Analyze the Pan

• Pizza pans with holes, or perforated pizza pans, are usually made of lightweight aluminum. This makes them easy to clean and store, and helps keep their cost down. The holes punched throughout the pan's surface allow the dough to come into direct contact with the hot air from the oven, allowing moisture to escape and promoting crisp, even browning. The holes also help minimize sticking.

Avoid Sticking

• While the holes in a perforated pizza pan will minimize sticking, they will not completely prevent your pizza dough from sticking to the pan. Spray the pan with a thin layer of nonstick cooking spray before you roll out the dough on the pan. Hold the pan over a sink or trash can and dust the pan with cornmeal for added insurance against sticking. Most of the cornmeal will adhere to the nonstick spray on the pan, but some will fall through the holes into the sink or trash can. The cornmeal will also give your crust an added crunch.

No Transfers Needed

• A perforated pizza pan is a good choice for beginning pizza makers. A traditional pizza stone requires you to make the pizza on the counter, then use a pizza peel to transfer the assembled pie onto the preheated stone. You can shape the dough and build your pizza directly on the perforated pizza pan before you put it in the oven, no complicated transfers needed.

Increase Baking Time

• If your favorite pizza recipe calls for the use of a pizza stone, you will need to increase the baking time by several minutes. When you use a pizza stone, it is extremely hot when you transfer the raw dough onto it. The pizza gets an instant blast of heat, cooking the outer crust very quickly. An aluminum pan with holes in it does not have the benefit of this preheating step, so it heats up more slowly, along with the dough. Aluminum does not hold onto heat, so there would be very little benefit in preheating it the way you would a pizza stone.