Pizza is probably the most recognizable food around the world. Originally a food for the poor, it has now become a dish for everyone. There are not too many countries that can say their national dish has become an international phenomenon. In Italy pizza falls into two distinct categories: Italian pizza and the rest of the world. It might seem silly considering the basic ingredients, but one taste of a true Italian pizza and that's it. You will never feel the same about this simple and delicious food again. Pizza is the result of a transformation developed over the centuries and it is a portrait of the people that have contributed to its own existence. It is a portrait of Italy.

A good pizza is actually a very simple dish made with fresh ingredients. It is made in a traditional pizza oven, fired by wood. The burnt edge of the pizza crust shows where it got close to the flames. Because it takes a long time to get the oven ready, in most restaurants, especially in smaller towns, pizza is only served at dinner. Pizza is a very popular dinner for Italians and for tourists. It is inexpensive and is a quicker and lighter meal.

Through the centuries pizza took its own course, the pizza could have been invented by the Phoenicians, the Greeks, Romans, or anyone who learned the secret of mixing flour with water and heating it on a hot stone. This dish has inspired many writers and artists in our history and it's from their documents and notes that we know that pizza has truly old origins. Its existence is certified long before the discovery of the Americas around the year 1000 in the city of Naples. At that time pizzas were prepared with lard cheese and herbs. The pizza as we know it today was developed after the introduction of the tomato which originally came from the Andes. Brought back to Europe by the Spanish they set the stage for the modern pizza. The Pizza Margherita may have set the standard, but there are numerous popular varieties of pizza made in Italy today.

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