Ten Popular Types of Pizza and What makes them Unique

Pizza is one of the most adored foods worldwide. Different types of pizza offer unique flavors and styles. From Naples to New York, pizzas have a distinct form around the world. Join us as we explore some of the most popular types of pizza from around the world. 

Neapolitan Pizza

Neapolitan Pizza—also known as pizza Napoletana—Originates from Naples, Italy. It has a thin crust, soft dough, and a chewy base that is slightly browned. Like most pizzas, it is prepared in a red hot oven with actual firewood for roughly 90 seconds to confer the right measure of crispness and softness.

Ingredients: Neapolitan pizza is made with San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, either the bufala mozzarella or the fior di latte, fresh basil, and extra virgin olive oil. The ingredients to make the dough base are high-protein wheat flour, water, yeast, and salt.

Variants:

Margherita: Made with tomato sauce and melted cheese, basil and olive oil.

Marinara: Made with tomato sauce and garlic, chillies, oregano, and olive oil with no cheese.

New York-Style Pizza

When one imagines American Pizza, one can easily single out New York-style pizza. Its large portion size and extremely thin foldable crust are convenient and make it perfect for eating on the go.

Ingredients: A thin layer of tomato sauce is spread over the hand-tossed dough with low-moisture mozzarella.

Typical Toppings: The toppings that usually come with this pizza are pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onions, bell peppers, Anchovies, and extra cheese.

Chicago Deep-Dish pizza

A Chicago Deep-Dish pizza is typically quite filling; it may even be considered a complete meal on its own. This pizza has a more crispy structure with a higher rim than the typical pizza, making it resemble a pie more. It has cheese directly over the crust, then meats and vegetable toppings, and finally, a chunky tomato sauce.

Ingredients: The crust of this baked dish is prepared from flour, cornmeal, and butter, and hence the buttery and crispy crust.

Variants: Chicago’s best-consuming deep-dish pizza is accompanied by Italian sausage, pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, and bell peppers.

Sicilian Pizza

Sicilian pizza, which originates from Sicily, is typically made with a thick, rectangular crust that is soft and spongy. This heavy pizza will leave you feeling rather satiated, and the flavour can simply not be beaten.

Ingredients: Often, pre-baked crust is opulently spread with tomato sauce and a generous sprinkling of cheese.

Variants:

Traditional Sicilian (Sfincione): It is topped with onions, anchovies, tomatoes, and breadcrumbs. Sometimes pecorino Romano is used.

California-Style Pizza

California-style Pizza is known for its creativity. It uses fresh, non-traditional ingredients. The crust usually is thin and crunchy and provides a canvas for a multitude of topping options.

Ingredients: Anything goes, reflecting California’s fusion cuisine.

Typical Toppings: Barbeque meat, black salmon, Bulgarian cheese, artichokes, and sun-dried tomatoes.

Detroit-Style Pizza: 

Detroit-Style Pizza is more rectangular with a thick and fluffy crust that is golden-brown on the exterior with nice caramelization from the cheese as it runs down the sides of the pan.

Ingredients: Usually it incorporates Wisconsin brick cheese and tomato sauce that is spread over the cheese and toppings.

Typical Toppings: Pepperoni typically goes directly on the dough, and then is followed by the cheese and sauce.

St. Louis-Style Pizza

Louis-style Pizza has a very thin and crispy crust that does not include yeast. It is nearly crackers-like in texture. It can be likened to the party cut, where it is cut into small squares or rectangles.

Ingredients: Consists of a processed combination of cheddar, Swiss, and Provel cheese, along with a less acidic tomato sauce than what is traditionally used on the Wisconsin specialty.

Typical Toppings: Has the characteristics of many other types of pizza in America with local flavor.

Greek Pizza

Greek pizza is similar to other traditional Greek dishes. The pizza base is thick and heavy, with a crispy bottom, and it is a little bit oily because it was baked on an oiled pan.

Ingredients: The dough contains more oil, which makes it puffier. Usually, the toppings include feta cheese, olives, onions, and bell peppers.

Typical Toppings: That’s right, Greeks love eating Kalamata olives, spinach, feta cheese, and artichokes.

New Haven Style Pizza

New Haven-style Pizza, also known as apizza, has a thin, slightly crispy, and chewy crust with char from the coal-fired oven.

Ingredients: This pizza uses the same ingredients to prepare a simple dough while using fresh toppings.

 Variants:

• White Clam Pie: It consists of fresh clams, grated pecorino Romano cheese, garlic, oregano, olive oil, and no tomato sauce.

• Tomato Pie: Tomato sauce, just a touch of pecorino Romano cheese, occasionally with garlic and oregano.

Roman Pizza

Roman Pizza has two main types: Pizza al Taglio and Pizza tonda romana. Both originated in Italy and are differentiated by their shapes and presentation.

• Pizza al Taglio: Made in large rectangular trays and sold by weight. The crust is thicker and airy.
• Pizza Tonda Romana: Circular, medium-thickness, and crispy crust pizzas.

Ingredients: The dough requires high-protein flour, water, yeast, and salt. Toppings differ but are basic, simple, and fresh.

Typical Toppings: Some of the toppings that you may find on the pizza include mozzarella cheese, prosciutto, arugula, artichokes, and thinly sliced potatoes.

Japanese Pizza (Okonomiyaki)

Okonomiyaki, “grilled as you like it,” is often referred to as Japanese pizza. It is basically a savoury pancake with a batter base infused with cabbage, then topped with fillings of meat, seafood, and vegetables, to mention but a few.

Ingredients: The batter is made with flour, eggs, shredded cabbage and water. Toppings that can be added include Okonomiyaki sauce, which is nearly akin to Worcestershire sauce, mayonnaise, dried bonito flakes, and dried seaweed.

Variants: The two most popular types of pizza variants are Kansai-style (Osaka style) and Hiroshima style, which include noodles.

Brazilian Pizza

Brazilian pizza stands out for its diversity as well as its non-pizza toppings, like sweet dessert pizzas.

Ingredients: Similar dough to the Italian Pizza but topped with a whole host of options.

Typical Toppings: They include catupiry cheese (a creamy Brazilian cheese), calabresa sausage, heart of palm, and green peas. Sweet options include chocolate, banaṣnas, and condensed milk.

To those who prefer the traditional and to those who seek a new exotic experience, there are many types of pizza, for everyone to choose from, Whether you like your pies lightly adorned or heavily spiced, whether you consider yourself a traditionalist or an advocate of fusion cuisine, there is a pizza that you can happily munch on. Next time you’re giving in to your desire for some good ol’ pizza, why not consider exploring the various varieties available? And if you’re considering opening a pizza shop, our Food consultancy in Bangalore could provide valuable insights and guidance to help you make your venture a success.


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