THE REAL DEAL

What it takes to make authentic Neapolitan pizza

A thin, soft, golden crust that bubbles up and is charred in spots, fresh toppings, and creamy cheese are what we love about Neapolitan-style pizza. Fabio Speziali, the owner of Pummarò Pizzeria in Point Loma, says there are many secrets to making one and he is willing to share a few.

THE INGREDIENTS
Mozzarella cheese is a standard pizza ingredient, but Neapolitan pizzas specifically call for fresh buffalo mozzarella (also known as mozzarella di bufala in Italian). Made from the milk of the water buffalo, buffalo mozzarella is creamier, richer, and more succulent than mozzarella made from cow’s milk. It is also more difficult to find. In fact, Pummarò flies the fresh buffalo mozzarella it uses every two weeks from a designated supplier in Italy. Authentic Italian meats (also known as salumi) are essential to a Neapolitan pizza. Boasting a wide variety of flavors, each meat is seasoned with salt, spices, and herbs and hung to cure, age, and dry in a traditional method. Even the olive oil is imported from Italy. It must be 100 percent extra virgin olive oil made from olives grown, harvested, pressed, and bottled in Italy.

THE TECHNIQUE
Making a Neapolitan pizza isn’t as easy as looking up a recipe on the internet. In fact, Pummarò has a genuine pizzaiolo, a pizza chef from Naples who is thoroughly trained in the Neapolitan way of making pizza. A pizzaiolo knows how to make and manipulate the dough, and how to select the right fresh produce, meats, and cheeses to produce the best flavor. Pummarò’s Chef Christian understands the science behind the cheese he uses. For example, the soft texture of buffalo mozzarella gets watery when it’s heated. Chef Christian has many tricks for decreasing the moisture of the cheese to prevent the pizza from getting soggy. The Associazioine Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) in Naples was created to protect the integrity of pizza makers and pizzerias worldwide. Certified pizzaiolos complete more than 60 hours of training to ensure the traditional superior quality of Neapolitan-style pizza.

THE OVEN
It’s not possible to make a Neapolitan-style pizza in a regular kitchen oven. Only an authentic Italian wood-fired brick oven made with top-grade fire bricks will deliver the pizza’s desired flavor and texture. The oven must be circular in shape to maintain optimal airflow, be made from refractory material to reach high temperatures, have a low door to retain the heat, have a resilient cook plate, and be able to reach and maintain a temperature of 900 degrees. Pummarò’s wood-fired pizza oven was imported directly from Italy. Cooked in just 90 seconds, the finished pizza crust is charred in spots, which add flavor to the crust. The charring is desirable because this savory, slightly bitter flavor complements the more subtle tastes of buffalo mozzarella, cured meats, and other toppings. The crust is tender and can be folded for easy eating.