Pizza Throughout the Nation, American Pie Styles

Have you ever gotten into a heated debate over pizza? It's a food as ubiquitous as burgers and fries, and Americans as well as international lovers of our illustrious food favorites often have strong opinions on what they prefer and what they consider the best. There are a great number of regional pie styles all over this country that go beyond the choices of thin crust, hand tossed, or deep dish. Here are three of the most beloved styles. You can often find these delectable dinners across the country, and even in rival cities.

NY Style Pizzas are well known throughout the world. Maybe it's something in the water, but many pizza connoisseurs will attest to this well-known pie style. The crust is more often than not hand tossed. The sauce is a little sweet, most likely a result of Italian influence. The cheese is perfectly melted. The pie is usually quite large in size. A lot of New Yorkers are lovers of the holy trinity of topping options - plain, pepperoni, or sausage, sometimes augmented by the use of garlic powder, oregano, or crushed red pepper. There's no denying that many people today prefer NY style pies and it is often confused with a generic "American style" name. For sure there is a difference.

Chicago style offers more of everything. It touts its deep-dish style, also known as pan pizza because it is baked in a pan rather than directly on stone. The crust acts as a bowl to hold more cheese and sauce. The crust can sometimes rise as high as three inches! The "stuffed" style is similar but includes additional crust on top to incase all manner of cheese, sauce, and toppings into a veritable pie. Chicago style tends to incorporate more vegetables like mushrooms, onions, and bell peppers.

What defines the California style is not necessarily how you like your crust but what you put on your pie. Because of the long growing seasons, the attention paid to artisan and gourmet ingredients, Californians prefer their pizzas to be designed to suit their palates for the local and fresh. Where the New York and Chicago styles are more concerned with meats and cheeses, California style includes more unique toppings such as artichoke hearts, avocado, and fresh greens. They are more willing to experiment with combinations and even forego meat toppings all together because of the regions strong vegetarian and vegan population.

If you're a native of any of these regions, chances are you have strong pride for your pizza style, but there are probably close to 30 regional styles for pies around the country. You have your chain restaurants that are fairly consistent no matter where you are, but if you are a pizza-lover and are traveling, it's great to experience local flavor by trying out how they make their pies: what they choose to top it with, how to prepare the crust, sauce options, and what kind of oven they use to cook it in. You would be trying your new favorite!