The original Pizza from Italy

So anyone here from Italy?
I've always wandered about the 'original Italian Pizza'....
If you've been to italy tell me...how is it when you compare it to Pizza Hut or Dominos'?
and which Italian Pizza you ate there?
and if you know a little history-how this amazing piece of food was invented,and which italian company is making the 'original pizza'?

Well,Im gonna visit there soon,and the only thing I dream about right now is Pizza
so tell me where should I go to eat the best Pizza?

Debra, I hope some of our Italian members give us a natives insight. I read recently that some organization (gov't) wants to trademark pizza to maintain its integrity as an Italian invention. Good Luck.

First, Dominoes and Pizza Hut are not even close to being called pizza by Italian standards. I went to Italy two years ago and sampled several pizzas in Rome. Roman pizza is leagues ahead of any pizza I have had in America. The quality of the sauce is unmatched. The pizza I had was thin crust, lots of sauce and very tasty cheese. And the olive oil used in Italy is also far superior. Oh God, I'm hungry.

i once got the chance to see italy 2 years ago while working on a ship sailing between turkiye and italy. i landed on a small town called brindisi near bari and tasted "the pizza" that was kinda different than what i had known as pizza in istanbul all along.

here I am!!!! 100% Italian and 200% pizzaholic!!!!

well, I think if you you want to eat a very tasty pizza you have to come to Rome. The secret is the calciferous water, the luxury quality of tomatos and mozzarella. Avoid Pizza Huts and stuff like that. Go to small pizzerias and make sure they have a wooden oven. I'd suggest a Margherita, to begin with.

For pizza history, take a look here:
http://id.essortment.com/historyofpizza_rmgf.htm

It is true that here in Italy the traditional pizza is being defined by strict standards.

"According to the Italian Ministry of Agriculture, only pizzas made in the method defined below are real Neapolitan pizza. There are three types according to the Neapolitan pizza law and they are:

Marinara, with garlic and oregano.
Margherita, with basil and mozzarella cheese that must be from the southern Apennines.
Extra-Margherita, with fresh tomatoes, basil and buffalo mozzarella from the region of Campania.
The pizza must be round, not more than 13.75 inches in diameter, and made with hand-kneaded dough. The maximum crust thickness should be .75 inches and the center must be less than a tenth of an inch. If such criteria are met, the pizza will get labeled “S.T.G.” guaranteeing it is a traditional specialty"

(http://www.pmq.com/mag/2004september_october/chefbruno.php)


BUON APPETITO!!!!

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.. Sounds delish!!!!

Yes, pizza is just like GF saga. You never get enough!

Ya I tried some of the native dish of Pizza when I stopped by Venice.......yup, its f*cking better than the pizza we make in America.

Italy...home of great movies/filmmakers and pizza.......and of course the mafia.

Pizza Hut and Domino's are essential the "IHOP" of pizza...nothing compared to a real pizzaria.

First of all,THANK YOU SO MUCH for the info Lavinia!

200% Pizzaholic??consider yourself my best friend from now on!

One more question :

How about home made pizzas?Is it a common thing there?
do people say there "my mom's pizza is better than the one downtown"-or would that be a fantasy?

Come out come out wherever you are, Mister Vercetti! :p

Mick

Hi Debra and welcome!!

I have never had pizza in Italy, sorry to say. However, being Sicilian, my mother always made her own pizza. I don't think I ever had take out pizza until I was a teenager.

IMHO it does not compare to mom's. :p Her crust is much thicker (which was my very first observation the first time I had take out pizza), homemade sauce also, and in my family anchovies were big on pizza as well.

Of course now, I have take out pizza more than I ever did and I do like it, but still crave mom's from time to time.

TIS

Hi TIS!Thanx for the warm welcome!

Your mom's pizza sounds like heaven!-what about the cheese,shes using Mozzarella?

Dominoes and Pizza Hut are not even close to being called pizza by Italian standards even when compared to American Pizza!

