The magic of pizza is how it works so well for so many different occasions. From dining with friends at the local pizzeria to a simple Friday night dinner at home after a long week, it’s a meal that satisfies every appetite.
But there's also a scientific explanation for why pizza is so good: Pizza produces umami, a unique taste sensation not easily found in other meals.
Let's talk a little more about umami and a few other factors that make pizza one of America’s most loved foods.
The Science of Great Taste
There’s wide agreement among Americans that pizza is delicious.
You don’t have to look far for people who will confirm that they eat it at least once a week. In fact, statisticians estimate that about 350 slices are consumed every second in this country.
Pizza is so well-liked that it helps contribute to the strength of our economy: There are more than 78,000 pizza restaurants in the United States which, collectively, produced about $45-billion in sales in 2021.
In 2020, when the pandemic inspired many to stay home, more than 200 million Americans purchased frozen pizza.
But, what explains this depth of love for pizza?
In the simplest terms, it’s chemistry. Pizza pairs great-tasting ingredients that become even better-tasting together.
It’s a phenomenon called umami. Borrowed from Japanese, umami means ‘delicious’ or ‘pleasant savory taste’. It is sometimes referred to as the ‘fifth taste’ – after the four basic tastes: salt, sweet, sour and bitter.
Let’s look at how umami explains why pizza is one of the best foods.
Umami, which is used as both an adjective and a noun, is a taste sensation produced by naturally occurring glutamate, an amino acid that's often found in meat and some vegetables. Pizza contains a large amount of glutamate.
When you ingest foods with umami, receptors in your mouth bind with glutamate and two other compounds, inosinate and guanylate. That familiar mouth watering sensation begins when your brain receives signals from these compounds, an experience many pizza enthusiasts can relate to.
More Good Things About Pizza
If the umami you’re experiencing with each bite isn’t enough to aid your understanding of why you love pizza so much, consider these three additional reasons for why pizza is good for you:
1) Pizza is an Easy Way to Get Your Vegetables
A good thing about pizza is that it includes many of the fresh ingredients that Italians are admired for including in their diet. Focused on vegetables and fruits, bread, fish and olive oil, the so-called Mediterranean diet is considered a complete and balanced way to get important nutrients that are not always part of standard North American diets.
So it is with beloved pizza which delivers considerable protein and calcium in a single serving as well as a sizable dose of lycopene, an antioxidant commonly found in tomatoes. Vegetable toppings also offer healthy fiber through favorites like artichokes, spinach and bell peppers.
Pizza can also be easily adapted for those with food intolerances and allergies. For example, there are gluten-free dough options as well as many plant-forward crusts such as those made with cauliflower, or zucchini.
2) Pizza is Accessible to All
Another reason why pizza is so good is that it can be made exceptionally well with few ingredients.
After all, it was originally a meal that the working class in Naples made popular in the 1800s. Fishermen are believed to have purchased for their lunches cooked dough made from simple, local ingredients: wheat flour harvested and milled nearby.
Purchased from street vendors and folded into their pockets, these lunches were also smothered with freshly harvested and made olive oil, oregano and garlic.
Marinara pizza, a simple Neapolitan pizza made with only tomato sauce, extra virgin olive oil, oregano and garlic is said to have been named after these mariners.
Fast forward to modern day cuisine, if you like the Neapolitan style, you need only flour and water to replicate it at home. While of course you can choose to cook with fine oils or pricey aged cheeses, you’re just as likely to produce a great pie with simple, affordable ingredients.
3) Pizza Making is a Craft You Can Master
Yet another reason why pizza is good for you is that it’s a recipe that you can master. There’s a lot of satisfaction that comes with that accomplishment.
Chances are that the first pizza you make isn’t going to be your best. But, over time, you’ll fine-tune what proportion of ingredients produce the dough you most like.
You’ll also hone your senses about how long to mix the dough, how to handle it after it’s mixed and then how to shape and move it into the oven.
You’ll learn how quickly your oven heats to the desired temperature and you’ll gain a more intuitive grasp for how long your dough takes to reach its optimal baking point. In time, each element of your home-made pizza will reach that point at the same time. The results will speak for themselves.
The craft of a professional pizza maker is well-respected. In Italy, for example, it’s common to find many generations of pizzaiolos in a single family. In Naples, each will have mastered how to make pizza that meets the specific standards required by Italian authorities for making Neapolitan pizza.
While perhaps you won't be seeking any Neapolitan pizza certifications, we hope that your passion as a pizza maker inspires you as well as your family and friends.
