Neapolitan Margherita Pizza

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The pizza style and topping combination that is more than 200 years old, the Neapolitan Margherita Pizza is both classic and a modern pinnacle in pizza achievement!

Neapolitan Margherita Pizza

Flatbread foods have been around for thousands of years. But pizza was born in Naples, Italy perhaps in the early 1800’s (and quite likely before that). Naples was not (and sadly, remains) a less than affluent city in Italy. Therefore, Neapolitans relied upon food that was inexpensive and fast (imagine fast food 200+ years ago).

Italian King Uberto I and Queen Margherita visited Naples in 1889. The legend goes that the queen and king decided to try the local cuisine and a certain combination of pizza toppings was dubbed the “Margherita Pizza” – and her blessing started first the local craze, but also more than 200 years later, the desire to honor perhaps the most amazing food on Earth (so say two pizza bloggers anyway!)

What is Neapolitan Margherita Pizza?

Well, this a two-part question…

What is Neapolitan Pizza?

This part is pretty easy to say – a pizza made in the style of Naples (Napoli in Italian), Italy. But what does that mean? Well, there are actually rules! The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) has quite specific rules about what makes up a Neapolitan pizza.

In essence, there are rules about the flour, the mixing, cooking temperature, and NO ROLLING PIN!

While there’s some great reasons to follow the rules, we all know rules are made to be broken – especially in the interest of making delicious pizza!

We cover the very particular rules of making the dough here.

What is a Margherita Pizza?

Answering this is much more simple – the color of the toppings represent the colors of the Italian flag: Red (tomato sauce), White (mozzarella cheese), and Green (Basil). Extra virgin olive oil and parmesan cheese are generally accepted extras (but don’t take chances with a Mafioso!).

Tips for Margherita Pizza

  • You’re working with just three toppings. Go the extra mile and get quality products!
  • Fresh basil simply cannot be replaced with dried flakes. Splurge. Or find a neighbor growing some. Please!
  • You may be tempted to buy “pizza sauce”. That’s not how it’s done in Naples. They rely on a simple tomato sauce. But you can buy a great sauce for this pizza off the shelf! More on that below.
  • You may be intimidated to try whole mozzarella. It’s not cheap and it expires quickly. Well, maybe don’t use it the first time – but absolutely go for it when you feel you’ve got your pizza game going!

Ingredients for Neapolitan Margherita Pizza

Margherita Pizza Toppings

Okay, we’ve covered the basics:

  • Tomato sauce
  • Mozzarella cheese (Buffalo cheese is especially traditional)
  • Basil

Most pizza chains would describe this as a one-topping pizza (and that’s if they even had basil as a topping option).

And, we’ve not talked about the dough.

The Pizza dough

And you’ve got options!

If making pizza dough from scratch is something you’re not ready for, then buy a quality dough ball from your grocery store. I’d recommend staying away from a pre-formed crust. That can be great for some pizzas – maybe a Parma Ham Pizza or a Smoked Pizza. But we’re going traditional with simple ingredients and flavors; we believe you’ll really appreciate it more if you are stretching out the dough yourself.

Even better (and highly recommended) will be to make your own dough! We have a recipe for traditional Neapolitan dough (which requires a minimum of 8 hours but is better after 24 hours to rest). But you can also try our Easy Peasy Pizza Dough or our Thin Crust Pizza Dough – both of which are fantastic alternatives.

How to Make Neapolitan Margherita Pizza

The Dough

Neapolitan Pizza dough ball

As discussed, this is a rabbit hole you can spend your life exploring. We learned so much from the gurus at Pizza City Fest but the most important part was investing the time to get better – and that the worst thing that will happen is still pizza!

So we’re going to recommend you make (or buy) a pizza dough you feel comfortable working with. You can read our other recipes on making a true Neapolitan dough including some info on choosing which flour.

Three Italian Flours

You can also read our article where we try out two different Trader Joe’s pizza dough balls, which came out surprisingly well for making a Neapolitan.

Trader Joe's Plain vs. Traditional Pizza dough

Stretching the Dough

We said there are rules for Neapolitan Margherita pizza – and one of the rules is NO ROLLING PINS. Frankly, I love using a rolling pin…but I also follow the rules. *sigh*

So, stretch that dough ball out by hand and love it. It may be a bit…odd…but even the Island of Misfit Toys have a home!

The “rules” say that a Neapolitan dough ball should be between 6 and 9 ounces in weight and can be stretched out to 8.5″ to 14″. Well…if you say so. But I believe the WRONG weight or size should not deter you from making the pizza size you want to make.

Once the dough is stretched out, you will need to transfer it to either a pizza peel or a pizza pan.

How are you going to cook it?

The AVPN says a traditional Neapolitan pizza should be cooked at ~900°F and exclusively in a wood-fired oven. You may know that your conventional indoor oven is not going to get there. To hit those temperatures, you need to use an outdoor pizza oven.

Margherita pizza almost cooked

If you don’t have access to one of these ovens, do not let that stop you! Princess Margherita would not throw your pizza away because it cooked more slowly! The steps below will give you both cooking options for making a wonderful Neapolitan Margherita Pizza!

The Pizza Sauce

Most people will be surprised to learn that “pizza sauce” is not the right sauce for this pizza – I was!

Generally speaking, the tomato sauce will be specifically of the San Marzano variety because of the unique flavor – and I would vouch for that choice.

It’s very easy to make your own Neapolitan Pizza Sauce – we have a quick and easy recipe for you to try! You can buy canned San Marzano tomatoes, puree, strain and voila! You have traditional sauce!

Best Authentic Neapolitan Pizza Sauce Recipe

But you can also buy an excellent pre-made Italian tomato sauce used by folks in Naples on their pizza at a local grocery store. This is a great starting point.

