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Casual Connoisseur
All About Pizza
By Sean Lannin
The term pizza covers a lot of territory. Accounts of pizza history begin with the origin of pizza. We have to thank any civilization or race that baked flat bread on hot stones or stone ovens for pizza, for almost certainly, bread like the focaccia was the "mother of the pizza crust." However, the invention of the pizza is more properly attributed to the Neapolitans - the people of Naples, Italy who were baking and making pizza crust topped with tomatoes, oil, and Italian herbs, and spices. This rudimentary and traditional Italian pizza was common peasant fare in Naples. If you want an individual originator and inventor of pizzas, however, then you won't be wrong if you cite Rafaelle Esposito - a native of Naples; he modified the basic Neapolitan pizza recipe and came up with three variants that added mozzarella cheese to the rudimentary Italian pizza toppings.
Pizza trivia:
"Most people in the United States love pepperoni; the least liked toppings are anchovies.
"Pizza was called (and is still called) tomato pie and pizza pie in certain parts of the States.
"The first pizzeria in the United States was opened in New York.
"The pizza industry is worth more than 30 billion dollars in the United States alone and Americans consume around three billion units of pizza every year.
"New York pizza is traditionally plain. Supposedly, New York pizza is unique because of the acidity and hardness of the water in New York. New Yorkers therefore claim that only in New York can you make real New York Pizza.
Pizza types and pizza styles
Italian pizza is generally lean, although when cheese is added, its fat level generally rises in proportion. There are various kinds of Italian pizza, too. There are Neapolitan pizzas, of which there are two general types: the marinara and the Margherita. There are various combinations of these as well. Authentic Italian pizza is baked on wood-fired or even coal-fired, stone ovens.
New York pizza, as abovementioned, is generally plain. The mainstay of New York pizza is mozzarella cheese - fresh mozzarella cheese to be precise. One can add garlic, different types of cheeses, anchovies, shrimp, etc. The pizza dough recipe for traditional New York pizza, on the other hand, calls for high-gluten flour. The result is firm, usually thin, chewy pizza.
The California style pizza is generally known for gourmet flavors. You can say the California pizza has countless variations. The pizza crust, in this case, is light, crisp and generally well risen. The toppings can be out of this world - generally California pizza makers experiment a lot with all kinds of meat, sea food, breakfast dishes, and vegetable for the toppings.
The Chicago style pizza, on the other hand, is generally crusty and very filling. They are characterized by their raised edges; imagine a pre-baked apple pie crust where the fillings are placed on top. Chicago pizza is usually meaty (some variants come stuffed with cheeses and meat layers) and it is eaten with a knife and fork.
Some pizza making tips and techniques:
Hand tossing helps minimize the lumps in pizza dough. However, this is done only after the dough has been thoroughly kneaded. This process lets pizza dough develop into the right kind of consistency - that which is suitable for stretching and hand tossing.
Crisp and firm pizza that retain its structure even when the moist toppings are added, are made by baking the pizza crust before the toppings and sauce are added. For thin pizza crusts, baking the crust after the toppings and sauce have been added is more common. For uniform baking and crisping of the crust, pizza stones or a pizza screens are often used.
Finally, the protein content of the flour used will influence the end product. High-gluten flour will lead to a crisp but chewy crust. Gluten-free flour, however, may lead to very soft dough; additives may have to be used to give the pizza dough strength.
Whatever your choice for pizza - it remains a historical food with foreign roots that is also a mainstay of Americana devoured by adults and children alike across the U.S.