Global Pizza Day: What made an ordinary food world famous?

Every year on January 17, the World Pizza Day is celebrated, a culinary product that has become an integral part of world culture. Neapolitan pizza has been added to list of intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO.

Every year on January 17, the world celebrates World Pizza Day – a food that has long crossed the borders of national cuisine and become a component of global culture. More details about this date, interesting facts about pizza and the origin of this culinary creation will be told UNN.

Details World Pizza Day is dedicated to one of the most beloved foods in the world. The date does not have an official international status, but it is widely celebrated in many countries, and in Italy even at the state level. In addition, pizza gained special significance after Neapolitan pizza was included in the list of intangible cultural heritage of UNESCO in 2017.

How pizza appeared The history of pizza begins long before modern Italy. Even in ancient Greece, Egypt and Persia, flat breads were prepared with fillings, usually cheese, greens, dates or vegetables. While in ancient Greece such a dish was called plakus, in addition, the Romans also knew a similar bread, which was called panis focacius, which means “ancestor of focaccia”.

Pizza got its modern look in Naples, in the 18th and 19th centuries, when tomatoes brought from America began to be added to the bread. By the way, at first the dish was considered food for the poor, and the first pizzeria – Pizzeria Port’Alba – opened in Naples in 1830, when people were able to properly appreciate this snack.

Margarita, marinara and strict rules One of the most famous was the Margherita pizza, which, according to legend, was created in 1889 by the Neapolitan pizza maker Raffaele Esposito in honor of Queen Margherita of Savoy. Its filling: tomatoes, mozzarella and basil, symbolizing the colors of the Italian flag.

But the “Marinara” pizza, with tomatoes, garlic, oregano and olive oil, is considered one of the oldest types. It is also interesting that since 1984, the Association of authentic Neapolitan pizza has established clear rules for the preparation of the pizza: the pizza must be baked in a wood-fired oven, the dough must be mixed only by hand, and the diameter of the pizza must not exceed 35 centimeters.

Interesting facts about pizza In 1807, 54 pizzerias were already operating in Naples, and at the end of the 19th century there were more than 120.

Hawaiian pizza with pineapples was invented in Canada in 1962.

In 2012, the largest pizza in the world with an area of ​​more than 1260 m² was prepared in Rome.

In 2016, the first 3D pizza printers appeared.

Pizza today From Neapolitan street bread to world gastronomic records. Pizza has been around for thousands of years. Today, it remains a simple dish with a rich history, which is honored not only by gourmets, but also by international cultural organizations. That is why World Pizza Day is another reason to remember how an ordinary bread with filling became a global phenomenon.