I bought the koda 16 because of the convenience with a propane tank and it’s easy to turn on and off as I needed. I don’t need to transport it anywhere so that isn’t applicable to me but if I did, I would just bring an extra tank. I’m also able to cook just 2 pizzas or even just 1 at my convenience without having to start the charcoal, get it up temp, cook my 1 pizza and then what do I do with the charcoal? I feel like I would have to plan a large enough gathering to make it worth each time I just want a pizza. There are pros and cons to everything and the way I look at is that it depends on the user as well. It’s a learning curve but I cook my pizza further to the right to avoid burning and yes, I rotate often but it literally takes a couple of minutes for the pizza to cook and it’s rather fun rotating it. Worse case scenario, If there’s an emergency with my child, I can quickly shut off the unit and run to my child. Screw the pizza at that point but I would think it would be ok with the fire out. In a charcoal oven, you can’t easily do that and so it might take longer for the pizza to burn right away, it’s still going to burn if you can’t get back right away. I’ve roasted corn, potatoes, a whole flat chicken in my koda so far. If you understand the unit and hot spots, it’s pretty versatile. For me, and others who are like me who might find it helpful, it’s more convenient for me to have the propane version. I’m a mom of 2 and the primary cook.
I own a Koda 16 and one of the biggest pro's to this unit is having the flame control accessible while I view the pizza cooking. I find the ability to adjust the flame 'on the go' is a real bonus. I think you might struggle with the Karu as the knob is on the back. A bonus for the Karu would definitely be the oven door; by closing it you can get the temp really hot and this does a great job of self-cleaning the stone. Great review too!
Surprised you did not check the stone temp of each before your cook. How long does it take to reach your target temperature on each? Most Koda users have their best results by lowering the flame once launched, mitigating your cooking concerns, then turning to high once removed and waiting for next launch..
Question seeing that Karu 16 does lump charcoal,wood and gas "CAN" you use pellets also as an alternative fuel source to charcoal and wood? The Fyra is a bit too small unless they release a 16" version... I dont see why you couldnt use pellets... Other than how you would ad them safely i cant thi k of a reason you can not. Anyone?
Is it OK to cook the entire pizza with the door open? Does it make a big difference seems I could be a pain in the ass opening and closing opening and closing the Front Door. . .
I got the Karu 16 a month ago and love it. I haven't used the gas burner yet, but love baking with wood and lump wood charcoal in it. Baking in it is easy to control once you understand that you need to let the wood burn down a bit so the flames aren't as high. Looking forward to baking rolls and bread in it soon.
Where do you get the little chunks of wood for the Karu? Yes, I was in the Boy Scouts and known how to chop wood. Yes, I have several Gränsfors Bruk hatchets and axes. But it would be easier to buy the wood already sized to fit. Possible?
Very useful feedback - I purchased a Karu and before opening had second thoughts. Your comments solidified and confirmed my selection is correct. Thanks !
Just curious. I have a pampered chef cooking stone. It says not to get it over 450° and not to use the broiler. So I'm curious how what looks to be a pretty thin stone can handle such high temperatures? And if something ever does happen to one of these stones, are they covered under warranty?
Pampered chef stones are garbage. I broke one after only a handful of pizzas. Cracked when heating up. Pampered chef makes some good stuff, but the pizza stone couldn’t handle 550F warm up and cool down cycles apparently.
@@tlwilkinson since I posted that I have bought a solo stove pizza oven and that thing gets well over 800° when I use it and the flame is just several inches above it and it has worked very good. So I guess it's like you say, quality
If I put the Karu under in a porch with ceiling permanently w natural gas hookup, is there any clearance requirement on the back and on top? I saw some people connect the pipes to extend all the way to open air, is that necessary?
Very helpful content! I'm looking for my first outdoor pizza oven. On the surface, I was sold on the Koda because I expect 99% of my desires to be cooking with propane. However, how much of a concern is the L-shaped burner of the Koda for a first timer? Is the Karu worth the extra money with the propane gas attachment to get better results? I wouldn't plan on using wood nor charcoal. I'm fine watching and manning the oven but if the L-shaped burner is that much of a learning curve, I'm not opposed to spending up for an easier and better pizza. Thanks!
My two cents if you're not wanting to use wood or charcoal is go with the Koda 16. The learning curve isn't so steep that I'd avoid it or spend more on the Karu. The Karu is just more versatile, and if that's not important for you, then go with the Koda all day. It's a great oven, and I know you'll love it.
GREAT VIDEO!!! thanks, I'm a new subscriber. We were just about to pull the trigger on the Karu 16 but..... then i see Bertello has a new 16 @699 in which you can use both fuels at the same time. Also the propane burner in included. The biggest disadvantage i see is the height of opening, no exhaust, and no door on the Bertello. Question on the Karu do you think you could cook chicken? Or ribs in the Karu? As i think the door and height is an Ooni advantage assuming it is more versatile.
I’ve cooked hundred’s of pizzas in both gas and wood, and the difference is minimal in my opinion. At such high temperatures, there’s not really any smoke, so the flavor doesn’t really translate from wood. If anything, has pizzas will taste more flavorful because they can get the hearth consistently hotter and impart more char to the crust, making you think you taste the wood flavor, when in fact it’s the char from the high heat.
