Pizza Napoletana

The original Neapolitan pizza — a thin, blistered crust with San Marzano tomatoes and fresh fior di latte mozzarella.

Pizza Napoletana is one of the most protected foods in the world. The modern pizza was born in 1889 when pizzaiolo Raffaele Esposito created a pizza for Queen Margherita of Savoy using tomato, mozzarella and basil to represent the colours of the Italian flag. In 2017 UNESCO added Neapolitan pizza-making to its list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana publishes strict rules: 00 flour only, San Marzano tomatoes only, wood-fired oven at minimum 430°C, cooked in 60-90 seconds. A true Neapolitan pizza should be soft enough to fold in half — this is called a libretto fold and is how Neapolitans eat it walking down the street.

Must be cooked at 450°C+ on a pizza stone. Use 00 flour, San Marzano tomatoes and fior di latte. Stretch by hand — never a rolling pin. The leopard charring on the crust is correct.