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The origins of pizza
A long-standing specialty of the Mediterranean region, pizza is simply a flatbread made of flour and topped with various ingredients.
Many ancient cultures, including Greece and Phoenicia, ate flatbreads made from flour and water in their early days. The mixed dough was placed on a hot stone and flavored with herbs. This dish quickly became popular and spread to Rome, Egypt, and Babylon, even being praised by historians in ancient records. However, it wasn't yet called pizza.
The word "pizza" is believed to originate from the Latin word "Pinsa," meaning flatbread. Some legends suggest that Roman soldiers imitated Jewish cooking methods while stationed in Palestine, later developing a similar dish upon their return home. However, several archaeological projects have uncovered traces of pizza from the Bronze Age in the Veneto region of Italy.
Documents indicate that farmers at the time created a dough similar to modern pizza dough and topped it with olive oil and herbs as a substitute for expensive foods.
The flatbread was originally baked with olive oil and herbs.
During the Middle Ages, the introduction of Indian water buffalo to Italy brought about an improvement on the common flatbread. Chefs spread the word that adding a layer of cheese on top would enhance the flavor. Gradually, cheese became an indispensable ingredient in this dish.
The arrival of cheese in Italy changed the traditional recipe for flatbreads.
The appearance of tomatoes in the 18th century once again changed the recipe for pizza. However, it wasn't until the 19th century that tomatoes became a popular ingredient in this dish. This is because, initially, the fruit was considered poisonous and was only grown for ornamental purposes. It was impoverished farmers who discovered its culinary value.
By this time, pizza had gradually taken shape with basic ingredients like cheese, tomatoes, and herbs. However, it was still considered a commoner's dish, unsuitable for the tables of the nobility. The dish only truly gained widespread recognition when a historian tasted it at a stall in Naples and praised it highly in his writings.
As the dish became popular, Italian chefs, instead of repeating the old recipe, decided to innovate, adding different fillings such as meat and fish to attract customers.
In 1830, the first pizza parlor catering to the upper class opened, named Antica Pizzeria Port'Alba.
Traditional Italian Pizzas
Since being sold in upscale bakeries, pizza's preparation has changed. Instead of using crude hot stones, it's baked in charcoal ovens. The dough is also made with yeast and left to ferment longer. Furthermore, tomatoes are now processed into sauces instead of simply sliced.
Besides cheese and tomatoes, the fillings on the pizzas also vary from region to region.
For example, Nepoli's signature Marinara pizza includes spicy marjoram, anchovies, and plenty of garlic. Capricciosa pizza has mushrooms, Prosciutto ham, artichokes, olives, and half an egg. Pugliese pizza is topped with capers and olives. Veronese pizza features mushrooms and Crudo bacon. Pizzas in Sicily offer a variety of toppings such as green olives, seafood, boiled eggs, and beans.
Pizza Quattro Formaggi.
Some types of pizza with unique flavors have become popular throughout Italy instead of being exclusive to a single region. Pizza Quattro Formaggi combines four types of cheese: mozzarella, gorgonzola, ricotta, and Parmigiano-Reggiano.
Common toppings for pizza include tuna in olive oil, shrimp, mussels, clams, etc.
Tuna marinated in olive oil is a popular pizza topping.
Quattro Stagioni is also a traditional Italian pizza with ingredients such as artichoke flowers, salami sausage, ham, mushrooms, and sliced tomatoes. In Liguria, tomato sauce is replaced with thyme pesto sauce. There are many other types of pizza as well, and each one is worth trying at least once in a lifetime.