I got the Karu 12 a few months ago and really love it. However, I find myself wishing I could make bigger pizzas. I'm not going to buy a bigger oven already, but the Karu 16 might be in my future. I know a lot of people prefer gas for the ease of use, but I really enjoy wood and charcoal. Plus if I were going for a gas oven, I'd seriously consider Gozney instead.
I absolutely love cooking with wood in my pizza ovens, but I tend to use the much larger ovens when I'm using wood as fuel. If the wood burner isn't large enough, it's just constant feeding of small splits every 3-4 minutes, and when you miss throwing a new stick, it can take 8-10 minutes for an oven to get back up to the temp you wanted. For that reason, I like larger ovens when I'm cooking with wood as fuel.
The Koda's oven flame should be lowered when cooking a pizza!!!! Also too add I have my Koda oven and with it I will use a SS pellet box filled with hardwood pellets to get the smokey flavor. Huge win IMO. No headaches and baby sitting using all wood.
That's a great question Ray. At such high heats, charcoal doesn't really give off any flavor addition to the cook, so it's a heating method only, and not a flavor additive when you're cooking around 1,000°F. Charcoal gives off flavor at lower temperatures when smoking and grilling, but I personally can't taste the difference when cooking this high.
For me, it's usually between 750-800 degrees F where I like the Karu to be. The bottom stone needs to be at least 700F as well, that way the crust will char a bit as well. You can go higher than that and have it work, but much lower than that and we find we don't get the char on the bottom of the crust, and the crust of the pizza isn't crispy.
The Karu isn't really designed for that, but it's possible. The gas burner addon is a separate back than the charcoal/wood, so you'd need to remove the back portion of the air vent, take out the charcoal and wood grates and put the gas burner on the rear of the oven. Vice versa to reverse the process. It can be done, but it's not really designed to be used that way in my opinion. There are ovens for about triple this price or more that are designed to do that though from other manufacturers.
You can make Chicago style pizza in these ovens, but you'll for sure want to focus on keeping the temperature down lower than what you'd want for neapolitan style pizza. While either oven could work for Chicago pizza, I think the Karu would be better because there's more room from a height perspective. The Koda 16 could work, but there's a bit less height room, and the lack of a door would make it a challenge to keep even heating inside the oven. I'd go with the Karu 16 with the Gas burner if Chicago pizzas was what I wanted to do.
If we get the opportunity to work with the Roccbox or the Dome, we certainly will. We're excited to cook with those units in the future, but it hasn't worked out yet, but stay tuned!
It should be noted that the koda temperature can be turned down to prevent that burning when the stone can get to temp. He should have mentioned that. It is definitely worth it to save $300
Can you do a video on cleaning the Cary versus Koda that is going to be my deciding factor I thought I have my mind made up on the coda but now I am more confused than ever please show us how you clean the caru
Cleaning the Karu comes down to three things pretty much. If you're using wood, just taking out the wood rack and dumping the ash out before the next use. Second, cleaning the baking stone. This is the same on both ovens, and we just turn the stone over between cooks, and the stones are cleaned by the high heat. Lastly, it's cleaning off the soot from the window on the Karu so you can see for the next cook. That's easily accomplished by a rag.
@@TheBarbecueLab thank you so much for responding I think we are going to order the Koda as it appears to be an easier clean I am super excited and so grateful to watch your Videos They have been a huge help thank you again
I would’ve like to see the Karu with the propane attachment. Cost isn’t an issue, just wondering apples to apples with propane if it’s worth the extra $300 and what the gas attachment looks like.
Really great video and comparison. U like the karu better but in your test it looked like the koda cooked it better? Meaning more well done. Also wondering if you get flavor from cooking with coal or is it u just like the fire source better? Thanks!
I want to buy the Karu 16 for the best results but i kinda want the ability to bring this in the summer time to my holiday house as well. You really need to be two people to lift this thing?
Can you lift the Karu 16 with one person? Yes. Did I throw my back out for a few days trying to move it around without help? Also yes. It's possible, but I wouldn't recommend it.
For a grown man it shouldn't be that difficult to move, but you need to make sure you use good form. When I worked at Amazon any box that was over 60, or maybe it was 50 lbs. Anywho, anything the weight of a Karu 16 they'd require you to get another worker to help you. If you were seen moving something that heavy without assistance you risked getting written up. With that said, I ordered a Karu 16 a few days ago and the rare times I need to move it, I'll undoubtably do it by myself lol. I do have Ooni's large prep table so I can just push it around safely.
Just to lift? No. To move to a different location, I think two is needed. You have probably decided to buy it or not by now. But to answer your question late. I would not want to move it by myself more than across a room's distance. It's all about where the weight stress is. How far do you need to move it is the main thing. It's pretty big. I think I can give you information that you can judge for yourself. This is from a guy that is 64 average build but with a bit of a belly. I don't have a Karu. I see it is bulky shape/size. So I think I can provide a good example of the task. How far can you lift/carry a 50 pound bag of top soil or whatever, add a bowling ball on it, while holding that weight out in front of you? Me? 50 pound bag of whatever carrying it close in front of me against my belly, I don't go far before my lower back hurts in 100ft. But, if I can get that weight on a shoulder, probably 10 times further. It is the position of the weight on the body that changes what you can do.
