What is Neapolitan Pizza?
The Tradition
Anyone can make Pizza. Only some can make true Neapolitan Pizza. To be able to make a truly authentic Neapolitan Pizza, there are certain rules you have to abide by. The Pizza dough must only consist of four ingredients; 00 Flour, Water, Yeast and Salt. The dough must also be hand stretched - rolling pins and dough stretchers are forbidden! The finished Pizza must present a raised cornicione of 1-2 cm minimum, this is what Neapolitan Pizza is known by. Finally, the pizza must be cooked in an oven at temperatures between 400 and 500°c.
The Skill
By incorporating these Neapolitan rules, the overall quality of Pizza is increased tenfold. How a Neapolitan Pizza will differ from any old ‘Pizza van Pizza’ is that the dough must be hand stretched in a way that pushes all the air inside the dough, to the outer rim. By being able to do this in a matter of seconds not only saves time over using a dough stretcher, it enables the dough to be thinner, lighter and produce that sought after Neapolitan cornicione.
The Cornicione
This is what it’s all about. The final touch. From carefully measuring the best possible percentages of water, flour, yeast and salt, the dough is then expertly hand stretched to ensure a delicate aerated edge. This then gets topped and enters the oven for as little as 60-90 seconds. Once cooked, the cornicione should be visibly golden brown and springy to touch. The outcome; a gentle, light and chewy masterpiece that will take you straight back to Naples.
