Pinsa pizza: What is the trendy style and is it really that new?
A little-known style of pizza is gaining popularity in the US as people opt for a fluffier crust.
Pinsa pizza is not a new type of pizza, but until now, it would have been difficult to find it in America’s pizza restaurants, where it was instead overlooked in favour of the more mainstream options like Chicago style or Neapolitan pizza.
But, as with most food trends, you can expect to find pinsa pizza everywhere soon enough.
What is pinsa and where did it come from?
Pinsa pizza has been around since the ancient Roman times.
“The story that people spin about pinsa is that it’s the most ancient form of pizza from Rome,” New York City pizza chef Lou Tomczak told The Independent.
As for what makes it different from any regular pizza, Tomczak said the “distinguishing factor” is the blend of flours, which often contain “soy or rice flour in addition to wheat”.
The ingredients make the dough lighter and fluffier than what you would normally expect from a pizza.
“It’s also very hydrated dough, which means there is a lot of water in it,” he added.
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The additional water content means the dough is not rolled or thrown in the air like a typical pizza, but pressed flat before cooking, according to People.
As for what toppings you’d expect to find on a pinsa, Tomczak told us: “They are topped somewhat traditionally but more often very untraditionally.”
“It’s common practise to ‘parbake’ the dough so it’s set,” he said. “Then it’s taken out of the oven and garnished with everything from tomato sauce to smoked salmon and baked a second time.”
The style also does well with or without cheese, which is useful for vegans.
According to Tomczak, the end result is a pizza “most closely related to the pizza alla pala you would find in Rome at bakeries like forno campo de fiori or forno roscioli”.
“The dough gets very airy and very crunchy - so it’s kind of like biting through a cloud with the bottom crust of a well-baked New York slice,” he explained. “So it’s kind of a textural marvel.”
Why has pinsa become so popular?
As most millennials will know, food trends come and go quite quickly, as we’ve seen happen with the likes of sushi bagels and matcha lattes.
According to Tomczak, the spotlight is on pinsa because “it’s a relatively new and different style of pizza,” even if the technique has been around for hundreds of years.
“I personally think it’s a bit of a gimmick. But still tasty,” he added.