@@tigerzero5216 Not bought the oven yet but i am leaning more towards Kooda considering there is no taste difference with wood anyways and its its nice to be able to bring it with me to friends if needed.
Thanks Curtis! I know pizza ovens aren't your thing, but keep an eye on the channel today, since we're putting out a recipe video I think you'll really like.
@@TheBarbecueLab I do feel in time they will grow on me. Right now I say it looks like alot of work but I'm sure if I got into it and feasted on the reward I'd love it. Pellet grills had to grow on me and flattops as well. I'll probably end up with one down the road
If portability is really what you need, the Karu 12 is the king. Plenty of space for pizzas, triple fuel options and smaller and lighter than the Karu 16.
Koda 16 takes practice. My first experience was pizza on fire in the back and still dough in front so I couldn't turn it. Forget about 16 inch pizzas, you need room to get away from the burners.
I've had a very steep/frustrating/defeating learning curve with the Koda 16. Every pizza I've tried to cook has burned. I am not giving up, and have found a couple for tips for turning it down, and technique, but after years of successful pizza bakes in my home oven ( granted that is only at 550) it has been a rough start.
I found it important to turn the heat down after launching the pizza and turning about every 15 seconds. To the extent possible, I launch to the front and right side, away from the heat. When I remove the cooked pizza, I turn the heat back to max to heat the stone. I am a neophyte, I’m sure I will get better at the cook over time.
When I bought my Koda 12 a few years ago I had the same problem, don't know if this is one of your causes. But I was using malted flour, which just can't handle the higher temps. Also if your flour lists any enzymes or any type of vitimins it will make things a lot more difficult. As soon as I switched to unmalted things got worlds easier. I don't even use 00 like a lot of pizza people do, I use an organic AP with no malt or enzymes. When I got the right flour it was much more helpful than trying to change my technique.
@@Bigheadedwon This weekend will be the first cook of the year in the Koda, and I plan on going back to Shepard's Grain AP flour I've used for all my previous pizza endeavors (conventional oven). I am hoping that will be the ticket. Thanks for the feedback.
@@andrewconger5045 I just googled that flour, it has Niacin, Folic Acid & Enzymes. At the lowest temp you might not have too many problems. But all of those things lead to much quicker burning at higher temps. Anything above 550f would be in the burn range. The Karu's at least 100f+ over that on low. Good luck, let me know how they turn out. If you have any of the Kroger brand stores, they sell Simply Truth organic AP. It works beautifully at any temp in my Koda 12 and Roccbox.
@@Bigheadedwon Wow. That is very good to know. I may have to have a second kind of flour I use when cooking in the Ooni - I will be very vigilant with dough balls I currently have on a 48 hour CF.
Crank your Ooni 16 gas up all the way and let it run 30 Minutes. Put your dough / pizza on a pizza screen - TURN THE OVEN OFFF....insert your pizza on the screen onto the hot stone and turn as you normally would. After 2-3 mins take it off the screen and place the pizza on the stone. Continue to cook & turn on this residual heat. Once the bottom crust is browning turn the oven on low and finish. Best NY Style pie...just like take out.
Wouldn’t recommend it, as the pizza needs pressure from inside of the oven to properly bake. Instead preheat for a little less and then put the flame at the lowest setting :)
@@oleugh pressure? There is no pressure inside of an Ooni that isn’t equal to the air pressure outside of the oven. It is not a sealed device. Not sure where you are going with your response.
There is always someone who complains about comparisons. Flame is too high. Weather was too hot. Saturn and mars werent aligned properly. There wasnt a full moon that day. Accept it, the new model is better
Their both good ovens once you get the learning curve down on them. Karu has the wood option like the ooni pro which makes it more versatile. Personally, I just like gas better. I just bought the Koda 16 after years of using the original uuni 3. I didn't like the pellets so I bought the gas option which I like much better.... My oven is set up under a patio and black smoke was coming out from the chimney from the pellets. It was making the ceiling black from the smoke. That's why I chose the Koda 16. I still have my uuni 3 if I want to bring it outside and use pellets. Best of both worlds with 2 different ovens.
No it's not. 60-90 seconds is not enough time to get a taste of the wood. In another review it's been told that they were not able to feel any difference in taste.
A lot of pizza people online will claim they can tell the difference. Some will claim they could do it 10/10 times. You won't notice, anyone who says they can is either lying or incorrect. Now there will be noticable characteristic differences between the 2 (crust color, spotting mostly) so a pizza person who's skilled could look at a pizza from both and tell you which is which. But if you blind folded them for a taste test, at best they'll be guessing. Temp's too high and bake's too quick for there to be any impact on the flavor with the wood or charcoal. If 90 seconds was enough to make it taste like smoke, imagine what the pork butt I smoke for 13 hours would taste like lol.
We close the door on the Karu 16 when we're not filming, but we leave the door open when the cameras are on so people can see what's going on inside. Could we video through the window of the door? Sure, but in our tests the videos with the door closed had too much mirroring in the final cut, so for videos we cook with the door open.
