Pizza Recipes

Photo by Photo by James Carrier, Sunset

Pizza is actually a tough dish to pair with wine, in fact most Italians drink beer with their pizza rather than wine, and for good reason. Pizza is primarily bready, yeasty, fermented bread. Beer is mostly, well, yeasty fermented grains. The two match up wonderfully based on the bridge of yeasty, grainy flavors that each has.

Having said that, pizza is often greater than the sum of its parts. For a basic pizza, the combination of acidic tomato sauce and creamy cheese calls out for a wine with good acidity and plenty of fruit. A fine Sangiovese or Barbera are the usual recommendations, which work well with this style of pizza. The flavors and texture of the wines tends to mirror that of the pizza.

Keep adding ingredients and you’ll generally want to move up to a more intense wine. Richer examples of Sangiovese and Barbera work well with things like sausage and pepperoni, but also open the doors to wines like Zinfandel and Malbec, which work well with intense, meaty flavored pizzas.

If you’re looking at a pizza with peppers on it, something with a green edge, either Cabernet Franc for a red of Sauvignon Blanc for a white would work well, again mirroring some of the flavors of the pizza.

Mushrooms, or exotic cheese on a pie will call for an assertive wine with aged flavors that can work with the savoriness here. Consider a Rioja Reserva or Chianti Riserva as a good choice, or even better a nice mature bottle of Nebbiolo would really do the trick here!

Comments

98135Isaac42 I lived in Italy for two years, and I don't recall ever seeing an Italian drink beer with pizza. In fact, I don't recall seeing an Italian drink beer, period, but maybe that was just the region I was in.
262583Foxall I was only there a little over a week, but I saw beer and wine being drunk with pizza--not that I was eating in anyone's home, so maybe it was all tourists. But Italian beer is no great shakes, IMO. In any case, just one recommendation to add: If you aren't too worried about the slightly lower acids but need a hearty, slightly rustic wine, I like Salice Salentino with pizza. Trader Joe's sells a decent one from Epicuro for about $5 and it is rare to see one for much more than $12, so they go well with casual, inexpensive meals.
863297Erokthered Chilean Carmenere works out great. Its lively herbaciousness pairs well with the fresh and dried herbs in many a Neapolitain style pizza.
177719vinovito Gragnano is the true pizza wine,served chilled...surprised the author didn't mention it...go to Naples where pizza was invented
387105masau80 I lived in Italy (Napoli) for three years and the only people that didn't drink wine with their pizza were some beer-drinking Americans. Simple house reds were the wine of choice. A young, fruit-forward red works well. A Dry Lambrusco, if you can find one, also is surprisingly good with pizza.
94767Tamar1973 What you you recommend for a kimchi pizza? :)
762698italian scallion All the comments are right on. In my experience, Italians do not typically drink beer with pizza. DaMichele in Naples is by far the best and the most popular pizzeria in that city, and if my memory serves me, they only sell water and Coke. Wine is usually the beverage of choice, and a hearty red like those mentioned by other commenters works nicely, except for pizza with peppers. However, at least according to the New York Times (which also states that Italians prefer beer, specifically Peroni, with pizza), the BEST wine to drink with pizza is - drum roll - gragnano (from the city of the same name, just outside of Naples). Pairing wine with food is a lot of fun, and there's plenty of room for personal preferences. whether it's pizza or the grilled scallops with champagne-vanilla bean sauce I served the other night with a barolo (YES, a barolo). Might a different wine have paired "better" with the scallops? Maybe. For me what is more interesting is how DIFFERENT the impact is of one wine vs. another on food and food flavors - and on the taste of the wine as well. Next time I fix that scallop dish, I might try a big oaky chardonnay with lots of maleolactic acid, or even a Marlborough sauvignon blanc and see what happens. Viva la difference - eat, drink wine, and enjoy!
816597ednovak I've tried a number of wines with pizza and haven't been dazzled until I tried a Portuguese wine, Monte Velho Red. I prefer my pizza simple, cheese only. First time I had it, I finished the whole bottle with about 1/2 a pie. Obviously more that I should have eaten. Average price about $11... Giant Eagle Market District carries it.
762698italian scallion Wait. You drank an entire bottle of wine with only half of a pizza and you ATE too much?
1157824malc Thank you for a most interesting discussion. In enjoyed it all, from the article down to ed's and i.s.'s comments re 1 bottle = half a pizza. Sounds about right to me! I am not the travelling gourmand that most of your respondents are, but right here, a meaty, cheesy, tomato and anchovy pizza couples just fine with good old Australian Cab Sav / Shiraz blends.
101255mkrpa For the past 2-3 years, I have introduced many friends and relatives to my personal favorite pizza wine - montepulciano d'abruzzo. Readily available and inexpensive. Citra makes one for $5 per bottle (750ml) and $9 for 1.5 liter. Young (1-2 yrs), fruity with enough acidity to handle even spicier sauces, and just enough tannin to soften the edge, making it very drinkable.
1180508Klaus A very nice wine with Pizza is a medium bodied red wine, the Santa Maddalena (Schiava with Lagrein)

