Pizza Napoletana

In 16th century Naples culture, a Galette flatbread was referred to as a pizza. Known as a dish for the poor, it was sold in the street and for ages was not even considered a kitchen recipe.

Everything changed on June 11, 1889 when in honor of the Queen consort of Italy Margherita of Savoy, the Neapolitan pizza maker Raffaele Esposito created the "Pizza Margherita,” a pizza garnished with tomatoes (red), mozzarella (white), and basil (green), to represent the national colors of Italy as seen on the Italian flag.

To be true to the traditional preparation of authentic Neapolitan pizza, key ingredients are used without compromise. Bavaro’s imports all primary ingredients in addition to Italian meats and cheeses.

Flour: (Double Zero) Tipo 00 Italian flour is milled extremely fine while providing a precise balance of protein and gluten. Traditional methods of stretching Neapolitan dough, combined with baking at 900 degrees for 90 seconds, offers a pizza that is thin and soft with a slight crisp to the outer crust.

Tomatoes: San Marzano tomatoes are the finest tomatoes in the world originated in the region of Campania and were first cultivated in the early 1700’s. Rich in color, flavor, and texture San Marzano tomatoes are grown in dark, fertile volcanic soil in the shadows of Mt. Vesuvius.

Mozzarella di Bufala: This unique, flavorful mozzarella is made from the milk of domestic Italian water buffalo. This type of cheese is primarily made in the Campania region of Italy, especially in provinces of Caserta and Salerno. Mozzarella di Bufala is very soft and moist and is mostly used to prepare the Margherita pizza.
 

Forno

Authentic Neapolitan pizza must be baked in traditional wood-fired ovens, which are primarily handcrafted in Napoli, Italy. The art of oven building has been handed down through generations dating back to the early 1800’s.

The Italian wood-fired oven must be built to proper dimensions along with materials durable enough to maintain temperatures in excess of 900 degrees. The oven’s cooking plane is crafted with an extremely delicate material called Biscotto di Sorrento. The crown and dome are formed with refractory bricks to bear extreme heat, which then passes through an external hood made of hand-modeled Santa Maria bricks. To complete the construction a selection of Italian mosaic tiles covers the exterior of the oven.