the results aren't like those that you get from an oven. For one thing the pizza is never done at the end of the recommended cooking time. I always have to add on 4 or 5 minutes. Also, the outer rim of the crust doesn't get crispy like it does in a regular oven. The bottom of the crust cooks okay but the edge of the crust really doesn't get any heat. I baked a Digiorno rising crust pizza on it for the maximum time and the outer edge of the crust was still white. Yes, I followed the instructions on the proper way to cook a rising crust pizza. If you don't like a crunchy crust then this won't be a problem. I would recommend this product for a college student living away from home or for anyone who eats a lot of pizza and doesn't want to heat up their kitchen with a big oven. For the occasional pizza eater though, you might want to pass on this one.

New info: I discovered that if you place the cooked pizza on a cooling rack that's covered with a paper towel the pizza won't get soft and will remain crispy. Before I would just slide the pizza on to the cardboard it came with but that didn't allow any of the the steam from the crust to escape and the crust would become soft. By placing the cooked pizza on a paper towel on a cooling rack that allows the towel to absorb the steam and the rack allows air circulation around the pizza crust. Here are the settings I've been using. On a standard Tombstone pizza I set the control on Lower and set the timer between 17 and 18 minutes. After about 2 minutes I switch the control to Dual. I've found in most cases that the crust always takes longer to cook than the toppings so I start cooking the crust first and then switch to the Dual setting after a few minutes. For a homemade pizza made with raw dough I set the control on Lower and set the timer for 20 minutes. When I switch the control to Dual depends on how many toppings I have on the pizza. If I have just cheese then I wait 10 minutes before switching the control to Dual because the cheese only takes about 10 minutes to melt and start to brown. With more toppings I slide the control to Dual after maybe 5 to 8 minutes.


A complete waste of money and counter space   November 22, 2002
fair_deal_guy (Prior Lake, MN USA)
19 out of 52 found this review helpful

I have a friend who bought this "time saver" and it has been used exactly once and then put away into permanent storage. The basic premise of the Pizzazz Pizza Maker is that it cuts the time it takes to "bake" a pizza. Now I'm as busy as the next guy, but I am dumbfounded that anyone would give up the counter/shelf/cupboard space for this gigantic appliance in order to make a pizza in 12 minutes rather than 18. Unlike a conventional oven--which heats the whole pizza, including the crust--this oddly designed unit heats the top of the pizza, but the crust never gets to that satisfying mouthfeel that an oven-baked pizza does so effortlessly.

This is the kind of device for people with absolutely limitless kitchen space and lots and lots of discretionary income. In other words, if you think it's a good idea to spend righteous bucks on a device that actually does a worse job of cooking pizza than a cheap pan, then by all means have at it.