All Pizza Recipes

After School Pizza
Make French bread pizzas. Slice 6 inches of a baguette lengthwise. Spread 1 to 2 Tbsp. bottled marinara sauce on each slice; top with 1/4 cup shred...
All American Pizza
PREPARATION: Use the backside of a flat cutting board to make the pizza and to slice on after grilling. You will also need a pizza cutter and a s...
Anchovy and White Bean Pizza
Combine first 5 ingredients in food processor. Pulse until smooth. Spread bean mixture evenly over crust. Top with red onion and next 4 ingredients...
Antipasto Pizza
1. Spread pizza crust evenly with 1/4 cup pesto. Sprinkle evenly with remaining ingredients. 2. Bake at 450° for 12 to 14 minutes or until cheese i...
Apple and Brie Calzone
DOUGH: In the bowl of a standing mixer with the dough hook attached, put in yeast, warm water and sugar. Stir gently to dissolve, then let stan...
Apple-Cinnamon Pop Tarts
For the dough: Whisk the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl until combined. Add the butter and toss with your fingers until well ...
Apple-Cranberry-Currant Pie with French Topping
1. In a small bowl, combine brandy and currants. Cover and let stand until currants are plump, at least 1 hour or up to 1 day. 2. Preheat oven to 3...
Apple, Fennel, and Cheddar Cheese Straws
Melt the butter in a 10-inch skillet over medium heat. Add the apples and season lightly with salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until ve...
Apricot and Prosciutto Thin-Crust Pizza
1. Combine 1/2 cup warm water and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attached; let stand 5 minutes or until bubbly. Add 4 teaspoons...
Artichoke and Arugula Pizza with Prosciutto
Position oven rack to lowest setting. Preheat oven to 500° Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray; sprinkle with cornmeal. Unroll dough onto prepar...
Artichoke and Feta Cheese Pizza
Preheat oven to 425°F. Cut artichokes into 1/2-inch pieces. Sprinkle baking sheet with yellow cornmeal. Unroll pizza crust dough onto prepared baki...
Artichoke-and-Red Pepper Pizza
Unroll pizza dough onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; pat dough into a 14 x 10-inch rectangle. Bake at 425° for 5 minutes; set aside. H...
Artichoke Pizzas with Lemony Green Bean Salad
Heat broiler. Arrange the pita halves cut-side up on a broilerproof sheet pan. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the oil and broil until crisp, 2 to ...
Artisan Bread
1. Start with tap water at about 100 degrees (body temperature), make sure the water is not too hot it will kill the yeast. Colder water is ok it w...
Arugula and Ricotta Calzones
Put oven rack in lower third of oven and preheat oven to 450°F. Cook garlic in oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring frequent...
Asparagus and Gruyère Tart
Roll out pastry dough on a floured surface into a 15 1/2-inch round. Transfer to pizza pan by rolling dough around rolling pin and unrolling it acr...
Asparagus, Fingerling Potato, and Goat Cheese Pizza
Place potatoes in small saucepan. Add enough water to cover by 1 inch. Sprinkle with salt. Bring to boil and cook until potatoes are tender, about ...
Atsa Spicy Pizza Sausage
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Cook sausage in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until browned, stirring to crumble. Drain. Note:...
Bacon-and-Escarole Pizza
1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees, with rack in upper third. On a floured work surface, roll out dough to a 17-inch-long rectangle. Transfer to a broi...
Bacon, Asparagus, and Goat Cheese Grilled Pizza
Heat half of a gas or charcoal grill to high (about 400°F) and the other half to low (about 300°F). Fill a large saucepan with heavily salted water...