Easy explanation- koda 16 is a Ferrari, high risk, and high reward. Kuru 16 is a minivan with a V8 with some muscle, but you can still read your text or watch the scenery while driving
We have the OONI 16 Koda. After two weeks of dealing with it and nearly two dozen pizzas later, we are shipping it back as defective. The sweet spot to cook a pizza is tough, if not impossible to hit. It is rare we can get the pizzas to cook thoroughly. No matter what, there is raw dough when cooking with the Koda, even if I scorch the pizza to almost black top and bottom. In my observations, not only is the L-Shaped flame a problem, the other major issues are the thin, composite stone heats unevenly and the 'dome' isn't a dome. The stone can vary by as much as 200* at any given time. The 'radiant' heat is way too close, it is not radiant at all. The oven burns top and bottom, with inedible raw dough in the middle. My house oven with a cast iron pizza pan has far superior results. We are thinking of trying out the Karu with a real Biscotto stone upgrade. If that doesn't work, I guess we are going big. $599 is still a lot of money to not be satisfied with. $599 sounds like an entry level pizza oven. It isn't. It is super frustrating to put in all the effort to make a great dough and have it ruined through not fault of your own.
sounds like maybe you had the temp too high when the pizza was inside the oven. keep it on high when preheating and reheating between pizzas, but when you actually have one in there turn the temp down to medium or so, that seems to have gotten the best results in other videos i’ve seen
Its a matter of the settings of the heat and dough not because of the Ooni model. You will have the same problems if you do it the same way in the Karu. It sounds like a high hydrated dough and not the right temperature setup. The highter the hydration (70 % +) the lower the needed temp. and highter the baking time so all the water gets out of the crust. So idk your settings, but have you tried changing the temps. and hydration-%? I would recomment 450°C for 60 % hydration up to 65 % max. for a neapolitan style maybe for 60 - 90 seconds. When i cook pizza with around 80 % hydration i get the best results at 380 - 390 °C and let them pop for 2 mins. And as Jordan said.. turn down the direct flame if you reached ur temp. so the direct heat is not too much. I hope you will find your own settings for you type of pizza you like with whatever oven you are comfortable with. ;)
We bought a real Biscotto pizza stone for it imported from Italy. The new stone is an inch thick. Way better. Still not perfect, but way better. The heat is even across and it holds heat so much better. The best option is to get a real outdoor wood fired pizza oven if you have the funds. I wouldn't claim these OONI oven to be any better than your house oven with a good pizza pan.
I did not make it past the ads. Ooni is a socialist company and I will unsubscribe your channel if you continue to promote them. You are welcome to block me.
If I don’t see a change I will unsubscribe. I have no idea how one subscriber who unsubscribes from a channel affects your income. I do hope it makes you give a thought to principles vs greed. I watch you to learn from you. There are plenty other of creators here and other platforms that can replace you.
I bought the koda 16 because of the convenience with a propane tank and it’s easy to turn on and off as I needed. I don’t need to transport it anywhere so that isn’t applicable to me but if I did, I would just bring an extra tank. I’m also able to cook just 2 pizzas or even just 1 at my convenience without having to start the charcoal, get it up temp, cook my 1 pizza and then what do I do with the charcoal? I feel like I would have to plan a large enough gathering to make it worth each time I just want a pizza.
There are pros and cons to everything and the way I look at is that it depends on the user as well. It’s a learning curve but I cook my pizza further to the right to avoid burning and yes, I rotate often but it literally takes a couple of minutes for the pizza to cook and it’s rather fun rotating it. Worse case scenario, If there’s an emergency with my child, I can quickly shut off the unit and run to my child. Screw the pizza at that point but I would think it would be ok with the fire out. In a charcoal oven, you can’t easily do that and so it might take longer for the pizza to burn right away, it’s still going to burn if you can’t get back right away.
I’ve roasted corn, potatoes, a whole flat chicken in my koda so far. If you understand the unit and hot spots, it’s pretty versatile.
For me, and others who are like me who might find it helpful, it’s more convenient for me to have the propane version.
I’m a mom of 2 and the primary cook.
Sounds like you found the right oven for you, and that's really what we hope everyone does. Thanks for your comment Susan.
I own a Koda 16 and one of the biggest pro's to this unit is having the flame control accessible while I view the pizza cooking. I find the ability to adjust the flame 'on the go' is a real bonus. I think you might struggle with the Karu as the knob is on the back. A bonus for the Karu would definitely be the oven door; by closing it you can get the temp really hot and this does a great job of self-cleaning the stone. Great review too!
Surprised you did not check the stone temp of each before your cook. How long does it take to reach your target temperature on each? Most Koda users have their best results by lowering the flame once launched, mitigating your cooking concerns, then turning to high once removed and waiting for next launch..
Question seeing that Karu 16 does lump charcoal,wood and gas "CAN" you use pellets also as an alternative fuel source to charcoal and wood? The Fyra is a bit too small unless they release a 16" version...
I dont see why you couldnt use pellets...
Other than how you would ad them safely i cant thi k of a reason you can not.
Anyone?
Is it OK to cook the entire pizza with the door open? Does it make a big difference seems I could be a pain in the ass opening and closing opening and closing the Front Door. . .
nice video my friend, quick question - what is the heat like on the hand when you are rotating the pizza, would a glove be recommended?
