Although originating in Italy, pizza immigrated to the US over 100 years ago. And in its time here, it has changed and diversified. So what separates American pizza vs Italian pizza? Let’s find out!
According to the National Parks Service, pizza was brought to the US in the late 19th century and Americans are now eating more than 3 billion pizzas each year! And we certainly know why! Pizza is one of the most popular foods in the world, and it is enjoyed by people of all ages and cultures. But among those cultures, Italian and American seem to dominate the landscape of pizza styles.
Defining American Pizza vs Italian Pizza
Setting aside the ubiquitous frozen pizza, this is actually going to be the most challenging part of this article – because both Italians and Americans have developed many regional variations on pizzas in their home countries. In fact, it’s often true that many Italian vs American pizza variations are more alike than two different domestic variations!
Thin Crust Pizzas
Since most sources seem to agree that the Naples region is the home of pizza and the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) has specific rules about what makes up the traditional thin-crust Neapolitan pizza dough, let’s start here. Besides, it’s really the only Italian style of thin crust pizza
Italian Thin Crust Pizza Characteristics
As mentioned, the AVPN Neapolitan pizza is very clearly and specifically defined. Some of the fundamentals include:
- 4 ingredients for the pizza dough, predominantly using Type 00 flour
- proofed for 1 day at room temperature
- very thin crust
- cooked at VERY high temperatures (typically 850°F or higher)
- moderate dough hydration
- relatively little cheese (in the case of Marinara – no cheese at all)
- generally made with crushed tomatoes rather than a “pizza sauce”
American Thin Crust Pizzas
America is a big place with a lot of cultural influences, so it should not be surprising that there are several American thin crust pizzas. Among American thin pizza dough varieties, New York style is surely the most renowned. Another popular style is the St. Louis. Some other styles include New Haven, California, Chicago Thin Crust…the list goes on.
American Thin Crust Pizza Characteristics
With so many regional varieties, how can you identify the characteristics?!?
Well, really you have to look at what characteristics make each unique.
New York Style Pizza Characteristics
- Flour is usually high-gluten bread flour
- Uses oil in the crust ingredients
- Extremely thin and foldable crust, but still crisp
- Lots of low moisture mozzarella cheese
- Often very, very large pizzas
- Commonly made in gas ovens at 500°F to 600°F, although variations abound
- Sauce may be simple tomato sauce but more commonly are heavily seasoned with oregano, basil, rosemary, thyme, and marjoram (collectively “Italian Seasoning”), and garlic.
Other American Thin Crust Pizza Characteristics
- California Style: is generally set apart not by the crust but by the use of California-inspired toppings like chicken, avocado, arugula, egg, zucchini…
- Chicago Thin Crust: is also known as “tavern-style” because it is cut into rectangles or squares instead of wedge-shaped slices. The crust of this pizza style is generally more crunchy lending to easier eating the middle pieces. Chicago pizzas generally favor Italian sausage over pepperoni as the most popular topping.
- St. Louis Style: is mostly known for its “Provel” cheese blend of white cheddar, provolone, and swiss cheese. Another unique characteristic is that the crust is unleavened – meaning no yeast is used resulting in a very crunchy/crackery crust. St. Louis style is often a round pizza cut in a “tavern cut”.
- New Haven Style: also called the “tomato pie”, this pizza is more akin to the Italian Marinara since they are both cooked at extremely high temperatures and commonly served without mozzarella cheese. New Haven pizza is generally considered a crunchy crust.
Thick Crust Pizzas
A lot of people think that thick crust pizzas start and end with the Chicago Deep Dish – but in fact even Italy has their own version. Actually, two!
Across the board, thick crust pizzas are cooked in pizza pans of some sort to help form their shape and to provide a crispy crust not only on the bottom but also the sides. The doughs are generally quite high in hydration compared to thin-crust pizzas and generally always use oil or lard in the pan in order to crisp up the crust while preserving a fluffy, light dough.
Italian Thick Crust Pizzas & Characteristics
Thick crust pizzas generally are either Roman style (also known as Pizza al taglio – or pizza by the slice) or Sicilian pizzas. Both pizzas are typically prepared in rectangles, but even that isn’t set in stone.
Sicilian pizza has relatively high quantity of both water and oil compared to many other pizzas, resulting in a fluffy dough with a crispy outside crust. It is frequently topped with anchovies, onions, tomatoes, herbs and suitably strong cheese, such as toma and caciocavallo.
Roman pizzas are often made in immensely large sheets (one reason they get the nickname pizza-by-the meter). Due to the revolution started by Gabriele Bonci, there’s really no limit on what toppings can go on a Roman pizza.
American Thick Crust Pizzas
- Chicago Deep Dish: is surely the most recognized style of thick-crust pizza in the US. In addition to its very tall and thick size, putting the cheese below the sauce is certainly its most identifiable characteristic.
- Detroit style: is another deep dish pizza and has a lot in common with the Sicilian pizza in terms of its high hydration, use of oil, and the fluffy dough. Detroit style really differs mostly in the use of a deeper and thicker metal pan that gets to extremely high temperatures – resulting in even more crispy sides and bottom.
- South Shore Bar Pizza: sets itself apart by having butter in the crust that creates an indulgent buttery and cracker-like crust. The cheese is traditionally American white cheddar and is spread all the way to the edges to create a crispy and caramelized edge.
Conclusion – It’s Not as Easy as It Sounds to Compare!
As discussed, there are actually more similarities in some pizza types eaten in Italy and the US today than may exist between two pizzas from different regions of the same country. It’s actually easier to compare the unique characteristics of thin and thick crust styles and to explore more of what makes them special.
We have a number of pizza recipes for you to explore and continue to add more every week!
Todd’s cooking skills have revolved around the grill since about age 12, when he developed a love for grilling and took over for Mom at the BBQ. He worked at Wendy’s and at Earl’s Tin Palace (a restaurant chain in Canada) but never really did any sort of baking…until he and Heather started making pizza together! Now he’s often making dough in the mornings and pizza in the evenings.