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What Is Roman Style Pizza & What Makes It Popular?

Last Updated on March 28, 2024 by Lauren Beck

Pizza is always a safe choice and a popular option as a snack, meal, or party food. While pan pizza originated in Italy, topped flatbreads have been enjoyed since ancient times in Egypt and Rome.

In this blog, we’ll learn about what is roman style pizza and its culture that’s quickly growing in parts of the world.

Roman Style Pizza Defined 

Roman pizza or pizza Romana is a rectangular style of pan pizza commonly found on the streets of Rome. In Central Italy, roman style pizzas crusts are often cut with scissors and sold by weight in bakeries and street food carts.

Roman-style pan pizza does not proof dough in the tray it is baked in. It is cooked at a lower temperature so the crust can rise and crisp, having an airy crust. 

Interesting Facts

Roman Style Dough

It is light, full of huge bubbles, and can be topped with many ingredients. It has smaller air pockets and is made with extra virgin olive oil for a richer and more elastic dough.

Roman Style Pan

Classic roman pan pizzas are thin, dry, and not greasy, with a crust almost similar to an Italian flat bread called focaccia. It’s sold in bakeries across Italia, and the roman style pan crust is mainly topped with a simple tomato sauce, olive oils, or salt.

Its Sauce & Toppings

Less is more when it comes to toppings. There are two kinds, the red pizza or pizza Rossa which is the tomato-based pizza. And the white pizza or pizza Bianca. Instead of tomato, the pizza base is spread with a ricotta parmesan cheese mixture. 

What Does Roman Pizza Taste Like? 

Roman pizza roast beef, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes and arugula

It tastes unique and has a distinctive flavor of cheeses and tomatoes. Combining the toppings and ingredients on the dough gives it an exceptional flavor that makes it unique from other types of pizzas worldwide.

How Do You Cook A Roman Style Pizza? 

While most Italian bread and pizzas are baked in a hot stone or brick ovens, Roman-style pizza dough is made in a deck oven at almost half the temperature of wood-fired pizza; that’s how they’re cooking it the traditional way.  

What Al Taglio Means

Pizza Al Taglio is an Italian word that means pizza by the slice, literally by the cut. [1] Pizza Al Taglio is traditionally cooked in rectangle pans, cut into squares, and sold by the slice. With prices marked per kilogram or hundred grams. Pizza Al Taglio is cheap and affordable, mainly enjoyed across socioeconomic classes in Italy. [2]

The Best Roman Style Pizza Recipe

Prep Time: 

20 minutes

Total Time:

1 hour and 50 minutes

Ingredients: 

  • 2 tsp granulated sugar
  • 1 ½ tsp active dry yeast
  • 4 ½ tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • ½ tsp pepper
  • 2 ¼ cups all-purpose or Italian flour (plus additional for dusting)
  • ¾ cup warm water
  • Diced tomatoes
  • ½ kg cherry tomatoes
  • ⅔ cup freshly grated Parmesan, divided
  • 2 cups grated mozzarella
  • Chopped fresh basil (optional)
  • Sausage (optional)

Instructions: 

Combine water, sugar, and yeast in a bowl. Rest for 4-5 minutes or until spongy. Mix in 1 ½ tbsp of oil and salt. Add two (2) ¼ cups of flour. Knead it until smooth and elastic, 6 minutes total—to make it rise, grease a bowl with 1 tbsp oil. Add dough, and cover it with plastic; until about 90 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 500°F or 260°C. Add the tomatoes to a baking sheet. Add 1 tbsp oil and season with salt and pepper. Place on lower rack; roast for about 10-12 minutes. Let it cool; continue preheating the oven for 45 minutes.

Divide the pizza dough in half. You can wrap half of the dough in plastic and store it in the refrigerator if you do not bake all the dough. Roll or stretch the half dough into a thin, rectangular shape with a rolling pin. 

Brush with 2 tbsp oil, add half of the Parmesan, then mozzarella, and top with the tomatoes. Season with salt and pepper. Cut out parchment paper enough to hold the pizza dough. 

Transfer it to the oven and bake the crust until crispy and the toppings are cooked, and the cheese is melted for about 9-10 minutes—transfer the pizza, let it rest, and garnish with the other half the Parmesan, basil, and sausage, optional. Slice the crust and serve.

FAQs

Is Roman pizza available in The United States?

Yes, it is available in the United States. Some restaurants also enhanced the recipes and recreated their toppings and flavor combinations. Other popular restaurants in the US include toppings like basil, anchovies, pepperoni, sausage, pepper, and pecorino cheese.

Is Roman pizza expensive?

Yes, it may be more expensive compared to the regular round pizzas we usually eat. In Italy, thin and fresh Roman-style pizzas generally cost about $8-$10, depending on the flavor you will order. In the US, Roman-style pizza costs around $7.90 for a generous slice.

In Conclusion

Roman pizzas differ in shape, consistency, and natural ingredients used in sauce and toppings. Although it may be shaped and topped differently from regular pizzas, it tastes great. Locate one near you, or make your own; either way, you might be surprised how delicious Roman pizzas are.

References

  1. https://blog.slicelife.com/what-is-pizza-al-taglio/ 
  2. https://www.themanual.com/food-and-drink/how-to-make-roman-style-pizza/
Lauren Beck

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