John Updike famously mentioned, “The true New Yorker secretly believes that individuals dwelling anyplace else must be, in some sense, kidding.” In my lifetime of visiting New York Metropolis, and the 14 years that I’ve I known as the town house, I feel I can safely say that your common New Yorker feels that individuals consuming pizza anyplace else must be, in some sense, kidding.
Anthony Falco, Worldwide Pizza Advisor
There’s a confidence and braggadocio about all issues New York Metropolis — and pizza is not any exception. It’s indeniable that there are millions of pizzerias within the 5 boroughs. It’s additionally true that there’s a tradition of pizza right here distinctive to the world, however what’s true New York-style pizza? It’s a troublesome query, actually, however one I’ve given a lot thought to. You might say pizza by the slice is the true New York pizza, however what concerning the well-known coal-fired oven pizzerias that solely do entire pies? You might say it’s the stone-lined fuel deck oven, however as we speak a few of New York’s finest pizza is popping out of electrical and even wood-fired ovens.
So the place is the frequent floor? What defines NY-style pizza? Whereas not everybody will agree, and since I wasn’t born within the metropolis I’m positive sure individuals will depart my opinions on the sidewalk with piles of ubiquitous rubbish, I’ll state my opinion after years of constructing pizza in New York, and making New York-style pizza all over the world.
First issues first, just like the skyscrapers and personalities of the town, it’s huge. NY-style pizza tends to be 16 to twenty inches with the traditional NY slice being minimize from an 18-inch pie. Something much less simply gained’t look proper on a paper plate. And talking of paper plates, NY pizza is for individuals on the go, which means consuming it fast, together with your arms, nearly at all times standing up.
It’s skinny, however not paper skinny just like the cracker model crust discovered throughout the Hudson in New Jersey. And it’s crisp, however with some pliability — it shouldn’t shatter while you take a chunk. The sauce needs to be easy, contemporary and barely candy with a steadiness of acidity, my selection for reaching that is the California tomato.
The mozzarella needs to be stringy, however not too moist, and it ought to type a cohesive unit with the sauce. This amalgamation of sauce and cheese adheres to the dough, and it doesn’t slip off when it’s lifted to the mouth like its Neapolitan cousin. In apply this implies a “low moisture” mozzarella, basically a extra aged model of contemporary mozzarella (typically it’s entire milk, typically half skim, or typically a mix). Recent mozzarella is completely acceptable too, simply much less prevalent than low moisture.
Toppings needs to be judiciously utilized and never overloaded like they do in sure windy cities. In reality, one may say that probably the most true instance of the New York pizza is the standard “plain slice”: tomato, mozzarella, oregano, and perhaps a little bit pecorino or Parmesan.
So let’s summarize; a NY-style pizza is huge, it’s skinny however not paper skinny, crispy however nonetheless versatile sufficient to fold with out cracking, and the toppings needs to be a cohesive amalgamation and utilized with restraint and ease. It shouldn’t be too fancy, however that doesn’t imply you may’t use high quality components. It ought to at all times be cooked straight on the stones of the oven flooring, be that fuel, wooden, electrical or coal.
So now that we now have outlined what New York Pizza is, how will we make it? Effectively, I’m going to be fully sincere … I don’t know easy methods to make a correct NY-style pizza. I’ve by no means skilled or labored at a correct old skool New York model pizzeria. I got here up cooking in wood-fired ovens, I used to be cooking small, new-school Neapolitan-ish pizzas quick and sizzling and topped with globs of contemporary mozzarella, undoubtedly the identical galaxy however nonetheless worlds aside. About 5 years in the past I began taking part in with NY-style pizza. I assumed I might simply are available in with what I knew, crank the oven all the best way up and begin kicking butt. That’s not what occurred. I discovered in a short time that NY-style pizza is definitely some of the troublesome types to grasp. I knew what I needed the pizza to be like, however I wasn’t positive easy methods to get there. I went into the laboratory, aka my kitchen in Brooklyn, and I began taking part in round with totally different flours, temperatures, cheese blends and so forth. Finally I received one thing I preferred, and since then I’ve helped open NY-style pizzerias as a marketing consultant in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bangkok, Miami and Bali, with extra within the works. Each certainly one of these takes on NY-style pizza has been a special strategy, from all naturally leavened, a hybrid of sourdough and business yeast, and even all business yeast. The reception has been nice and these are a few of my favourite pizzas to eat anyplace.
In the previous couple of years a rising variety of pizza consulting inquiries wish to do NY-style pizza. And within the final yr, the pandemic has confirmed this model to be constructed for sturdiness. It holds up nicely for takeout, supply, individuals on a finances, in addition to individuals seeking to splurge on a meal they wouldn’t usually make at house.
