P
Italian · Naples
Margherita Pizza
The Margherita is not a plain pizza. It is the benchmark by which all pizza is judged — the dish that reveals whether a baker understands fermentation, heat, and restraint. Tipo 00 flour, 48-hour cold-fermented dough, San Marzano DOP tomato, fior di latte mozzarella, fresh basil added after the oven. Nothing else. The cornicione should be charred, blistered, and hollow — not doughy, not cracker-crisp.
I
The Market List
The benchmark for each ingredient, and who stocks it near you. Tap a stockist to go straight to the product.
320 g
pizza dough (cold fermented 24–48 hours)
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
180 g
250 g
buffalo mozzarella (fior di latte)
torn into 3 pieces
Your own market
10 g
fresh basil leaves
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
40 ml
extra virgin olive oil DOP (Tuscan)
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
2 g
sea salt
Your own market
Each tap is counted, so the stockist sees the demand Provenance sends them.
II
The Method
1
Place a baking stone or steel on the highest oven rack; preheat to 290°C (550°F) for 45 minutes.
2
Stretch dough by hand into a 30 cm round, leaving a 1 cm cornicione (border); place on parchment paper.
3
Spread 150 g tomato sauce in a thin, even layer, leaving cornicione bare; season lightly with sea salt.
From the canon — Three tomato sauce approaches, each producing a categorically different result: Tomato Sauce: The Three Methods →
4
Transfer pizza on parchment to hot stone; bake for 10–12 minutes until crust is charred and bottom crisp.
5
Remove from oven; scatter mozzarella pieces over surface, then drizzle with olive oil and remaining tomato sauce.
6
Tear basil leaves and scatter over top; serve immediately at 60°C.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Where it lives or dies. The moment where Margherita lives or dies is the hand-stretch. The dough ball (280g for a 30cm pizza) must be at room temperature for 1 hour before shaping. Press from the centre outward with flat fingers, leaving a 2cm border untouched — this becomes the cornicione. Lift the disc over your knuckles and let gravity stretch it as you rotate. It should reach 30-32cm without tearing. If it tears, the gluten is too tight — rest 10 minutes and try again. Sauce, then mozzarella, then into the hottest oven you have. Basil goes on immediately after the pizza exits the oven, never before — heat blackens and bitters basil.
Pillar V
Cross-cuisine parallels are part of membership.
The dishes this one teaches you, across the cuisines — on every recipe.
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Agave spirit
From British Columbia
Wine
Without alcohol
GT's Synergy Organic Kombucha — Gingerade
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Non-alcoholic
Why each one works is part of membership — Enter · from $49 a year →
The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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Sourced through Provenance