La Vera Pizza (The Real Pizza) Napoletana
While Naples might be full of architecture, history and amazing sites
there is one thing that calls me to that city like a song: the scent of
the pizza floating through the streets. One of the many secrets of Naples is their original pizza. Pizza was born in Naples then passed on throughout the rest of the country. Neapolitan pizza is so specifically original that there is even an association to regulate the pizzas called Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana. You can check out their website here.
You see, the pizza in Italy is not all the same. It is like saying all burgers are the same and they are not. In Umbria the pizza is thicker, in Rome it is crunchier and in Naples it is a perfect combination of crunchy and soft. They use a unique method when making their dough using local wheat size 00, local yeast and local tomatoes and local mozzarella from the water buffalo that are wandering close by. The tomatoes used are grown at the sunny warm base of the Vesuvio volcano and the temperatures in Naples are ideal for growing tomatoes.
I did a two month pizza fast before going to Naples then gave in to my inner obese girl as I arrived. It is hard not to eat pizza when you are in Italy but for Neapolitan pizza it was worth it. When in Naples I ate...oh about 5 or 6 pizzas. Total pizzas that is. See, in Italy you usually order an entire pizza for yourself unless it is a foccacia pizza that is super thick. A normal pizza is about 10 inches round and thin so a decent size for a meal. In Naples you can find street pizzas starting at 1.50 and they are just as good as the gourmet ones baked up in the fancy neighborhoods. The difference between how the Neapolitan pizzas are baked in comparison to other is that that they are hand stretched and baked with oak wood in a brick oven.
The first Margherita Pizza was born in Naples in 1889 in a place called Brandi.
You see, the Queen of Italy named Margherita di Savoy was visiting Naples and she was a great patron of the arts and of culinary treats. I would not be surprised since she was a Sagittarius cusp and they love food and entertainment. Nevertheless, the lovely pizza bakers of Naples decided to gift a pizza to her and name it in her honor. They baked the colors of Italy into their pizza with the red of tomato, green of basil and white of mozzarella cheese. I slowly ate my way through so many new foods in Naples and was careful not to order the something twice. I wanted to try as many new foods and original Neapolitan pizzas as possible and here are the ones I tried:
 |
| This "Vera Pizza Napoletana" sign can be seen in front of each pizzeria that adheres to the baking rules established by the Neapolitan Pizza Association. Funny, huh? |
 |
| Bocconcini di mozzarella e panna = local mozzarella snack size balls with...heavy cream. A great way to have a heart attack and die happy. The pizzerias use these local cheese balls on their famous pizzas. |
 |
| Caseificio di mozzarella: this is one of the dozens of places that makes mozzarella from milk of water buffalo. It is much creamier and has more taste than normal mozzarella |
I did a two month pizza fast before going to Naples then gave in to my inner obese girl as I arrived. It is hard not to eat pizza when you are in Italy but for Neapolitan pizza it was worth it. When in Naples I ate...oh about 5 or 6 pizzas. Total pizzas that is. See, in Italy you usually order an entire pizza for yourself unless it is a foccacia pizza that is super thick. A normal pizza is about 10 inches round and thin so a decent size for a meal. In Naples you can find street pizzas starting at 1.50 and they are just as good as the gourmet ones baked up in the fancy neighborhoods. The difference between how the Neapolitan pizzas are baked in comparison to other is that that they are hand stretched and baked with oak wood in a brick oven.
 |
| This is one of four giant ovens using wood to bake the pizzas at Gigino's were you can order pizza by the meter. |
The first Margherita Pizza was born in Naples in 1889 in a place called Brandi.
 |
| Brandi: where the Margherita Pizza was born |
You see, the Queen of Italy named Margherita di Savoy was visiting Naples and she was a great patron of the arts and of culinary treats. I would not be surprised since she was a Sagittarius cusp and they love food and entertainment. Nevertheless, the lovely pizza bakers of Naples decided to gift a pizza to her and name it in her honor. They baked the colors of Italy into their pizza with the red of tomato, green of basil and white of mozzarella cheese. I slowly ate my way through so many new foods in Naples and was careful not to order the something twice. I wanted to try as many new foods and original Neapolitan pizzas as possible and here are the ones I tried:
 |
| Go ahead and take a bite of this Margherita! |
 |
| Pizza di scarola with two crocchè di patate (panzarotti). Scarola is endive lettuce in the US. It is cooked till tender |
 |
| Pizza a portafoglio ("wallet pizza" because it is folded like a wallet) |
 |
| For 1.50 I will take a wallet full of pizza! |
 |
| At Gigino's (Gigino ò zuzzuso) you can order a meter (yard) of pizza here for your family or for yourself if it is your birthday (calories don't count on birthdays) |
 |
| Pulcinella (happy Neapolitan guy) with a pizza al metro |
Comments
Post a Comment