Pro-Tip to Help You Master Your Craft
It all starts with good dough.
If you get the dough right, complicating factors such as cooking temperature, pie shape, cheese types and toppings are less relevant.
We recommend building up your confidence around dough making a simple recipe like Jim Leahy’s no-knead dough.
Here is a pro-tip to help you master the craft of pizza making: As many pizzaiolos will confirm, weigh your ingredients instead of measuring them by volume.
Using a digital kitchen scale, this approach will leave you confident of the amount of flour, dry yeast and salt that you’re putting into the dough.
Relying on a volume measurement can lead to inconsistencies because of how the flour may pack into the measuring cup.
While science helps explain why pizza is so good, the art of a well-made pie is just as important.
We hope you’ll enjoy making your pizza as much as you enjoy eating it.
Uchawi wa pizza ni jinsi inavyofanya kazi vizuri kwa hafla nyingi tofauti. Kutoka kula chakula cha jioni na marafiki katika pizzeria ya mahali hapo hadi chakula cha jioni cha Ijumaa rahisi nyumbani baada ya wiki ndefu, ni chakula ambacho kinaridhisha hamu yote ya kula. Pia kuna sababu ya kisayansi kwa nini pizza ni nzuri sana: Pizza inazalisha umami, hisia ya kipekee ya ladha ambayo haipatikani kwa urahisi katika chakula kingine. Kwa hivyo, hebu tuzungumze kidogo juu ya umami na mambo mengine machache ambayo hufanya pizza kuwa moja ya vyakula vinavyopendwa zaidi nchini Amerika. Sayansi ya Ladha Kubwa Kuna makubaliano makubwa kati ya Wamarekani kwamba pizza ni ladha. Huna haja ya kutafuta mbali kwa ajili ya watu ambao itathibitisha kwamba wao kula angalau mara moja kwa wiki. Wataalamu wa takwimu wanasema kwamba watu wanakula vipande 350 vya mchuzi kila sekunde nchini Marekani. Pizza ni maarufu sana na inasaidia kuimarisha uchumi wetu: Kuna zaidi ya mikahawa 78,000 ya pizza nchini Marekani ambayo, kwa pamoja, ilizalisha mauzo ya karibu $ 45 bilioni mnamo 2021. Katika mwaka wa 2020, wakati janga hilo lilipowasukuma wengi kukaa nyumbani, zaidi ya Wamarekani milioni 200 walinunua pizza iliyopunguzwa. Lakini, ni nini kinachoeleza upendo huo mkubwa kwa pizza? Kwa maneno sahili, ni kemia. Pizza huunganisha viungo vyenye ladha nzuri ambavyo huwa na ladha bora zaidi pamoja. Ni jambo linaloitwa umami. Neno umami lilitokana na lugha ya Kijapani na linamaanisha "kilavu" au "ladha yenye ladha nzuri". Nyakati nyingine huitwa "ladha ya tano" baada ya ladha nne za msingi: chumvi, tamu, chachu na uchungu. Hebu tuone jinsi umami anavyoeleza kwa nini pizza ni mojawapo ya vyakula bora zaidi. Umami ni ladha ya kipekee inayotokana na glutamate, amino asidi ambayo hupatikana katika nyama na mboga. Pizza ina kiasi kikubwa cha glutamate. Wakati unakula umami, vipokezi katika mdomo wako huunganisha na glutamate na misombo mingine miwili, inosinate na guanylate. Hisia ya maji ya kinywa huanza wakati ubongo unapopokea ishara kutoka kwa misombo hii, uzoefu ambao wapenzi wengi wa pizza wanaweza kuhusiana nao. Ikiwa umami unayoiona na kila kuumwa haitoshi kusaidia uelewe kwa nini unapenda pizza sana, fikiria sababu hizi tatu za ziada kwa nini pizza ni nzuri kwako: 1) Pizza ni Njia rahisi ya Kupata Mboga zako Jambo zuri kuhusu pizza ni kwamba inajumuisha viungo vingi vya safi ambavyo Waitaliano wanavutiwa kujumuisha katika lishe yao. Kwa sababu ya vyakula vyenye virutubisho, matunda, mikate, samaki na mafuta ya zeituni, chakula cha Mediterania kinaweza kuwa na faida kubwa kwa afya ya binadamu