New Subscriber BECAUSE of this video! Really enjoyed your side by side cookoff with the pros & cons of each oven. Excellent presentation! I'm sold😊
I got the Karu 16 a month ago and love it. I haven't used the gas burner yet, but love baking with wood and lump wood charcoal in it. Baking in it is easy to control once you understand that you need to let the wood burn down a bit so the flames aren't as high. Looking forward to baking rolls and bread in it soon.
Do you taste the difference with wood rather than gas?
Where do you get the little chunks of wood for the Karu? Yes, I was in the Boy Scouts and known how to chop wood. Yes, I have several Gränsfors Bruk hatchets and axes. But it would be easier to buy the wood already sized to fit. Possible?
We buy the wood straight from Ooni that’s sized to fit. Here’s the link straight to it. thebarbecuelab.com/recommends/ooni-assorted-oak-pack/
Very useful feedback - I purchased a Karu and before opening had second thoughts.
Your comments solidified and confirmed my selection is correct. Thanks !
Just curious. I have a pampered chef cooking stone. It says not to get it over 450° and not to use the broiler. So I'm curious how what looks to be a pretty thin stone can handle such high temperatures? And if something ever does happen to one of these stones, are they covered under warranty?
Pampered chef stones are garbage. I broke one after only a handful of pizzas. Cracked when heating up.
Pampered chef makes some good stuff, but the pizza stone couldn’t handle 550F warm up and cool down cycles apparently.
@@tlwilkinson since I posted that I have bought a solo stove pizza oven and that thing gets well over 800° when I use it and the flame is just several inches above it and it has worked very good. So I guess it's like you say, quality
If I put the Karu under in a porch with ceiling permanently w natural gas hookup, is there any clearance requirement on the back and on top? I saw some people connect the pipes to extend all the way to open air, is that necessary?
How much learning curve is there on using wood? Current koda 12 owner that is considering the upgrade, but I know nothing about wood cooking
Very helpful content! I'm looking for my first outdoor pizza oven. On the surface, I was sold on the Koda because I expect 99% of my desires to be cooking with propane. However, how much of a concern is the L-shaped burner of the Koda for a first timer? Is the Karu worth the extra money with the propane gas attachment to get better results? I wouldn't plan on using wood nor charcoal. I'm fine watching and manning the oven but if the L-shaped burner is that much of a learning curve, I'm not opposed to spending up for an easier and better pizza. Thanks!
My two cents if you're not wanting to use wood or charcoal is go with the Koda 16. The learning curve isn't so steep that I'd avoid it or spend more on the Karu. The Karu is just more versatile, and if that's not important for you, then go with the Koda all day. It's a great oven, and I know you'll love it.
Thank you so much! Appreciate the quick confirmation.
Great in-depth review! Subscribed and will definitely be checking out more of your content.
How did you do fire vs gas and not show a taste test?
GREAT VIDEO!!! thanks, I'm a new subscriber. We were just about to pull the trigger on the Karu 16 but..... then i see Bertello has a new 16 @699 in which you can use both fuels at the same time. Also the propane burner in included. The biggest disadvantage i see is the height of opening, no exhaust, and no door on the Bertello. Question on the Karu do you think you could cook chicken? Or ribs in the Karu? As i think the door and height is an Ooni advantage assuming it is more versatile.
Could you give me your opinion of the Karu 16 vs Alfa 4 Pizze you reviewed regarding the pizza making ease and outcome quality?
Karu for me as I want to do bread in it and I need the extra height
Great video. Thank you. Is there any taste difference in the pizza when cooked in wood vs. gas?
I’ve cooked hundred’s of pizzas in both gas and wood, and the difference is minimal in my opinion. At such high temperatures, there’s not really any smoke, so the flavor doesn’t really translate from wood. If anything, has pizzas will taste more flavorful because they can get the hearth consistently hotter and impart more char to the crust, making you think you taste the wood flavor, when in fact it’s the char from the high heat.
I got the Karu 12 a few months ago and really love it. However, I find myself wishing I could make bigger pizzas. I'm not going to buy a bigger oven already, but the Karu 16 might be in my future. I know a lot of people prefer gas for the ease of use, but I really enjoy wood and charcoal. Plus if I were going for a gas oven, I'd seriously consider Gozney instead.
I absolutely love cooking with wood in my pizza ovens, but I tend to use the much larger ovens when I'm using wood as fuel. If the wood burner isn't large enough, it's just constant feeding of small splits every 3-4 minutes, and when you miss throwing a new stick, it can take 8-10 minutes for an oven to get back up to the temp you wanted. For that reason, I like larger ovens when I'm cooking with wood as fuel.
The Koda's oven flame should be lowered when cooking a pizza!!!!
Also too add I have my Koda oven and with it I will use a SS pellet box filled with hardwood pellets to get the smokey flavor. Huge win IMO. No headaches and baby sitting using all wood.
That’s brilliant. Thanks for the idea. I was just debating if I should get the koda max 2 or karu 16.
Having the door on the Karu is a game changer….got the karu for Father’s Day
This video was so helpful !!! Does the Karu give a completely different flavor using charcoal and wood then the Koda ?
That's a great question Ray. At such high heats, charcoal doesn't really give off any flavor addition to the cook, so it's a heating method only, and not a flavor additive when you're cooking around 1,000°F. Charcoal gives off flavor at lower temperatures when smoking and grilling, but I personally can't taste the difference when cooking this high.
What a great comparison! I will watch other videos from you! Thanks!