Mutti tomato sauce

The Cheese

True Neapolitan Margherita pizza isn’t just topped with mozzarella cheese, but specifically mozzarella di bufala Campana (buffalo mozzarella from the Campana region of Italy) chopped in slices…

Buffalo Mozzarella Cheese
Mozzarella made from buffalo milk.

…or fior di latte (cow milk cheese, which is chopped into strips.

Cow milk Mozzarella is supposed to be cut into strips.
Mozzarella cheese made from cows milk.

But thankfully, the AVPN is a little more relaxed here and allows for grated mozzarella as well!

Fresh Basil

Not much to say here other than not to add it until the pizza is fully cooked!

Fresh basil

Variations

  • The reality is that unless you have a wood-fired pizza oven, your pizza is going to be a variation from the start. Don’t let that deter you!
  • Neapolitan dough isn’t difficult to make, but it does take time to do properly. It also works best with that wood-fired oven. If time is not your ally, then substitute a faster recipe or a pre-made dough ball.
  • It is quite common for a quick drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil to be poured on just before cooking. This is acceptable by the AVPN.
  • Parmesan cheese sprinkled on top is also acceptable by the AVPN.
  • Some people may find that the pizza is a little bland. Liven things up with an extra teaspoon of salt sprinkled over top before cooking. AVPN might not approve, but we won’t tell!

AVPN Pizza Recipe

And now it’s time to get to work making yourself your own AVPN approved pizza!

Neapolitan Margherita Pizza

Neapolitan Margherita Pizza Recipe

Todd Mitchell
AVPN approved recipe for Neapolitan Margherita pizza
No ratings yet
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 4 minutes
Total Time 24 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American, Italian
Servings 2 People
Calories 1111 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Wood-burning pizza oven AVPN says this is required, but use what you've got!

Ingredients
  

  • 1 Pizza Dough ball (7 oz makes 1x 10" personal, 10 oz makes 1x 12" pizza) (Refer to our recipe for making AVPN Neapolitan dough)
  • 3 Tbsp Flour (AP is good but any flour will be fine for this)
  • â…“ Cups Tomato sauce (Refer to our recipe for making your own sauce from canned tomatoes or try Mutti brand sauce)
  • 2 Tbps Parmesan cheese (optional)
  • 2.5 Ounces Fresh mozzarella (approximately one ball) Cow or buffalo milk cheese
  • 1 Tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil (optional)
  • 1 Ounce Basil Hand-torn

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your pizza oven to ideally about 900°F.
    Adding wood to the pizza oven.
  • If you are using a pre-made dough ball, give it at least 30 minutes to come to room temperature.
  • Put 2 tablespoons of flour on your work surface
  • Begin stretching your pizza dough on your work surface. With 8 ounces of pizza dough, you should be able to make an 11" to 12" pizza, depending on the dough. True Neapolitan pizza will leave about a half inch outer ring slightly taller than the center.
  • Put 1 tablespoon of flour on your pizza peel (so the dough will not stick when launched into the oven).
    Floured pizza peel
  • Remove your mozzarella from the water, dry with a paper towel, and chop into slices (buffalo milk) or strips (cow milk).
    Cow milk Mozzarella is supposed to be cut into strips.
  • Check your pizza oven temperature. Add more wood if necessary. Do not proceed to the next step if your oven is not ready.
    Pizza oven smoking as it comes up to temperature.
  • Transfer your dough to the pizza peel.
  • You will want to quickly apply your toppings and get the pizza into the oven before the dough sticks to the peel.
  • Apply the tomato sauce to the center of the pizza. Use a spoon to spread the sauce out from the center in a spiral pattern but keeping the sauce off of the outer ring.
  • Distribute the mozzarella cheese evenly over the pizza.
  • If you are going to add parmesan cheese, sprinkle it over now.
    Margherita pizza ready for the oven.
  • Drizzle the olive oil over the pizza.
  • Check the pizza oven temperature again. If you have an infrared thermometer, check for the hottest part of the pizza stone.
    Infrared thermometer
  • Launch the pizza into the oven on the hottest part of the stone without being in the flames.
  • Before rotating the pizza, make sure that Rotate the pizza one quarter turn every 45 seconds. Generally, the pizza will be done in 6 minutes or less. So watch it closely!
    Margherita pizza almost cooked
  • Remove the pizza from the oven and let it rest for about 3 minutes.
    Margherita Pizza resting
  • Cut and serve immediately.
    A slice of Margherita pizza

Notes

Conventional Oven option:
  • If you are going to cook this in a conventional oven, you’ll want the highest temperature you can get the oven to. 
  • If you have a pizza stone (or pizza steel), that’s going to help a lot in getting the most authentic crust. If not, a pizza pan (or cookie sheet) will still turn out a great pizza.
  • You can either start the pizza on a pan (or cookie sheet) and transfer it to the stone after about 10 minutes (when the crust is firm enough to be safely transferred). At this point, turn off the oven and let the pizza cook on the stone for another 5 minutes. Remove and let rest on a cutting board for another 5 minutes before cutting and serving.
  • Alternatively, you can start by launching the pizza directly to the pizza stone in your oven. This is more tricky and you might want to practice with some dough with no toppings!
 

Nutrition

Calories: 1111kcalCarbohydrates: 131gProtein: 48gFat: 45gSaturated Fat: 18gPolyunsaturated Fat: 4gMonounsaturated Fat: 17gCholesterol: 76mgSodium: 2850mgPotassium: 371mgFiber: 5gSugar: 17gVitamin A: 2471IUVitamin C: 9mgCalcium: 770mgIron: 8mg
Keyword AVPN Margherita Pizza, Margherita Pizza, Neapolitan Margherita Pizza, Neapolitan Pizza
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Neapolitan Margherita Pizza

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