Pizza Marinara

Pizza marinara is the oldest and purest of the Neapolitan pizzas — predating the Margherita by at least a century. It uses only tomato, garlic, oregano, and olive oil — no cheese, no basil. The name 'marinara' (sailor's pizza) refers to the fishermen and sailors of the Bay of Naples who ate this pizza on their return from sea — its topping ingredients were available and stable without refrigeration (unlike mozzarella). The technique is the same as any pizza napoletana but the topping is minimal: hand-crushed San Marzano tomatoes spread thinly, thin slices of fresh garlic scattered across, a generous pinch of dried oregano, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. The baking time is slightly shorter than a Margherita (the absence of cheese means there is less moisture to cook out), and the result is a pizza where the dough is fully on display — its flavour, its texture, its fermentation character are all fully exposed with nothing to hide behind. A great Marinara is the ultimate test of a pizzaiolo's dough skill: the tomato-garlic-oregano combination is a flavour standard that Neapolitans have calibrated over centuries, and any deficiency in the dough is immediately apparent. The marinara also represents a fundamental Neapolitan food philosophy: the best food is often the simplest, and simplicity is not the absence of technique but the distillation of it.

• Roman
• Turkish
• Ligurian