Question of the Day: What toppings make the perfect pizza?

Jstas

We all have our favorites. Some like strange things while others like the standards.Everyone has their favorite place and even kind of pizza as well. But one thing that is absolutely universal is the toppings. From the standard extra cheese to the meat products like sausage, pepperoni, chicken, hamburger, ham, bacon, cheesesteak and so on. Don't forget your vegetables! The usual like mushrooms, onions, green peppers, black olives, red peppers and so on. There is also the uber topping of a pile of cheesesteak meat and provolone cheese then topped by another pie crust covered in garlic, Parmesan cheese and olive oil for one of the most divine pizza creations ever concocted!

Then there is the weird stuff like pineapple, which, IMO, belongs no where near a pizza! In Hawaii, there is no such thing as a "Hawaiian Pizza". Ask a pizza shop for a "Hawaiian Pizza" and they will look at you oddly and say "What da matta with you brah?"

Still, there are other strange toppings and others not so strange. To some, things like anchovies and sardines are stomach turning while others find them a delight. Yet others squirm at the thought of a pizza with olive oil, Parmesan cheese, garlic, broccoli and mozzarella.

The old standby, a plain, large pie, piping hot! That's my favorite! No extra cheese because the cheese doesn't brown right and it ends up in a giant wad that just slides off the sauce. The mozzarella also has a ton of water in it that dilutes the sauce and makes the crust soggy. The weight keeps the dough bubbles from forming with the browned cheese on on top. Yeah, a plain large pie, that'll do me just fine!

So all those toppings, no two pies have to be the same. What combination...or lack thereof, makes your proper pizza pie?

concealer404

Anchovies.

Cogito

Hot italian sausage, onion, feta cheese and brine cured greek olives.

jgido759

My 2 new favorites are shrimp scampi pizza or buffalo chicken pizza.

And, don't knock the "Hawaiian (ham, pineapple & sometimes bacon) Pizza" until you've tried it.

KASR

concealer404 wrote: »

Anchovies.

Quoted for truth.

zombie boy 2000

Chorizo, roasted red pepper, fresh buffalo moz and lotsa garlic. A healthy dollop of olive oil on a Margherita pie is a must. Wood-fired is great. But if you can track down a coal-fired oven in an area which allows it - yummers. As always, the crust can make or break a pie.

Jstas

jgido759 wrote: »

And, don't knock the "Hawaiian (ham, pineapple & sometimes bacon) Pizza" until you've tried it.

I have tried it and I'm going to knock it 'cause it sucks and I have it on good authority from actual, bonafide Hawaiians, in Hawaii, that there is no such thing as a "Hawaiian Pizza".

But apparently, the jury is out on who first made a "Hawaiian Pizza". It was either a German in Germany or a Canadian in Canada. Says alot right there.

Fireman32

for me peperoni, sausage, bacon and extra cheese.

concealer404

Fireman32 wrote: »

for me peperoni, sausage, bacon and extra cheese.

This is exactly what makes the perfect pizza for my girlfriend. I can live with it. Bacon improves ANYTHING.

Jstas

zombie boy 2000 wrote: »

Chorizo, roasted red pepper, fresh buffalo moz and lotsa garlic. A healthy dollop of olive oil on a Margherita pie is a must. Wood-fired is great. But if you can track down a coal-fired oven in an area which allows it - yummers. As always, the crust can make or break a pie.

There is a coal-fired pizza joint a block and a half from work! It's a bit pricey but that crust! There is nothing like it! They have digital thermometers on the ovens and I've seen numbers as high as 730 degrees inside those ovens on the read out!

NotaSuv

hhhhhhhhhmmmmmm can one vote for all of the above.....

thats a rough one when you love em all.......................

but the anchovies need to be there...........and roasted garlic doesnt hurt a bit either....

zombie boy 2000

Jstas wrote: »

There is a coal-fired pizza joint a block and a half from work! It's a bit pricey but that crust! There is nothing like it! They have digital thermometers on the ovens and I've seen numbers as high as 730 degrees inside those ovens on the read out!

I remember reading somewhere that New York had recently banned coal-fired ovens. If appeasing Mother Earth must come at the expense of sacrificing a delicious pie, then bring on the Apocalypse.

WilliamM2

Just put in my order for lunch today.

