Pizza Napoletana
The crust of a genuine Neapolitan pizza is so tender because it is baked in a wood-fired oven at a temperature of 900 degrees. Before the inner crumb has dried up and set, the air bubbles in the dough—pushed outward by the experienced pizzaiolo to produce the cornicione (rim) of the pizza base—swell, burn, and blister. But the dough itself is designed to be stretchy, so it can gently embrace the Campania region’s famous tomatoes and mozzarella. “You get diverse sensations from eating a soft and well-leavened pizza,” adds Santarpia. A single mouthful is enough to experience every taste.
Pizza al Taglio
Pizza al taglio has a crust that is up to an inch thick and gets crisp, airy, and golden brown after being baked in an electric oven for up to 15 minutes. Substrate toppings may fare poorly in the additional cooking time. Some pizza extras are added during or after baking to prevent overcooking. Why take such measures for such a lowly snack? Because the best pizza al taglio serves as a stage for some of Italy’s finest ingredients like cheese, meat, seafood, and vegetables.
Pizza Siciliana
Pan pizzas created by Sicilian immigrants and their descendants in Boston, Providence, New York, and Detroit gave rise to the square pizza trend in the United States. Rather than being a particular shape, a pizza is considered to be “Sicilian” if it is made with locally sourced ingredients such as semolina and other locally grown grains for the dough and if it is topped with goat cheese, Pecorino Siciliano, and local cow’s milk cheeses (instead of buffalo mozzarella). There appear to be anchovies in every body of water. Leaving a trail of breadcrumbs is another vital sign.
Pizza Gourmet
The term “gourmet” describes a fresh approach to pizza that elevates it to the level of fine dining. Simone Padoan of I Tigli and Renato Bosco of Saporè, two guys from Verona, build their pizzas meticulously, step by step, like a Michelin-starred chef. So, you’re familiar with the concept of tweezer food. These pizzas are typically sliced with tweezers into perfect small triangles that are hailed as a discovery by their supporters in the food press but reviled by pizza traditionalists who are turned off by the fussiness and who view “gourmet” as a phrase for snobs.
The gourmet pizza nerds are committed members of the craft baking community, with their use of sourdough starters, heirloom grains, and whole-wheat flour. A serious preoccupation with where something came from. What sets Italian chefs apart from their American counterparts is their willingness to experiment with different doughs and blur the borders between a gorgeous pizza and an artisanal bread with exquisite toppings, as in Bosco’s famed Aria di Pane.
Pizza Romana Tonda
Christopher Columbus proved to the world in 1492 that the Earth is not flat but round. Pizza Romana tonda fans have a unique perspective on the world, seeing it as both round and flat. Rome’s round pizza, on the other hand, has a crust that is incredibly thin, ultra-crisp, and can hold its own without falling apart like a soggy Neapolitan pie. Slices can be supported by their rounded ends without causing the triangle’s tip to collapse. Scrocchiarella is the style name for the crack that forms when you try to fold a slice in half, which is an exercise in futility.
Pizza Fritta
For Italians outside of Naples, it may have taken some time for pizza fritta to win them over because deep-frying a cuisine as starchy and cheesy as pizza may appear reckless. Deep-fried pizza is famous in Scotland, but people there also consume deep-fried Mars bars, so you never know.
In any case, pizza fritta is enjoying its time in the spotlight. The stigma attached to eating bread dough fried in a giant hot oil has faded, and probably most importantly, pizza fritta looks freaking awesome on Instagram, so greasy street food is in. In addition, pizza frittata made in the Neapolitan manner is a scientific feat in the kitchen: To make stuffed dough balls, you place a ball of dough, either round or half-moon-shaped, into hot oil and watch it puff up and turn a golden brown. A golden cocoon of unusual lightness and airiness emerges. After being cut open, it’s as if the ricotta, provola (smoked cheese), tomato, and salami inside had never seen oil. Napkins are virtually redundant. Almost.
Pizza alla Pala/Pizza a Metro
These names refer to pizzas baked on the stone bottom of the oven rather than on a pizza stone. Imagine pizza menus. As its name, “pizza by the meter,” suggests, a pizza on a metro can be as long as a meter, depending on how many people would be eating off it. Slices of pizza alla pala can be square if desired. Pala, which translates to “peel” in English, is the Italian word for the long-handled shovel-like instrument used to slide pizzas into and out of the oven.
Crunchy and at least half an inch thick, these pizzas can have a wide range of textures and levels of depth.
Calzone
Even though calzones are technically pizza, you should still make them like regular pizza. If you don’t, you can find yourself with a crusty edge of five inches. Master pizzamaker Enzo Coccia of Pizzaria La Notizia in Naples recommends, “You stretch out the dough as you would for a normal pizza,” but “you don’t build up the cornicione.”
The greatest calzones don’t have a wall of dough that’s too difficult to break. You want to get to the bubbling ricotta, melted mozzarella, and other pizza cupboard treats in as little time as possible. A light calzone exists; you wouldn’t believe it!
Pizza Italiana
The none-of-the-above approach looks like this. The terms “classic,” “traditional,” and “Napoletana” (in a more general sense) may also be used to describe it. This pizza takes its inspiration from Italy rather than the United States. They are scaled down (about 12 inches)—have more excellent permeability, and have a thinner crust. We recommend using a minimum number of toppings, if not none. Instead of letting you create your pizza, we provide a variety of popular pre-sets (such as the Margherita, marinara, Napoli, quattro stagioni, and capriccioso). That pizza doesn’t have any pepperoni on it. We won’t be serving any poultry. Not even a single pineapple.
Some southern Italians may associate “pizza Italiana” with pizza manufactured in a factory rather than by hand with fresh ingredients and baked in a wood-fired oven, but this is not necessarily the case. One of the finest terms of appreciation for any pizza Italiana is “digestible.” Many subpar pizzas have a dough that was rushed into service. You’ll feel bloated for hours after eating the pizza. Good pizza dough has had ample time to rise and ferment. It won’t make itself at home in your digestive tract.
Pizza is something only some people actively seek out when visiting Italy. You can’t avoid it; it’ll track you down. Hopefully, it will be easily digestible.
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