Types of Pizza
Pizza, famous for its great mix of ingredients, bubbling cheese, blistered superb crispy crust, delicious tomato sauce, and other savory toppings is very much everyone’s top food. But not all Pizza is made equal, and this is something you should concern yourself about because there are some pizzas out there described as ‘double,’ ‘triple,’ or ‘extra’ cheese, but they are in no way as healthy as they are fancy.
Pizza has come far from its humble roots as a simple Italian dish. Pizza is now prepared and served in many different ways leading to variations. For example, the way the dough is shaped results into either:
- Thin Crust Pizza
In thin-crust pizzas, the dough is gently stretched out to form the edges, leaving the Pizza with a slimmer center. Pizzas with thin crusts include the New York-Style Pizza and the Neapolitan Pizza; these do not take heavy toppings. Health experts recommend thin crust pizza, saying they contain fewer calories than the regular pie slices. For example, a Domino’s large thin crust has 60 percent fewer calories than a thick crust pizza.
- Thick Crust Pizza
Thick crust pizzas are made thick throughout to handle more sauce and toppings. Thickness ranges anywhere from 1/8-inch to ¼-inch.
- Neapolitan Pizza
This is the original Pizza that dates back to 18th century Naples, Italy. It was a favorite among the natives because it was prepared with simple and fresh ingredient; just need basic dough, fresh Mozzarella, tomatoes, olive oil, basil leaves, and oregano, making it one of the cheapest foods at this seaside city. They called it Pizza Napolitana
Nowadays, Neapolitan Pizza has evolved into a few variations depending on the toppings used, but still they the method of preparation hasn’t changed. It does not use fancy toppings and only takes 90 seconds to cook in an 800F-900F. It is thin and does not support heavy toppings. It also often features more sauce than cheese.
Depending on toppings, variants of Neapolitan Pizza include:
- Pizza Marinara: Has tomatoes, oregano, extra virgin oil, and garlic as toppings.
- Pizza Margherita: Has sliced Mozzarella, basil, tomatoes, and extra virgin oil.
- Pizza Margherita extra: Has Campania in addition to sliced Mozzarella, basil, tomatoes, and extra virgin oil.
- Chicago Pizza
Known for its crispy, golden-hued crust, a slice of the Chicago deep-dish tastes delicious. This pizza style was created for Italian immigrants in Chicago back in the early 1900s when they were looking for something with a taste close to the Neapolitan they knew and loved.
The Chicago deep-dish was first created by Ike Sewell; it had a thick crust, raised edges, and slices of Mozzarella followed by meat, veggies, and finally tomatoes as toppings. The Ike pizza became so popular it led to the creation of the Pizzeria Uno chain of restaurants. Nowadays, the Chicago deep-dish is known for its crispy, golden-hued crust as a result of adding butter or corn to the dough and coating with cheese and chunky sauce.
Traditional toppings for Chicago pizza include grounded beef, mushrooms, onion, pepperoni, sausage, and green peppers. As this is a thick crust, the recommended baking time is 30-35 minutes.
- New York Style Pizza
Since New York is a busy city, you want to get hefty pizza slices for a perfect lunch. Starting as a variation of the Neapolitan style pizza, the New York-style pizza has evolved into the now popular hefty foldable slices and crispy crust formed by hand-tossing high-gluten dough into the air then treating it with some sauce and grated Mozzarella.
Most people cook New York-style Pizza in wood or coal ovens for a delicious crispy crust, but if you don’t have these types of ovens, a gas deck oven will also do just fine. For toppings, these pizza styles can handle more than the Neapolitan Pizza; you can use pepperoni, mushroom, sausage, anchovies, mozzarella cheese, and more.
- Sicilian Pizza
The Sicilian Pizza is a square-cut pizza with a crunchy crust and features robust tomato sauce. Sicilians don’t make their Pizza like the natives of the mainland do; no, the Sicilian Pizza is not the round, thin-crust Pizza, it is made using pillowy dough and robust tomato sauce then cut into square slices dubbed sfincione.
You can opt between the original Sicilian that does not feature Mozzarella or go with the newfangled Sicilian that uses Mozzarella. Other options for toppings include anchovies, onions, and herbs.
- Greek Pizza
This is a variation of the Italian Pizza, created by the geeks. It’s thick, with more sauce than cheese and usually baked in shallow, oiled pans giving it a chewy crust. While it has a thick, chewy crust, it is not as thick as the Sicilian or the Chicago deep-dish. This type of Pizza only uses cheese as a topping
- California Pizza
The California pizza, also known as the gourmet, uses the same style of dough as the Neapolitan Pizza then topped an endless list of unusual ingredients. There are no traditional toppings for this Pizza, anything from smoked salmon to artichokes and eggs will do. After all, it is the leading state of creativity.
- Detroit Pizza
It is known for its thick, super crispy crust that is airy and tender on the inside. The first Detroit pizzas were cooked in square steel pans that had just been retired from the city’s auto factories. The dough is set, followed by pepperoni, and the whole thing is smothered in cheese to the brim, and then the sauce is lightly applied. Mushrooms and olives can be used as toppings too
- Louis Pizza
The St. Louis Pizza is a thin crust pizza made without yeast, just a thin crust followed by a layer of sweet sauce and Provel cheese. Provel cheese is just a mix of Swiss, cheddar, and provolone.
The St. Louis pizza has a crispy crust and is usually cut into rectangle slices known as ‘tavern’ or ‘party’ cuts. Toppings include sweet tomato sauce and a robust dosage of oregano.
Okay, now you know what gives your favorite pizzas a magical taste and unique crust, have fun placing your orders or preparing your own at home then, won’t you?