Pepperoni
Black Olives
Bacon
Tomatoes
Banana peppers

Jstas

Well, there are quite a few wood fired oven joints in the area as well including the chain Bertuccci's which, for a chain, has some very good pizza. But I never understood the banning of coal fired ovens. Then again, wood fired and coal fired are the same ovens, just different fuels. The coal burns hotter and longer and gives a thinner crust. I wonder if the New York joints can use wood instead of coal? But I think that coke is used rather than coal because it burns cleaner. I'll have to look that up.

Demiurge

Jstas wrote: »

I have tried it and I'm going to knock it 'cause it sucks and I have it on good authority from actual, bonafide Hawaiians, in Hawaii, that there is no such thing as a "Hawaiian Pizza".

But apparently, the jury is out on who first made a "Hawaiian Pizza". It was either a German in Germany or a Canadian in Canada. Says alot right there.

It's called a Hawaiian pizza because of the pineapple, which is Hawaii's state fruit. It doesn't have anything to do with the pizza being a Hawaiian tradition.

Anyways, I like Hawaiian pizza from time to time, but it's far from my favorite. The sweet/savory combination is a very popular one in food. Some people hate it, and that's understandable.

Jstas

Demiurge wrote: »

It's called a Hawaiian pizza because of the pineapple, which is Hawaii's state fruit. It doesn't have anything to do with the pizza being a Hawaiian tradition.

Anyways, I like Hawaiian pizza from time to time, but it's far from my favorite. The sweet/savory combination is a very popular one in food. Some people hate it, and that's understandable.

You must be a Canadian in disguise.

dkg999

Pepperoni/black olives/onions is one of my favorites

Demiurge

Jstas wrote: »

You must be a Canadian in disguise.

I hate maple syrup and hockey.

Demiurge

There you go, a maple syrup pizza.

OK, I'll try to answer the question at hand now. I like a thin crust with extra cheese, pepperoni, black olive, and onion pizza the best.

There's a local joint that makes a Thai Curry pizza, which is my favorite strange variant to a "normal" pizza. Cashews, onions, pineapple, breaded eggplant, extra cheese, and spices. It's damn, damn good. Then again, I like spicy food and the pineapple is a great compliment to the spice.

Jstas

Demiurge wrote: »

I hate maple syrup and hockey.

Yeah and **** guys get married as a cover-up too.

bobman1235

I'm with John; a cheese pizza done right doesn't need a slew of toppings.

That said, if I am in the mood for toppings, I'm a big fan of garlic on pizza (much to the dismay of the ladies I'm sure), and I do enjoy me a novelty pizza once in a while; there's a place that my friends and I order from sometimes when playing poker that makes a "chicken parm" pizza that is to DIE for.

jgido759

Jstas wrote: »

But apparently, the jury is out on who first made a "Hawaiian Pizza". It was either a German in Germany or a Canadian in Canada. Says alot right there.

I will say this, you are correct about it being either Canadian or European. When I worked the Devil's hockey games at CAA (Izod Center), all of the visiting teams use to order pizza from a local joint in either Rutherford or Secaucus and out of about 20 pies, at least 10 of them were ham/pineapple.

Lots of leftovers for the security staff.

madmax

Pepperoni and green peppers, the only two things a good pizza needs...

ohskigod

to John's chagrin, I like the ham and pineaple pizza.

my favorite though is sausage. peppers are cool too.

I like mushrooms overall, but oddly not on my pizza. I am in the "not a fan of pepperoni" camp.

zombie boy 2000

I'm with you on pepperoni. I love it on a deli sammich or in an antipasto, but it tends to overpower a really good slice. But then again, I like a smattering of chorizo and garlic on a pie whenever I can get it - so maybe I should reevaluate my definition of "double-standard".

Rodeo0530

pepperoni and banana peppers is one of my fav's, but if a pizza is done right I will eat just about any topping you put on it.

tommyboy

None. Plain

TSWisla

Mushrooms, black olives and green peppers.

heiney9

Sausage (spicy if it's available); tomato chunks, bacon, mushroom, grn pepper, light anchoives and spinach. Extra sauce if I know the place doesn't use enough.

or we have a pizza place around here that makes an awesome Taco pizza.

H9

P.s. I can really eat anything on a pizza, although if I can skip the onions that's great.

Demiurge

Interesting to see the nods to fresh peppers on pizza in this thread. I am not a fan or Green or Red peppers on pizza at all. Jalapenos on a Mexican pizza or banana peppers? Sure.

heiney9

There is something about sausage, grn pepper and a good pizza sauce combined that really excites the taste buds, add some cheese and it's a slice of heaven as far as I'm concerned.