In those days, Naples’s people ate pizza, which was just a flatbread with toppings, because it was cheap. The pizza was not the delicacy it is now. Years later, in the 18th century, pizza would be born in Naples, a town in Italy. People cooked Pinsa on hot ashes in ancient Rome, and it comes closest to modern-day pizza. In fact, in the 1st Century B.C., a Roman poet is found to have talked about circles of bread thought to look like a pizza. They would place it on a hot stone or in mud ovens to make the bread, then they would spread their toppings, such as herbs or mushrooms, on the flatbread.Īn interesting finding was a record of how soldiers baked flatbreads in ancient Persia. It dates back centuries ago when the Romans, Greeks, and Egyptians ate their bread in that form. The idea of flatbreads with toppings is not an entirely new one. More info here.Historians believe the word pizza originated from Italian and Greek literature.Ī Latin document written in a small Italian village might be the earliest reference to pizza.

If you are a pizza fan you can’t miss our next event: True Italian Pizza Weekfrom April 4th to 10th! In the 30 participating pizzerias you can taste an authentic Italian pizza (choosing between two), an Aperol Spritz or a Campari Amalfi cocktail and an Amaro Averna (Italian herbal liquor) for just 12€. One thing is certain: pizza is one of the most famous symbols of Italy and an indispensable food! So, until the Twentieth Century pizza and pizza restaurants were very popular in the South of Italy and they gradually catched on in other parts of the nation. In some historical documents, it is written that the farm used to pay the rent to the landlord and moreover he cooked 12 pizzas to thank him. What about the word “pizza”? Well, its origin dates back to 997.

As a real patriotic act, tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil remember colours of the Italian flag. She fell in love with a pizza created to honor Italy and its sovereign. The queen Margherita chose her favourite pizza and Esposito gave it the name of the queen. In 1889 Esposito was summoned to the Capodimonte royal house, where the Italian king Umberto I and his wife Margherita lived. We don’t know if he was the creator of pizza Margherita or if he just gave it the name. The second character of pizza history is Raffaele Esposito. This is a particular food popular in some Italian regions such as Apulia, Sicily, Calabria, Basilicata and obviously Campania. Calzone is a fold pizza which can contain fish, shellfish or ham. One of the best version is the one with Buffalo mozzarella, a true pleasure for eyes and palate. Margherita pizza has the same marinara ingredients (except for garlic and oregano) but it is enhanced with succulent and inviting thin slices of mozzarella ordered as petals flower, also known as daisy flowers. In detail, pizza marinara is stuffed with virgin olive oil, salt, oregano and little pieces of garlic. In 1886 he already mentioned the description of the main types of pizza, known today as pizza marinara, pizza margherita and calzone. First attestations of pizza recipeĭe Bourcard was a publisher and Italian academic who wrote a book about Naples and its customs, traditions and rituals.

There isn’t a precise version that could tell us who is the real “pizza father”, but the history talks about two main protagonists: Francesco De Bourcard and the neapolitan pizza maker Raffaele Esposito. How was pizza born? Virgilio, a famous latin poet, in his epic poem “Eneide” (written between 29 b.C and 19 b.C) described a dough disk used to lay down other ingredients. Written by Gabriella Quercia In every part of the world, Italy is famous for pizza, one of the most produced and loved food.Įven if it is a renowned food, only few people know its history.

Pizza origin