Alternative names | Margherita pizza |
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Type | Pizza |
Place of origin | Naples |
Region or state | Italy |
Created by | Raffaele Esposito |
Invented | 1889 |
Main ingredients | Tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, extra virgin olive oil |
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Pizza Margherita or Margherita pizza [1] is a typical Neapolitan pizza, roundish in shape with a raised edge (the cornicione) and garnished with hand-crushed peeled tomatoes, mozzarella (buffalo mozzarella or fior di latte), fresh basil leaves, and extra virgin olive oil. [2] [3] The dough is made by mixing water, salt, and yeast (either sourdough, or fresh or dry baker's yeast) with flour (00 or 0). [3]
The dough is stretched by the pizzaiolo ('pizza maker') in a motion going outwards from the center, pressing with the fingers of both hands on the dough ball, and flipping it several times, shaping it into a disc. [3] It is then topped and baked in an oven, which is traditionally made of brick and wood-fired (electric or gas ovens are also used). [4] Pizza Margherita is usually served hot on a plate or folded into four and wrapped in paper (pizza a portafoglio or a libretto). [5] [6]
A popular contemporary legend holds that the archetypal pizza Margherita was invented in June 1889, when the Royal Palace of Capodimonte commissioned the Neapolitan pizzaiolo Raffaele Esposito to create a pizza in honor of the visiting Queen Margherita. Of the three different pizzas he created, the queen strongly preferred a pizza swathed in the colors of the Italian flag—red (tomato), green (basil), and white (mozzarella). [7] Supposedly, this type of pizza was then named after the queen, [8] with an official letter of recognition from the queen's "head of service" remaining to this day on display in Esposito's shop, now called the Pizzeria Brandi. [9] Later research cast doubt on this legend, undermining the authenticity of the letter of recognition, pointing that no media of the period reported about supposed visit and that both the story and name Margherita were first promoted in the 1930s–1940s. [10] [11]
The origins of pizza Margherita came from mixing similar toppings that were already present in Naples between 1796 and 1810. [12] In 1849 Emanuele Rocco recorded different pizza toppings including basil, tomatoes, and thin slices of mozzarella; [13] the mozzarella was thinly sliced, and added to the toppings already present.
In 1866, Francesco De Bourcard, writing about the Naples traditions, [13] described the most commonly used pizza toppings at that time as well as the possible origin of calzone:
The most ordinary pizza, called coll'aglio e l'olio (lit. 'with garlic and oil'), is dressed with oil, and over it is spread, as well as salt, origanum, and garlic cloves shredded minutely (optionally). Others can be covered in grated cheese and dressed with lard, and then they put on a few leaves of basil. Over the former is often added (depending on the region) some small seafish; on the latter some thin slices of mozzarella. Sometimes they use slices of prosciutto, tomato, arselle, etc. Sometimes folding the dough over itself to form what is called calzone. [13]
Media related to Pizza Margherita at Wikimedia Commons
Pizza is an Italian dish typically consisting of a flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.
Calzone is an Italian oven-baked turnover, made with leavened dough. It originated in Naples in the 18th century. A typical calzone is made from salted bread dough, baked in an oven and stuffed with prosciutto or salami, mozzarella or ricotta, and Parmesan or pecorino, as well as an egg. Different regional variations in or on a calzone can often include other ingredients that are normally associated with pizza toppings. The term usually applies to an oven-baked turnover rather than a fried pastry, although calzones and panzerotti are often mistaken for each other.
Raffaele Esposito was an Italian chef and owner of a tavern in Naples called Pizzeria di Pietro e basta così in the 19th century that had been founded in 1780 by Pietro Colicchio. Esposito is considered by some to be the father of modern pizza.
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Neapolitan pizza is the version of the round pizza typically prepared in the Italian city of Naples and characterised by a soft, thin dough with high edges. The tomatoes are traditionally either San Marzano tomatoes or pomodorini del Piennolo del Vesuvio, which grow on the volcanic plains to the south of Mount Vesuvius, and the cheese is traditionally mozzarella di bufala campana or fior di latte di Agerola. Pizza napoletana is a traditional speciality guaranteed (TSG) product in the European Union and the United Kingdom, and the art of its making is included on UNESCO's list of intangible cultural heritage.
Pizza arrived in the United States in the early 20th century along with waves of Italian immigrants who settled primarily in the larger cities of the Northeast, such as New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Baltimore. After American soldiers stationed in Italy returned from World War II, pizza and pizzerias rapidly grew in popularity.
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Anthony Felix Gemignani is an American chef, restaurateur, and author. In 2009, Gemignani opened Tony's Pizza Napoletana in the North Beach neighborhood of San Francisco, California. Gemignani is a pizzaiolo and chef, having won 13 world titles in pizza making and opening numerous restaurants. He has appeared on multiple reality television series including Food Network Challenge, Bar Rescue on Spike TV, as well as on The Travel Channel and CNN.
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