Deep Dish or Thin Crust?
April 5th is National Deep Dish Pizza Day! One of the greatest debates in history remains: “New York style pizza vs Chicago Deep Dish.” No one is going to solve that question today, but lovers of the deep stuff will rejoice: April 5th is the day to cheer deep-dish goodness.
But first, let us thank Pizzeria Uno’s founder Ike Sewell– because this day wouldn’t exist without him. He is credited with creating the spectacular deep dish pizza in 1943. This wonderfully tasty pizza, also known as Chicago-style pizza (because that’s where it was first created) is characterized by a superb buttery crust that can be as high as three-inches tall, along with generous amounts of sauce, toppings and of course, cheese.
It gets its name from the high-edged steel pan (almost resembling a cake or pie tin), that’s used to bake the dish. It is oiled so the pizza can be easily removed, and to give the crust a fried look. Dough is pressed on the bottom and sides of the pan; the buttery, cornmeal crust is not very thick itself but may be three inches tall on the edges, in order to hold all the ingredients.
- Want to honor the day, but can’t get one? That’s okay – a pan style pizza or thick-crusted/Sicilian-style pizza will do.
- ONE MORE THING! What about “stuffed pizza?” That came about in the mid-1970s, is a similar to deep-dish pizza, but it’s usually even deeper. It also differs in that an additional layer of crust goes on topof the toppings, but underneaththe sauce.
