What does an authentic Italian pizza consist of?
Uhm... quite a lot of prejudice against pizza, for what I see... A real italian pizza in California is like a real Tennessee bourbon in Italy: impossible to make, because the ingredients, albeit similar, are not the same and consequently the final products, albeit looking similar, will be the opposite of the original ones. I'm italian, so I think I know pizza enough to answer. The typical italian pizza is named "Margherita", after the former Queen of Italy to whom it was dedicated by a cook from Napoli (Naples). It is made from a dough of "0" wheat flour, water, salt and brewer's yeast, worked for 15-20 minutes by hand or in a low-speed mixer until you have a compact, non-sticky mass that should be left to rise for at least 2 hours. Then you must press with the hands the mass on a work bench covered with some flour (so that it won't stick to the surface), then with movements from the center to the edge you will obtain the disc-shaped base of the pizza. The typical topping for pizza Margherita is tomato sauce, "mozzarella" (the real italian mozzarella, the only cheese allowed on the pizza, not an imitation or any other cheese!) chopped in small cubes and 2-3 leaves of basil shredded by hand in pieces. Neither a grease lake nor that much fat as you can see, contrary to what Joe has ever since been fed with in the so-called "authentic italian pizza restaurant" in Cali... :-) The pizza should be cooked in a wood-fired oven at the temperature of around 300-350° C; in Italy, such wood-fired ovens are only in pizza restaurants, but electric ovens are also frequent and the difference can be noticed in the pizza's taste. The cooking time depends on the temperature, but it's rather short. When the pizza is cooked, a little amount of "olio extravergine di oliva" (the finest olive oil) should be poured on it. Indeed one can use almost anything to top the pizza (and to increase the amount of fat...): even sweet pizzas with "Nutella" (a famous soft cream with chocolate and hazelnuts) can be found in some pizza restaurants in Italy. The only limits are the imagination of the cook and personal preferences (should I mention common sense too?), but the typical pizzas, in Italy, are not more than 15-20 types.
How to cook a good italian pizza?
dough: put one cup of warm (not boiling) water with 1.5-2 spoons dry yeast, 1 tsp salt and 2 spoons of honey. mix until you don't see any honey and wait for 5 minutes. add 1 cup of flour and 1/4 cup of olive oil, mix again, until you have no flour bubbles. add 2.5 more cups of flour, mix and kneed, until you have a rubbery texture - not sticky. if it's sticky add *a little* flour. if it's too dry add a little water. when you get the right texture kneed for 1 minute. put the dough in a bowl, and cover with a towel. wait for 2 hours (or even more if you have time). kneed again for 1-2 minutes - be tough on the dough! hit it hard. cover again and wait 45 minutes. now the dough is ready. kneed it again. voila. sauce: there are hundreds of recipes for pizza sauces, but this one is really quick, easy and good. all you need is - 3 red, over-ripe tomatoes. one red bell pepper. one hot chili pepper (or less, if you don't like it too spicy), one small onion, 2 garlic cloves, some parsley and coriander, basil leaves, 2-3 spoons olive oil, 1 tsp vinegar, salt and pepper. mix all together in a blender (if you have a small one - mix the tomatoes separately). now you have some sort of salsa sauce which doubles as a pizza sauce. now the pizza: flatten your dough the way you like it. rub on a thin layer of olive oil, using a brush. put on the sauce (a really thin layer is all you need). grate some fresh mozzarella (less than you think... unless you like that extra-cheese, artery clogging feel). i like to put sesame seeds and Parmesan cheese on the crust. now add your toppings. preheat the oven up to 240 degrees Celsius. (or whatever that is in Fahrenheit). even higher, if your oven can. shove the pizza in and wait until the crust looks good and the cheese has just started to get a brownish color. don't over-cook... it will dry up the dough. take the pizza out, sprinkle on it some olive oil, grain-salt and fresh basil. it's the best... enjoy.
What are some of the best pizzerias in Italy?
Every town of a certain size in Italy has at least one really good pizzeria.Considering that the certified gold standard of pizza is the the one which was created in Naples, you’re lookgin to begin a pizza-centric pilgrimage I would suggest going there. The most famous pizzeria in Naples is ‘Da Michele’, but you should read a tour guide for suggestions (to make the airplane ticket worth it you should eat at least 4 or 5 different pizzas…).
What kind of Italian sausage should I use for pizza?
As others have correctly commented, only use Italian sausages. I prefer mild. If you want heat, add your own red pepper flakes to your taste.Best tip, buy Italian sausage meat without casing. Simply top your pizza with healthy pinches of it. Casings have the texture of rubber bands (perhaps similar taste).Sausage meat is compressed when forced into casing. Loose sausage meat cooks quicker on pizza and texture is lighter.I was so conditioned to using traditional sausages sliced, when I switched, I had a classic daa moment. Hope you have the same experience.
What does the pizza in italy taste like?
The pizza is very much unlike the pizza here. It is a shock how different it is almost. It tastes very different, the ingredients are different/used differently and it's just a totally different thing. First of all it's like a personal pizza, it's thin and it's crispy. If you order pepperoni there are not slices of pepperoni but chunks of it. Plus their sauce is different, if I remember correctly they don't use a red sauce like we do. It's good, but nothing like the US version. Tiramisu I wouldn't know as I didn't have any over there. I would recommend finding small ma and pa style restaurants as the pasta there is homemade and beyond amazing. And the language is no different than any romance language(french, spanish) if you can learn one of them easially, you can learn itailian just as easy. :) Hope this helps! :)
What does pizza taste like?
This is a very subjective question because different people acquire different tastes over time.However, majority of the people who try pizza once like to try it again because of its unique taste that appeals to their taste buds.The taste of pizzas also depends on the crust, sauces, toppings and the method of cooking.In India, the majority of audience that consumes pizza prefers pizza chains like Pizza Hut that offer different varieties of pizzas with different size, crust, method of cooking.I personally love the taste of the stuffed crust pizza offered by Pizza Hut.
Why don't they have any italian fast food places?
The whole concept of "fast food" is alien to Italian culture. Food is meant to be enjoyed at meals, prepared freshly from scratch every day, and eaten slowly and possibly in good company. That's why small businesses and public offices in Italy are usually closed from 1pm to 3pm or 4pm, so people working there can enjoy their full-course lunch and have a cup of espresso or a gelato afterwards, and maybe take a short nap before getting back to work.
Where's the best pizza in Italy?
After you found the best pizza you might as well go out and look for the unicorn!Let me in a little secret that every Italian knows but will never tell you:The best pizza does not exist, period.The reason for it is that you cannot compare something that changes style every region.On top of this we are talking about something that is subject to individual taste: some like it thin, others thick, with burned edges, without burned edges, large, small, with the face of the pope carved in mozzarella and so on and so forth…My advice is this: once you find the pizzeria that fits YOUR idea of the best pizza stick to it! You found your Mecca…the search is over!Of course if you are travelling around be ready to be disappointed sometimes…usually is the quality of the ingredients that makes the difference, you can live through thick and thin but if the cheese tastes like play dough “forget about it”!I was born in Italy and I lived almost in every region between Palermo and the Dolomites. Would you like to know where I found my Mecca? In a rural town in Australia!There is another place actually in my home town in Italy that comes close…but the 56 hours round trip makes it almost not worth it…