Thanks for watching!
Great review! Good judging criteria & explainations.
What temperature do you find is best for the karu 16? I'm using all wood and trying to get the perfect cooks
For me, it's usually between 750-800 degrees F where I like the Karu to be. The bottom stone needs to be at least 700F as well, that way the crust will char a bit as well. You can go higher than that and have it work, but much lower than that and we find we don't get the char on the bottom of the crust, and the crust of the pizza isn't crispy.
Does the karu 16 produce a lot of smoke?
Can I use both propane and wood same time? If I run out of wood can I just turn on the propane, vice versa?
The Karu isn't really designed for that, but it's possible. The gas burner addon is a separate back than the charcoal/wood, so you'd need to remove the back portion of the air vent, take out the charcoal and wood grates and put the gas burner on the rear of the oven. Vice versa to reverse the process. It can be done, but it's not really designed to be used that way in my opinion. There are ovens for about triple this price or more that are designed to do that though from other manufacturers.
Hi, these are great oven’s but can they make Chicago style thick pizza? If so which is better?
Thx
You can make Chicago style pizza in these ovens, but you'll for sure want to focus on keeping the temperature down lower than what you'd want for neapolitan style pizza. While either oven could work for Chicago pizza, I think the Karu would be better because there's more room from a height perspective. The Koda 16 could work, but there's a bit less height room, and the lack of a door would make it a challenge to keep even heating inside the oven. I'd go with the Karu 16 with the Gas burner if Chicago pizzas was what I wanted to do.
Ok awesome, thank you!!
Absolutely!
Thanks for the great comparison! Karu is now on the list. Will you do Karu vs Roccbox or vs the Gozney Dome?
If we get the opportunity to work with the Roccbox or the Dome, we certainly will. We're excited to cook with those units in the future, but it hasn't worked out yet, but stay tuned!
It should be noted that the koda temperature can be turned down to prevent that burning when the stone can get to temp. He should have mentioned that. It is definitely worth it to save $300
This is why I went with the Koda 16
The Koda 16 is the one I prefer. Cooking with wood looks like it might be fun the first time but just a pain after that.
Really if you don't have experience then why are you advancing an opinion?
@@Studentofgosset I people just love being around you.
is that what yu are doing here? Trying to get people to like you by giving uninformed opinions? Why bother?@@BobK58
Can you do a video on cleaning the Cary versus Koda that is going to be my deciding factor I thought I have my mind made up on the coda but now I am more confused than ever please show us how you clean the caru
Cleaning the Karu comes down to three things pretty much. If you're using wood, just taking out the wood rack and dumping the ash out before the next use. Second, cleaning the baking stone. This is the same on both ovens, and we just turn the stone over between cooks, and the stones are cleaned by the high heat. Lastly, it's cleaning off the soot from the window on the Karu so you can see for the next cook. That's easily accomplished by a rag.
@@TheBarbecueLab thank you so much for responding I think we are going to order the Koda as it appears to be an easier clean I am super excited and so grateful to watch your Videos They have been a huge help thank you again
You didn’t talk about the stone thickness
I would’ve like to see the Karu with the propane attachment. Cost isn’t an issue, just wondering apples to apples with propane if it’s worth the extra $300 and what the gas attachment looks like.
Yes I agree and I would love to know if the gas vs wood has any impact on taste. Some say the pizza isn’t taking on any wood flavor in 90 seconds
Really great video and comparison. U like the karu better but in your test it looked like the koda cooked it better? Meaning more well done.
Also wondering if you get flavor from cooking with coal or is it u just like the fire source better? Thanks!
I want to buy the Karu 16 for the best results but i kinda want the ability to bring this in the summer time to my holiday house as well. You really need to be two people to lift this thing?
Can you lift the Karu 16 with one person? Yes. Did I throw my back out for a few days trying to move it around without help? Also yes. It's possible, but I wouldn't recommend it.
For a grown man it shouldn't be that difficult to move, but you need to make sure you use good form. When I worked at Amazon any box that was over 60, or maybe it was 50 lbs. Anywho, anything the weight of a Karu 16 they'd require you to get another worker to help you. If you were seen moving something that heavy without assistance you risked getting written up.
With that said, I ordered a Karu 16 a few days ago and the rare times I need to move it, I'll undoubtably do it by myself lol. I do have Ooni's large prep table so I can just push it around safely.
Just to lift? No. To move to a different location, I think two is needed. You have probably decided to buy it or not by now. But to answer your question late. I would not want to move it by myself more than across a room's distance. It's all about where the weight stress is. How far do you need to move it is the main thing. It's pretty big. I think I can give you information that you can judge for yourself. This is from a guy that is 64 average build but with a bit of a belly. I don't have a Karu. I see it is bulky shape/size. So I think I can provide a good example of the task.
How far can you lift/carry a 50 pound bag of top soil or whatever, add a bowling ball on it, while holding that weight out in front of you?
Me? 50 pound bag of whatever carrying it close in front of me against my belly, I don't go far before my lower back hurts in 100ft. But, if I can get that weight on a shoulder, probably 10 times further. It is the position of the weight on the body that changes what you can do.
@@tigerzero5216 Not bought the oven yet but i am leaning more towards Kooda considering there is no taste difference with wood anyways and its its nice to be able to bring it with me to friends if needed.
