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A Guide to Different Types of Pizza
How many types of pizza are there? The answer is that there are probably thousands of combinations. There are different pizza crusts, different pizza sauces, and a vast array of toppings to choose from.
Here is a closer look at some of the more common types of pizza:
BRICK OVEN PIZZA – a wood fired brick oven gives a special flavor to pizza. Brick ovens are for baking Neapolitan style pizzas. Brick oven pizzas are only about ten inches in diameter, thin and light on toppings since they are meant to bake in just a minute or two.
CHICAGO STYLE PIZZA – this is a deep-dish pizza, which was invented in Chicago. An authentic Chicago pizza will have a buttery crust, plenty of tomato sauce and generous cheese. Some Chicago style pizzas have stuffed crusts.
DEEP DISH PIZZA – this was invented in 1943 in Chicago and features a thick bread crust, which can be an inch or more deep.
FRENCH BREAD PIZZA – this is French bread cut in half and topped with pizza toppings as an alternative to using a dough pizza crust.
GREEK PIZZA – Greek pizza features an herby base and tasty toppings including mushrooms, broccoli, onion, tomatoes, olives, bell peppers, manouri cheese, mozzarella, basil, and olive oil.
GRILLED PIZZA – pizza cooked on the grill. Usually the dough is rolled out to the right shape and baked first, then it is flipped over, the toppings are added and it finishes cooking in a closed grill.
ITALIAN PIZZA – an oven baked, flat, round bread covered with tomato sauce and mozzarella. Other toppings can be added, depending on the region.
NEW YORK STYLE PIZZA – this pizza is known for its thin, wide slices. Traditional toppings include mozzarella and tomato and this pizza is light on sauce. The thin, crispy, hand tossed crust is made from high gluten flour and it is common to fold the pizza slices to eat them. New York pizza is made in a coal burning oven which is cooler than a brick oven so the pizza takes longer to cook and can be much bigger.
PAN PIZZA – pan pizza has a much thicker crust than many other kinds of pizza and comes with a variety of toppings.
SICILIAN PIZZA – Sicilian thick crust pizza is one of the most popular pizza varieties. This pizza originates from Palermo in Sicily. Pecorino cheese and anchovies are used on a traditional Sicilian pizza. In the United States, a Sicilian pizza is square and has a very thick crust.
STUFFED CRUST PIZZA – a relatively new invention, stuffed crust pizza means that the outer rim of the crust is stuffed with cheese.
THICK CRUST PIZZA – some pizzas feature a thick crust. Usually the dough is left to rise for an hour or more in the baking process to result in this type of bread-like crust.
THIN CRUST PIZZA – a thin crust pizza might or might not contain yeast. Thin crust pizza has a crispy, crunchy crust.
VEGETARIAN PIZZA – most pizza dough recipes are vegetarian and there are many different vegetarian pizza toppings to choose from. Vegetarian pizza is available from all major pizza outlets.
WHITE PIZZA – no tomato sauce is used on a white pizza. Instead, pesto or dairy products such as sour cream are used. The toppings on a white pizza are often just cheeses and the pizza can be drizzled with olive oil, fresh basil, and garlic.