We all know that “pizza is a miracle.” And since that’s true, Italy wanting Neapolitan pizza on UNESCO’s cultural heritage list makes sense indeed.
According to the Guardian, the United Nations’ cultural body, UNESCO has already unanimously confirmed Neapolitan pizza’s candidacy for the list. 850,000 people around the world also signed a petition in support of this.
That almost a million people want pizza to get UN recognition is but another showcase of its power. Pizza can also catch serial killers, bring “ultimate happiness,” and make men go all caveman to impress a woman.
Still, Italy isn’t asking for any old pizza to go on the UNESCO cultural heritage list. This isn’t about that Pizza Hut you ordered because you haven’t been to the grocery store in three weeks. The Guardian reports that the country is making the case that Neapolitan pizza is central to Italian identity, and that how it’s made is very distinct. For example, Neapolitan pizza dough:
According to the rules set out by the Association of the Real Neapolitan Pizza, a genuine Neapolitan pizza dough consists of wheat flour (type 0 or 00, or a mixture of the two), compressed biologically produced yeast, sea salt and water. The dough must be kneaded by hand or with a low-speed mixer. After the rising process, the dough should be formed without the help of a rolling pin or other machine, and it may be no more than 3mm thick.
There are only two types of Neapolitan pizza, marinara and margherita, both of which are deceptively simple in their ingredients. But any of us who have tried them know that their simplicity results in a taste that is worth inclusion on any “best of” list, including one from the UN. The latest cultural heritage list won’t be finalized until 2017, but we can enjoy it as much as we want before then.
(via The Guardian)