As always I enjoy the deep dive into both these pizza ovens. You always cover all the bases for people in the market for the products you review.
Thanks Curtis! I know pizza ovens aren't your thing, but keep an eye on the channel today, since we're putting out a recipe video I think you'll really like.
@@TheBarbecueLab
I do feel in time they will grow on me. Right now I say it looks like alot of work but I'm sure if I got into it and feasted on the reward I'd love it. Pellet grills had to grow on me and flattops as well. I'll probably end up with one down the road
Thanks, you helped me make a decision.
You have excellent reviews. Keep up the good work
Thank you very much!
Awesome video. Karu 16 is definitely at the top of my list.
Very indepth and clear thank you
If portability is really what you need, the Karu 12 is the king. Plenty of space for pizzas, triple fuel options and smaller and lighter than the Karu 16.
Koda 16 takes practice. My first experience was pizza on fire in the back and still dough in front so I couldn't turn it. Forget about 16 inch pizzas, you need room to get away from the burners.
It shouldn’t matter, it’s just a different heat source
@@truthseeker2797 Direct contact with flame is different. That's what you have to worry about with the Koda. It adds difficulty.
great video thank you!
the karu 16 has alot more versatility too because of the extra height
Thanks 👍
Great comparison. Thanks for posting
Great info, thank you
pellet grill. load it up and flip a switch.
I've had a very steep/frustrating/defeating learning curve with the Koda 16. Every pizza I've tried to cook has burned. I am not giving up, and have found a couple for tips for turning it down, and technique, but after years of successful pizza bakes in my home oven ( granted that is only at 550) it has been a rough start.
I found it important to turn the heat down after launching the pizza and turning about every 15 seconds. To the extent possible, I launch to the front and right side, away from the heat. When I remove the cooked pizza, I turn the heat back to max to heat the stone. I am a neophyte, I’m sure I will get better at the cook over time.
When I bought my Koda 12 a few years ago I had the same problem, don't know if this is one of your causes. But I was using malted flour, which just can't handle the higher temps. Also if your flour lists any enzymes or any type of vitimins it will make things a lot more difficult. As soon as I switched to unmalted things got worlds easier. I don't even use 00 like a lot of pizza people do, I use an organic AP with no malt or enzymes. When I got the right flour it was much more helpful than trying to change my technique.
@@Bigheadedwon This weekend will be the first cook of the year in the Koda, and I plan on going back to Shepard's Grain AP flour I've used for all my previous pizza endeavors (conventional oven). I am hoping that will be the ticket. Thanks for the feedback.
@@andrewconger5045 I just googled that flour, it has Niacin, Folic Acid & Enzymes. At the lowest temp you might not have too many problems. But all of those things lead to much quicker burning at higher temps. Anything above 550f would be in the burn range. The Karu's at least 100f+ over that on low.
Good luck, let me know how they turn out. If you have any of the Kroger brand stores, they sell Simply Truth organic AP. It works beautifully at any temp in my Koda 12 and Roccbox.
@@Bigheadedwon Wow. That is very good to know. I may have to have a second kind of flour I use when cooking in the Ooni - I will be very vigilant with dough balls I currently have on a 48 hour CF.
Thanks for explain so good
I don't know, man, these Ooni ovens come off quite cheaply spec'd compared to Gozney stuff (Roccbox).
edit: adding, this was a very good review
The Koda is better. Your flame was way to high on the koda
Crank your Ooni 16 gas up all the way and let it run 30 Minutes. Put your dough / pizza on a pizza screen - TURN THE OVEN OFFF....insert your pizza on the screen onto the hot stone and turn as you normally would. After 2-3 mins take it off the screen and place the pizza on the stone. Continue to cook & turn on this residual heat. Once the bottom crust is browning turn the oven on low and finish. Best NY Style pie...just like take out.
Wouldn’t recommend it, as the pizza needs pressure from inside of the oven to properly bake. Instead preheat for a little less and then put the flame at the lowest setting :)
@@oleugh pressure? There is no pressure inside of an Ooni that isn’t equal to the air pressure outside of the oven. It is not a sealed device. Not sure where you are going with your response.
Great review! I got Koda 12 and got the gas attachment to have one very portable oven for all seasons and ocassions.
I got the 16 for extra room and have ordred a SS door. Cant wait for it to arrive
Your flame is way too high on the Koda 16
There is always someone who complains about comparisons. Flame is too high. Weather was too hot. Saturn and mars werent aligned properly. There wasnt a full moon that day.
Accept it, the new model is better
If you don’t know how to operate a pizza oven properly how can you compare lol
Their both good ovens once you get the learning curve down on them. Karu has the wood option like the ooni pro which makes it more versatile. Personally, I just like gas better. I just bought the Koda 16 after years of using the original uuni 3. I didn't like the pellets so I bought the gas option which I like much better.... My oven is set up under a patio and black smoke was coming out from the chimney from the pellets. It was making the ceiling black from the smoke. That's why I chose the Koda 16. I still have my uuni 3 if I want to bring it outside and use pellets. Best of both worlds with 2 different ovens.
Agreed. Gotta preheat it on max, and then cook it on low for the best results
This review is so clear and professional!
Is there a distinctive smoke flavor with the Karu vs the Koda?