So let me share with you a recipe that you may attempt in case you are excited by bringing New York-style pizza to your pizzeria. The components are necessary for this pizza. I desire a high-protein American bread flour. You may add in small quantities of semolina (durum wheat) at 5 to 10 p.c if you wish to up the crisp ranges on a flour with much less protein.
For the water, it’s true that New York has nice faucet water, however so does Palm Springs, California! When you’ve got nice faucet water in your city use that, in any other case a nicely filtered or spring water from a supply service ought to just do superb. New York Metropolis faucet water is low in complete dissolved solids with little or no chlorine, and simply the proper minerality, nevertheless it’s not magic, so don’t go loopy desirous about it. If it tastes good as ingesting water it’s going to style good within the pizza.
For olive oil, I extremely really useful a California additional virgin olive oil. It’s contemporary and clear and actually works nicely with this model of pizza. Additionally, I like sea salt for my pizza and I feel it makes an enormous distinction, however kosher salt may even work. In case you solely have iodized desk salt it’s essential do away with it and improve your salt sport.
The recipe will name for a starter. In case you don’t have a sourdough starter you should use a business yeast pre-ferment (aka poolish, biga or sponge). Some individuals don’t like sourdough in NY-style pizza. That’s their opinion, however mine is that it’s scrumptious. Do no matter you wish to do and by no means take heed to the haters. These are all simply pointers — comply with your goals.
When topping the pizza it’s best to at all times begin by making a traditional plain pie. I like to recommend a tomato sauce of raw California tomatoes, seasoned merely with sea salt and additional virgin olive oil. For mozzarella a mix of low moisture entire milk and half skim mozzarella is nice, however if you wish to use contemporary mozzarella, that may work too. I’m a giant fan of the mozzarella down first methodology, splotching the tomato on high with a little bit house between, and eventually some oregano (wild Sicilian is at all times my first selection) and a little bit arduous cheese (a pecorino or grana works nice). The secret’s a steadiness between the toppings in order that all of them come collectively on the pie in a cohesive manner, clinging onto reasonably than simply slipping off of the dough.
And for my last ideas earlier than you attempt the recipe is that it’s my interpretation of NY model, it’s not genuine or the final word or something like that, it comes from loving this model of pizza and making an attempt to make it by means of my lens as a pizza maker. I hope you take pleasure in it and add this model to your repertoire. Now hop on over to PizzaToday.com to test it out!
Anthony Falco is a world pizza marketing consultant.
John Updike famously mentioned, “The true New Yorker secretly believes that individuals dwelling anyplace else must be, in some sense, kidding.” In my lifetime of visiting New York Metropolis, and the 14 years that I’ve I known as the town house, I feel I can safely say that your common New Yorker feels that individuals consuming pizza anyplace else must be, in some sense, kidding.
Anthony Falco, Worldwide Pizza Advisor
There’s a confidence and braggadocio about all issues New York Metropolis — and pizza is not any exception. It’s indeniable that there are millions of pizzerias within the 5 boroughs. It’s additionally true that there’s a tradition of pizza right here distinctive to the world, however what’s true New York-style pizza? It’s a troublesome query, actually, however one I’ve given a lot thought to. You might say pizza by the slice is the true New York pizza, however what concerning the well-known coal-fired oven pizzerias that solely do entire pies? You might say it’s the stone-lined fuel deck oven, however as we speak a few of New York’s finest pizza is popping out of electrical and even wood-fired ovens.
So the place is the frequent floor? What defines NY-style pizza? Whereas not everybody will agree, and since I wasn’t born within the metropolis I’m positive sure individuals will depart my opinions on the sidewalk with piles of ubiquitous rubbish, I’ll state my opinion after years of constructing pizza in New York, and making New York-style pizza all over the world.
First issues first, just like the skyscrapers and personalities of the town, it’s huge. NY-style pizza tends to be 16 to twenty inches with the traditional NY slice being minimize from an 18-inch pie. Something much less simply gained’t look proper on a paper plate. And talking of paper plates, NY pizza is for individuals on the go, which means consuming it fast, together with your arms, nearly at all times standing up.
It’s skinny, however not paper skinny just like the cracker model crust discovered throughout the Hudson in New Jersey. And it’s crisp, however with some pliability — it shouldn’t shatter while you take a chunk. The sauce needs to be easy, contemporary and barely candy with a steadiness of acidity, my selection for reaching that is the California tomato.
The mozzarella needs to be stringy, however not too moist, and it ought to type a cohesive unit with the sauce. This amalgamation of sauce and cheese adheres to the dough, and it doesn’t slip off when it’s lifted to the mouth like its Neapolitan cousin. In apply this implies a “low moisture” mozzarella, basically a extra aged model of contemporary mozzarella (typically it’s entire milk, typically half skim, or typically a mix). Recent mozzarella is completely acceptable too, simply much less prevalent than low moisture.
