Marinara Pizza
The Marinara pizza is one of two main varieties of the Neapolitan pizza. It's a real favourite of ours and considered by many to be the original pizza.
Check out our blog on other pizza styles and watch our Marinara pizza reel.
What's so special about a Marinara pizza, you ask? It's all in the simplicity, my friend. A crispy, thin crust, a punchy tomato sauce, some garlicky goodness, a sprinkling of oregano, and a dash of olive oil – BOOM! That's the secret sauce right there. No fancy cheese stealing the spotlight, just the pure magic of Mediterranean flavors.
But, don't be fooled by its modest ingredient list. The key to this pizza's deliciousness is all in the quality of the ingredients. If you're going to make a killer Marinara pizza, you need to get your hands on the best tomatoes you can find. The Italians swear by the San Marzano variety, grown in a special spot in Italy, and oh, do they pack a sweet, heavenly punch. You should be able to find them under various brand names now. Trust us, they are worth the effort to find!
Ingredients
- 250g pizza dough ball for a regular pizza or 350g for a large one
- Fresh San Marzano plum tomatoes - or a 400g can will also do
- A clove of garlic – we sometimes add a few extra cloves if we're feeling adventurous
- Fresh basil - this isn’t really part of a traditional Marinara recipe but we think it really transforms the taste
- ½ tbsp dried oregano
- Fine sea salt
- Extra virgin olive oil
- ½ tsp of salt in a small bowl of cold water
Method
- Fire up your pizza oven.
- Thinly slice the garlic clove with a small, serrated knife or a mandolin.
- Dunk around 10 basil leaves in the bowl of salted water. This prevents the basil from burning in the oven and the steam helps spread the delicious flavour over the pizza.
- Put the San Marzano tomatoes into a bowl with a good pinch of sea salt and crush with your hands or a potato masher until you have a nice chunky sauce.
- Sprinkle some flour under your pizza dough ball and stretch it out to your desired pizza size (12" or 16").
- Spread approximately 6 tablespoons of the tomato sauce evenly over the pizza base. Remember, there's no cheese weighing the pizza down so be extra generous with the sauce!
- Lay on the garlic slices and basil leaves (make sure you’ve shaken any excess water off first), a sprinkle of oregano and a swirl of olive oil.
- Carefully transfer the pizza to your peel and into the hot pizza oven for 1-2 minutes.
- Serve hot and devour immediately.
