Pizza is a food that we are all familiar with. From childhood to adulthood everyone has experienced the unbridled joy of devouring the perfect slice. Whether you prefer the more traditional toppings or the gourmet variety, there is a pizza for everyone. Making pizza is not difficult but it does require some patience and a willingness to experiment.

There are three spheres of influence that define pizza: Naples of Italy, New York, and Chicago. Naples is the birthplace of pizza but you cannot deny the influences of the other two famous cities.

Authentic Neapolitan Pizza Margherita, the base for most kinds of pizza.

Let’s start with the basics…

Italy: Naples is famous for simple pizzas made with a few fresh vegetables and herbs on a thin crust, served as a snack. Pizza Napolitano is famous for its specific dough and ingredients and best defines pizza from Naples. Fewer ingredients and a thinner crust allows for hotter and faster baking (usually in less than two minutes at 750 to 900 degrees). Italian thin crust pizzas are usually smaller in diameter as well. The official pizza is made specifically to standards set by the Italian government. For example, the flour for the crust is specifically defined under law as Caputo Tipo 00. It is fair to say the Italians take their pizza seriously.

New York Style Pizza

New York City: Pizza in New York originates from Italian Americans, but New Yorkers always do it their own way. Most New York pizzerias use hot temperatures (from 500 degrees to 700 degrees) but a range of different ingredients and styles in cooking these pies. The crusts can vary from paper thin to triple thick, but they are not the deep dish that is associated with Chicago. The thicker the crust and the more ingredients on the pie, the lower the temperature to allow for a slower baking process. A good compromise for a New York style thin crust pizza is about 550 degrees, and you can vary this depending on the thickness of your dough and the arrangement of the toppings. Precooking vegetables and meats will also help manage the timing. However, while it is not necessary to precook all the ingredients, due to the design of the pizza oven hood, it does help to cut down on the moisture and grease on the pizza.

Chicago-style deep-dish pizza.

Chicago Style: This is an American creation from the Midwest and one of the most famous pizzas in the world. This is thick, heavy-duty pizza that varies greatly within the deep-dish world from flakey pastry type dough to chewy, thick and crispy dough. The cooking style of this pizza is due to its thick crust and deep levels of cheese and other ingredients. It is baked in a deep-dish pan, usually on the lower side of the temperature range, from 350 to 450 degrees. This technique is closer to baking a pie than the fast high temperature baking associated with thinner crust pizzas. A good oven is even more important for this pizza in order to allow the top of the pizza to become fully cooked, while the bottom is baking on the stone. If this process does not happen evenly the results are less than appealing. Raw dough in the middle, with a well done bottom and a burned top can often be the result of trying to cook a deep dish pizza at home in a standard oven.

Pizza Master's Essentials Kit

Enter Store

We've pulled together the hard-to-find pizza-making essentials that help you get the most enjoyment from your Kalamazoo Outdoor Artisan Pizza Oven from Health Craft.  

• Silicone Pizza Dough Mat
  Non-stick 24" x 16" surface to easily roll dough. Includes pizza crust diameter markings, cooking measurement conversions and Mario Batali's own pizza dough recipe. Makes cleanup a breeze.
• Dough Separator/Counter Scraper
  Non-stick polypropylene. This often overlooked tool makes it easy to divide a dough recipe into multiple crusts and efficiently scrapes stray dough off your counter.
• 12" Non-stick Rolling Pin
  Soft, non-stick surface is easy to use and clean.
• Pizza Prep Peel
  It is crucial that your pizza not stick to your prep peel when you slide the pizza into to oven. Wooden peels topped with a sprinkle of corn meal serve this purpose well, but are difficult to keep clean. Our prep peel is not only dishwasher safe, it is NSF certified for safe and sanitary restaurant use.
  
  Once your dough is rolled out, sprinkle a little corn meal on the prep peel, transfer the crust to the peel and assemble the pizza ingredients there. Slide the pizza into your pizza oven in one smooth motion.
  
  Our pizza prep peel won't dull knives, so it is an ideal surface for slicing finished pizzas.
• Metal Pizza Peel
  Metal pizza peels with long handles are used to remove cooked pizzas from the oven. Ours features a convenient folding handle that makes it easier to store your peel.
• Soft-Grip Pizza Wheel
  The large 4" stainless steel wheel has a scalloped blade detail that easily cuts through thin or thick crust pizza. Dishwasher safe. 
• Kalamazoo Logo Apron
  Our heavy-duty black apron is embroidered with the Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet logo. Generously sized and made from 65% polyester and 35% cotton twill. Protected by ProDura® stain release coating. Machine washable.
• Pizza Stone Cleaning Brush (not pictured)
  Keep your pizza stone clean with this brass bristle brush sized to easily fit into the corners of your pizza oven.
• High-Temperature Pizza Oven Gloves (not pictured)
  Protect your hands against heat with these comfortable gloves made from fire and heat resistant fibers. Machine washable.
  
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