na afya ya binadamu. Pia, pizza ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya kipekee ya lycopene. Vipodozi vya mboga pia hutoa nyuzi zenye afya kupitia vyakula vinavyopendwa kama vile artichokes, spinach na pilipili. Pia, pizza inaweza kutumiwa kwa urahisi na watu wenye matatizo ya kula na wale walio na mzio wa vyakula. Kwa mfano, kuna chaguzi za unga usio na gluten na pia makapi mengi ya mimea kama vile yale yaliyofanywa na cauliflower, au zucchini. Pizza ni nzuri kwa sababu inaweza kutengenezwa kwa viungo vichache. Kwa kweli, ni chakula cha kawaida cha wafanyakazi wa Naples. Wavuvi waliweza kununua mchanganyiko wa chakula cha mchana kutoka kwa unga wa ngano uliokusanywa na kusaga karibu. Chakula hicho kilinunuliwa kutoka kwa wauzaji wa barabarani na kupakiwa mfukoni mwao, na pia kilikuwa kimefunikwa kwa mafuta ya zeituni, oregano, na vitunguu vilivyovunwa hivi karibuni. Piza ya Napolitano ya Marinara, iliyoundwa na mchuzi wa nyanya, mafuta ya mzeituni ya bikira, oregano na vitunguu, ni maarufu kwa sababu ya kuvutia kwa watu wa kawaida. Kwa mfano, kama wewe ni mlo wa kawaida wa ki-Napoli, unaweza kuunda chakula cha kawaida cha ki-Napoli kwa kutumia unga na maji. Wakati bila shaka unaweza kuchagua kupika na mafuta mazuri au jibini ghali ya umri, wewe ni kama uwezekano wa kuzalisha pie kubwa na rahisi, viungo nafuu. 3) Pizza ni ufundi unaweza Master Hata sababu nyingine kwa nini pizza ni nzuri kwa ajili yenu ni kwamba ni mapishi kwamba unaweza Master. Kuna kuridhika sana kunatokana na mafanikio hayo. Kuna uwezekano kwamba pizza ya kwanza unayofanya haitakuwa pizza yako bora. Lakini, baada ya muda, utaamua ni kiasi gani cha viungo vinavyotokeza unga unaopenda zaidi. Pia utajifunza jinsi ya kuchanganya unga kwa muda mrefu, jinsi ya kuushughulikia baada ya kuchanganya, na jinsi ya kuufanyia umbo na kuufunga ndani ya tanuri. Utajifunza jinsi haraka tanuri yako heats kwa joto taka na wewe kupata ufahamu zaidi intuitive kwa muda gani dough yako inachukua kufikia uhakika wake bora ya kuoka. Baada ya muda, kila kipengele cha pizza yako ya nyumbani kitafikia hatua hiyo kwa wakati mmoja. Matokeo yatazungumza yenyewe. Ufundi wa kutengeneza pizza kwa ustadi unaheshimiwa sana. Kwa mfano, nchini Italia, ni jambo la kawaida kupata vizazi vingi vya pizzaiolos katika familia moja. Pia, katika Naples, kila mmoja atajifunza jinsi ya kutengeneza pizza inayokidhi viwango maalum vinavyotakiwa na mamlaka za Italia kwa kutengeneza pizza ya Neapolitan. Ikiwa unajua jinsi ya kuunda pizza ya Neapolitan, unaweza kuwa na furaha na kufurahiya kuwa na pizza ya Neapolitan. Pro-Ncha ya Kukusaidia Ufanye Ufundi Wako Kila kitu huanza na unga mzuri. Ikiwa umefanya vizuri, mambo kama vile joto la kupika, umbo la keki, aina za jibini na toppings hazihusishi sana. Tunapendekeza kujenga ujasiri wako karibu na unga kufanya kichocheo rahisi kama Jim Leahy ya dough no-knead. Hapa ni pro tip kukusaidia ustadi wa utengenezaji wa pizza: Kama pizzaiolos wengi itathibitisha, uzito viungo yako badala ya kupima yao kwa kiasi. Kutumia mizani ya jikoni ya dijiti, mbinu hii itakuacha ukiwa na uhakika wa kiasi cha unga, chachu kavu na chumvi unayoweka kwenye unga. Kutegemea kipimo cha kiasi cha unga kunaweza kusababisha kutopatana kwa sababu ya jinsi unga unavyoweza kuingizwa ndani ya kikombe cha kupimia. Ingawa sayansi husaidia kueleza kwa nini pizza ni nzuri sana, sanaa ya kutengeneza keki iliyofanywa vizuri ni muhimu pia. Tunatumaini utafurahia kutengeneza pizza yako kama unavyofurahia kuila.