Toppings needs to be judiciously utilized and never overloaded like they do in sure windy cities. In reality, one may say that probably the most true instance of the New York pizza is the standard “plain slice”: tomato, mozzarella, oregano, and perhaps a little bit pecorino or Parmesan.
So let’s summarize; a NY-style pizza is huge, it’s skinny however not paper skinny, crispy however nonetheless versatile sufficient to fold with out cracking, and the toppings needs to be a cohesive amalgamation and utilized with restraint and ease. It shouldn’t be too fancy, however that doesn’t imply you may’t use high quality components. It ought to at all times be cooked straight on the stones of the oven flooring, be that fuel, wooden, electrical or coal.
So now that we now have outlined what New York Pizza is, how will we make it? Effectively, I’m going to be fully sincere … I don’t know easy methods to make a correct NY-style pizza. I’ve by no means skilled or labored at a correct old skool New York model pizzeria. I got here up cooking in wood-fired ovens, I used to be cooking small, new-school Neapolitan-ish pizzas quick and sizzling and topped with globs of contemporary mozzarella, undoubtedly the identical galaxy however nonetheless worlds aside. About 5 years in the past I began taking part in with NY-style pizza. I assumed I might simply are available in with what I knew, crank the oven all the best way up and begin kicking butt. That’s not what occurred. I discovered in a short time that NY-style pizza is definitely some of the troublesome types to grasp. I knew what I needed the pizza to be like, however I wasn’t positive easy methods to get there. I went into the laboratory, aka my kitchen in Brooklyn, and I began taking part in round with totally different flours, temperatures, cheese blends and so forth. Finally I received one thing I preferred, and since then I’ve helped open NY-style pizzerias as a marketing consultant in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bangkok, Miami and Bali, with extra within the works. Each certainly one of these takes on NY-style pizza has been a special strategy, from all naturally leavened, a hybrid of sourdough and business yeast, and even all business yeast. The reception has been nice and these are a few of my favourite pizzas to eat anyplace.
In the previous couple of years a rising variety of pizza consulting inquiries wish to do NY-style pizza. And within the final yr, the pandemic has confirmed this model to be constructed for sturdiness. It holds up nicely for takeout, supply, individuals on a finances, in addition to individuals seeking to splurge on a meal they wouldn’t usually make at house.
So let me share with you a recipe that you may attempt in case you are excited by bringing New York-style pizza to your pizzeria. The components are necessary for this pizza. I desire a high-protein American bread flour. You may add in small quantities of semolina (durum wheat) at 5 to 10 p.c if you wish to up the crisp ranges on a flour with much less protein.
For the water, it’s true that New York has nice faucet water, however so does Palm Springs, California! When you’ve got nice faucet water in your city use that, in any other case a nicely filtered or spring water from a supply service ought to just do superb. New York Metropolis faucet water is low in complete dissolved solids with little or no chlorine, and simply the proper minerality, nevertheless it’s not magic, so don’t go loopy desirous about it. If it tastes good as ingesting water it’s going to style good within the pizza.
For olive oil, I extremely really useful a California additional virgin olive oil. It’s contemporary and clear and actually works nicely with this model of pizza. Additionally, I like sea salt for my pizza and I feel it makes an enormous distinction, however kosher salt may even work. In case you solely have iodized desk salt it’s essential do away with it and improve your salt sport.
The recipe will name for a starter. In case you don’t have a sourdough starter you should use a business yeast pre-ferment (aka poolish, biga or sponge). Some individuals don’t like sourdough in NY-style pizza. That’s their opinion, however mine is that it’s scrumptious. Do no matter you wish to do and by no means take heed to the haters. These are all simply pointers — comply with your goals.
When topping the pizza it’s best to at all times begin by making a traditional plain pie. I like to recommend a tomato sauce of raw California tomatoes, seasoned merely with sea salt and additional virgin olive oil. For mozzarella a mix of low moisture entire milk and half skim mozzarella is nice, however if you wish to use contemporary mozzarella, that may work too. I’m a giant fan of the mozzarella down first methodology, splotching the tomato on high with a little bit house between, and eventually some oregano (wild Sicilian is at all times my first selection) and a little bit arduous cheese (a pecorino or grana works nice). The secret’s a steadiness between the toppings in order that all of them come collectively on the pie in a cohesive manner, clinging onto reasonably than simply slipping off of the dough.
And for my last ideas earlier than you attempt the recipe is that it’s my interpretation of NY model, it’s not genuine or the final word or something like that, it comes from loving this model of pizza and making an attempt to make it by means of my lens as a pizza maker. I hope you take pleasure in it and add this model to your repertoire. Now hop on over to PizzaToday.com to test it out!
Anthony Falco is a world pizza marketing consultant.