Although I have never been to Italy and tasted thier Pizza, I have been told that it is just fantastic! I plan on going to Italy within the next couple of years.


Don Cardi

Hi TIS!Thanx for the warm welcome!

Your mom's pizza sounds like heaven!-what about the cheese,shes using Mozzarella? [/b][/quote]I believe she usually used Romano cheese, however we always had provolone on hand as well. She would by it from the Italian market and grate it. BTW, she would also make 8 loaves of fresh Italian bread every week. Every Saturday I'd wake up (around noon :p ) to that wonderful smell.

TIS

I spent a whole 12 hour flight next to a guy on his way back home to Sicily. That is all he talked about the whole time -- listing the ingredients and describing every variation. It wasn't long before we were both drooling and biting our own hands in hunger. Once we landed, we both ran to the nearest oven -- almost forgetting our luggage on the way!!

gimme five!

One more question :

no fantasy at all!!! It is quite common here to have home made pizzas, provided you got the required skills! If you are a real cooking disaster (like me) you can always count on pre-prep or freezed pizzas (but never admit it! Your reputation as a cook would be highly compromised!)

Wait a sec,I'm sure youre great when it comes to Spaghetti,right?

TIS - Fresh Italian Bread..you remember how she made it?

When i was in sicily i would even see an egg in the middle of the pizza, there are tons of variations..

Thanks for resurrecting this topic! I didn't even realize that I posted in it way back when.

Well as many of you already know, I finally made that trip to Italy over this past summer.

The Pizza in Italy? NOTHING like it in the world. Absolutely delicious! Every ingredient used to make the pizzas in Italy is fresh. Just outstanding!

Places like Pizza Hut, Domino's, and every other commercial chain pizza place should be closed down for attempting to impersonate an authentic Italian pizzeria!





Here is a LINK TO A REALLY GREAT WEBSITE that lists all the different kinds of Pizzas.

My mother came close to making it that way. She made her own dough. She used rectangular pans though. She crushed fresh tomato and olive oil, but the mozzarella was store bought. I'm not sure what brand or type it was. She seasoned with fresh garlic and oregano. Oregano is the only seasoning one should use on pizza. She never added any toppings. It was out of this world and I judge everything I eat by her pizza. It's a shame that most Americans never get to taste real pizza

The Col. told me one time he was in Italy with the Navy him and a couple buddies ordered a pizza and when he took a bit out of it what he thought was cheese, it turned out to be squid.

The history of pizza can be traced pretty far back, to the greeks actually, foccocia was the original pizza, and had extra virgin olive oil and rosemary and herbs... naturally it evolved into what we know today... some say pizza is american, but its not, its italian, the tomatoes were brought back by columbus to italy from the "new world" (the americas) and then italians fell in love with them, but the tomato pie (as my older relatives call pizza) definitely came from italy... American pizza seems to be overwhelmed with too much, thick thick cheese, not much sauce and/or inudnated with many things that don't need to be there, (like cheese stuffed crust, meatballs, etc)... in italy its a simple balance of all ingredients and nothing overpowers the other ingredients, equal parts of sauce, cheese, basil, and not globs and globs of EVERYTHING... I can't remember the last time i had a decent slice of pizza in this area, I shot a documentary in brooklyn last fall, i think that was the last time i had a "real" slice of pizza...

I loved pizza in Italy -- it was awesome! But obviously a bit different that what we're used to and talking about...

I've had "tomato pies" -- from the Seaside (NJ) boardwalk even -- and I'm just not into the sauce above everything else.

But I still love "everything" pizza... especially if it has black olives on it...

Geoff,

Are you talking the black Greek Olives? They are real salty??? I absolutely love them too. Many times I'll go to the Italian Deli and buy fresh Italian bread (or make it myself if I'm in the mood), Greek Olives, Provolone cheese and pepporoni, and simply have that for a meal!! Ha ha!! I love it!!!


TIS

I like all olives, but on my pizza I like the standard black olives not the Greek ones...