How Pizza Became Pizza

It is not conclusive when precisely did pizza emerge at its position as one of the tremendously popular dishes in the United States, but nearly everybody will unquestionably concur that pizza has become America's preferred grub over the past 40 years. Millions of pizza pies are eaten daily, but very few people, if at all, stop munching and chewing their beloved pizza to consider the history of their favorite food. The actual origins of this fine cuisine are as colorful as any excellent pizza piled with toppings.

When you go out into the streets, try asking people where they think pizza came from, chances are you will get answers pointing to the common belief that Italians created the pizza. Even so, pizza's roots go back to the antediluvian times. Even though we have yet to hear archeological evidence of a Dominos Pizza outlet before the last century, it is known that the Babylonians, Israelites, Egyptians and other ancient Middle Eastern cultures were consuming flat, unleavened bread that had been prepared in mud ovens.

The bread was much like a pita, which is still common in Greece and the Middle East today. Besides, it is well-known that ancient Mediterranean people such as the Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks were eating the bread, topped flavored with olive oil and indigenous spices.

The lower class of Naples, Italy is considered to have created pizza in a more recognized formula. In the late 1800s, an Italian baker by the name of Raffaele Esposito, was considered to have produced such a dish for traveling royals. Fitting in with the narrative, the Italian monarch King Umberto and his partner, Queen Margherita were touring the area. In order to make an impression and to demonstrate his patriotic fervor, Raffaele opted to include some toppings to his flat bread with food that would best symbolize the colors of Italy: red tomato, white mozzarella cheese and green basil. The monarch and queen were so fascinated by the creativity of the dish and its maker that news rapidly reached the people. The end results were that the dish was well received to the extent that others began to copy it.

By the onset of the 1900s pizza made its way to the inner urban centres of the United States, thanks to Italian immigrants. The people of New York and Chicago were among the foremost diners to taste and enjoy their first slices of pizza, due to those cities having voluminous Italian populations. Small cafes began offering the Italian favorite . American soldiers also influenced the reputation of the dish by the end of World War II, having been exposed to it while serving on the Italian front.

Nowadays, pizza has develop into something wholly American as baseball and apple pie. Only because of its most recent origins is it considered an Italian dish. Huge U. S. based multi-billion dollar companies which depend on the pizza for their earnings should be grateful for the evolution of this delicious dish, along with countless poor college students who can appreciate the fine dining experience pizza has given them.

Jane Huntington is an avid cook and writer working for http://www.cindykitchen.com, where you can get all the best restaurant and pizza supplies at the best prices. Visit us for all your discount restaurant supplies needs.

- Jane Huntington