I would like to know the same
No it's not. 60-90 seconds is not enough time to get a taste of the wood. In another review it's been told that they were not able to feel any difference in taste.
Only if you bake bread or cook other things in it that take longer to bake.
A lot of pizza people online will claim they can tell the difference. Some will claim they could do it 10/10 times. You won't notice, anyone who says they can is either lying or incorrect.
Now there will be noticable characteristic differences between the 2 (crust color, spotting mostly) so a pizza person who's skilled could look at a pizza from both and tell you which is which. But if you blind folded them for a taste test, at best they'll be guessing. Temp's too high and bake's too quick for there to be any impact on the flavor with the wood or charcoal. If 90 seconds was enough to make it taste like smoke, imagine what the pork butt I smoke for 13 hours would taste like lol.
Great review. Thank you!
Glad it was helpful! All the best
You don't should to close the dore of the karu 16 to cook faster?
We close the door on the Karu 16 when we're not filming, but we leave the door open when the cameras are on so people can see what's going on inside. Could we video through the window of the door? Sure, but in our tests the videos with the door closed had too much mirroring in the final cut, so for videos we cook with the door open.
@@TheBarbecueLab understood thank you
😊
you should have closed the door on the karu ;) but otherwise nice video!
Easy explanation- koda 16 is a Ferrari, high risk, and high reward. Kuru 16 is a minivan with a V8 with some muscle, but you can still read your text or watch the scenery while driving
Koda 16 all day long
And the green stuff on your pizza was what?
I haven’t watched this one in awhile, but if it’s green on a pizza that we made, it’s probably fresh basil.
@@TheBarbecueLab don't you believe in sausage and pepperoni and bacon? Basil? Really? Well I guess to each there own
Nice
We have the OONI 16 Koda. After two weeks of dealing with it and nearly two dozen pizzas later, we are shipping it back as defective.
The sweet spot to cook a pizza is tough, if not impossible to hit. It is rare we can get the pizzas to cook thoroughly. No matter what, there is raw dough when cooking with the Koda, even if I scorch the pizza to almost black top and bottom. In my observations, not only is the L-Shaped flame a problem, the other major issues are the thin, composite stone heats unevenly and the 'dome' isn't a dome. The stone can vary by as much as 200* at any given time. The 'radiant' heat is way too close, it is not radiant at all. The oven burns top and bottom, with inedible raw dough in the middle. My house oven with a cast iron pizza pan has far superior results.
We are thinking of trying out the Karu with a real Biscotto stone upgrade. If that doesn't work, I guess we are going big. $599 is still a lot of money to not be satisfied with. $599 sounds like an entry level pizza oven. It isn't. It is super frustrating to put in all the effort to make a great dough and have it ruined through not fault of your own.
sounds like maybe you had the temp too high when the pizza was inside the oven. keep it on high when preheating and reheating between pizzas, but when you actually have one in there turn the temp down to medium or so, that seems to have gotten the best results in other videos i’ve seen
Its a matter of the settings of the heat and dough not because of the Ooni model. You will have the same problems if you do it the same way in the Karu. It sounds like a high hydrated dough and not the right temperature setup. The highter the hydration (70 % +) the lower the needed temp. and highter the baking time so all the water gets out of the crust.
So idk your settings, but have you tried changing the temps. and hydration-%? I would recomment 450°C for 60 % hydration up to 65 % max. for a neapolitan style maybe for 60 - 90 seconds. When i cook pizza with around 80 % hydration i get the best results at 380 - 390 °C and let them pop for 2 mins. And as Jordan said.. turn down the direct flame if you reached ur temp. so the direct heat is not too much.
I hope you will find your own settings for you type of pizza you like with whatever oven you are comfortable with. ;)
We bought a real Biscotto pizza stone for it imported from Italy. The new stone is an inch thick. Way better. Still not perfect, but way better. The heat is even across and it holds heat so much better. The best option is to get a real outdoor wood fired pizza oven if you have the funds. I wouldn't claim these OONI oven to be any better than your house oven with a good pizza pan.
Way too much time on measurements, I can find those easily online
10 out of 10 Review.
Well done Thank you SO MUCH MATE!
🤜😊🤛
Glad it was helpful Ned! Thanks for watching.
Don't forget there is a Karu 12.
Ooni Koda 16 > Ooni Karu 16....nuff said
"if someone asks you a question" LMAO
Try a Goonzey Roccbox.
I hope to be able to try one of those in the future, but haven't had hands on one yet. Thanks for watching!
@@TheBarbecueLab lol didn’t watch bc those ovens are not very good. you’ll like it way better I’ve returned every Koda they’ve sent me.
il karu andrebbe chiuso durante la cottura
I call mine the Demon Child....if left unattended it will ruin your pizza
I wish you were my neighbor
Me too.
u gotta close the door genius
I did not make it past the ads. Ooni is a socialist company and I will unsubscribe your channel if you continue to promote them. You are welcome to block me.
If I don’t see a change I will unsubscribe. I have no idea how one subscriber who unsubscribes from a channel affects your income. I do hope it makes you give a thought to principles vs greed. I watch you to learn from you. There are plenty other of creators here and other platforms that can replace you.
Look I liked my post and it is on top. Just saying!
Great video thanks!