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Pizza Margherita

Recipe from Carlo Mirarchi, Brandon Hoy, Chris Parachini and Katherine Wheelock

Adapted by Sam Sifton

Published Jan. 18, 2023

Pizza Margherita
Melina Hammer for The New York Times
Total Time
15 minutes, plus 1 hour to heat oven
Rating
5(3,389)
Comments
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Here is the archetype of a thin-crust pizza pie, a pizza margherita adorned simply in the colors of the Italian flag: green from basil, white from mozzarella, red from tomato sauce. This pizza is adapted from the recipe used by the staff at Roberta’s restaurant in Brooklyn, who make their tomato sauce simply by whizzing together canned tomatoes, a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt. The ingredients offer in their proportions what appears to be a kind of austerity — not even 3 ounces of cheese! But the result is home-cooked pizza to beat the band, exactly the sort of recipe to start a career in home pizza-making, and to return to again and again. —Sam Sifton

Featured in: A Little Pizza Homework

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Ingredients

Yield:2 servings
  • 112-inch round of pizza dough, stretched (see recipe)
  • 3tablespoons tomato sauce (see note)
  • Extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2¾ounces fresh mozzarella
  • 4 to 5basil leaves, roughly torn
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (2 servings)

439 calories; 14 grams fat; 6 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 57 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 20 grams protein; 1003 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Place a pizza stone or tiles on the middle rack of your oven and turn heat to its highest setting. Let it heat for at least an hour.

  2. Step 2

    Put the sauce in the center of the stretched dough and use the back of a spoon to spread it evenly across the surface, stopping approximately ½ inch from the edges.

  3. Step 3

    Drizzle a little olive oil over the pie. Break the cheese into large pieces and place these gently on the sauce. Scatter basil leaves over the top.

  4. Step 4

    Using a pizza peel, pick up the pie and slide it onto the heated stone or tiles in the oven. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbling, approximately 4 to 8 minutes.

Tip
  • In a food processor, whiz together whole, drained canned tomatoes, a splash of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt. Keep leftover sauce refrigerated.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
3,389 user ratings
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Comments

Lee

I'm always a bit confused abut the term fresh mozzarella. Is this the buffala type sold in water (sometimes also sold as fiore di latte, not buffal but less expensive) or like boccancini? Or the firmer type sold in plastic?

CFXK

DO NOT shy away from making the dough recommended here (Roberta's). Do not give in to the temptation to use store-bought dough. I've made this pizza with both, and the difference between the two can be measured in light years. Make it. You can do it. It's not hard. And it is A-MAY-ZING.

Rich

I followed this recipe to the letter, and I have to tell you, it was pretty bland. If you really want to do pizza sauce the right way, you must add oregano -- along with chopped onions and garlic. Otherwise, the sauce has no kick at all.

Ec

Putting fresh basil at the end after cooking is a must. Should still be green. Do not put it on and then let it bake. Looks like burned basil in the photo. And don’t over cheese.

Peter

After several tries I got a very nice result using the dough recipe referenced here. Cooking time was 10 minutes for me. I am using a 1/4 inch pizza steel and the surface temperature of the steel gets to about 520 degrees in my oven. Also added some chorizo sausage crumbles that I fried in advance. The crust was very crunchy and nice.

Sophia

Has anyone tried this on a gas (outside) grill? With stone or without?

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Credits

Adapted from "Roberta's," by Carlo Mirarchi, Brandon Hoy, Chris Parachini and Katherine Wheelock

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