Pizza was introduced into the American zeitgeist when 4 million Italian immigrants came across the Atlantic and brought their cooking skills and traditions with them.
However, it's actually much more Greek than Italian.
Britannica says:
"Shortly after its introduction stateside, pizza became more popular in the U.S. than it was in Italy."
"This is partly because pizza's not exactly Italian to begin with."
"Naples was originally founded by Greek settlers around 600 BCE, and pizza is known to have existed there before the city was unified with the rest of Italy in 1861."
"The cheesy, tomatoey delight wasn't introduced into greater Italian cuisine until the 1940s."
"So, at least for a while, pizza was much more American than Italian."
"Traditional" toppings are actually not that traditional at all. That's why we see all sorts of variations on the theme of pizza and why there's much debate on which toppings are the best.
Redditor TheMulefromMoscow asked:
"What's the most underrated pizza topping?"
The debate was taken to Ask Reddit, so we made a list of the best of the best.
That's a lot of garlic.
"Roasted whole garlic."
"[Pizza My Heart] makes a pizza with 40 cloves of roasted garlic on it. It's flipping delicious."
"I love garlic a lot but that's way too much garlic."
"Cries in thin blood."
"Cries in vampire but also mildly interested in your thin blood."
Salty and heat.
"Jalapeños. When I worked at Domino's someone ordered a thin crust pepperoni/jalapeño and called back later to cancel. So my manager and I said f*ck it and ate it. Despite thinking it wouldn't be good. Holy sh*t was it good. If you don't mind the heat, I highly recommend it. Doesn't matter if it's thin crust or not, but just pepperoni and jalapeño."
"So close to my favorite which is =pepperoni, jalapeños and bacon. So good!!"
"Hear me out: pepperoni, jalapeño, and pineapple."
"Salt, heat, sweetness and acidity. It's a goddamn revelation the first time you try it."
"This is the holy trinity of pizza combos. Every time I have friends over I order this pizza and even if they don't normally like those ingredients they just work so perfectly off each other everyone loves the combination."
"Try that combo with chicken instead of pepperoni. Got it by mistake one time, and it's fantastic."
More of a good thing.
"Extra cheese."
"Sometimes all ya need is cheese pizza."
"Simple, slightly greasy, delicious cheese."
"A few months ago I had the messiest night ever, and as a 27 year old my hangover resistance is starting to fade."
"I had ordered an absolutely filthy triple cheese and pepperoni pizza from a trashy takeout and it saved my life I'm sure. That amount of cheese and grease just resonated within my soul. Hot and cold it was simply beautiful."
"I remember this one pizza joint that was open late. Always hit it up after a night on the town. Massive amount of cheese (and grease) that was the best while drunk and barely tolerable while sober. It was just that perfect combo that resonates with alcohol and seems to help with hangovers."
A better substitute for pepperoni.
"Sausage and onions. Everybody wants pepperoni but they are sleeping on the sausage and onions."
"Chorizo's a good alternative to pep. Chorizo and chicken. With fresh herbs on top after it comes out."
"I live in a place that I should see this, but I never even thought of chorizo on a pizza. that sounds so bomb, cilantro, fresh onion and a squeeze of lime, that would be it."
Flavorful peppers.
"Banana peppers. So much flavor!"
- jcpmojo
"Banana peppers or pepperoncini? There's a substantial difference and having worked at a Chicagoland pizza place - the amount of complaints from people who order one but want the other was massive."
"Idk if it's regional but if you want a pickled pepper - like you get with your papa John's (trash) - order pepperoncini. If you want a fresh pepper that's mostly sweet with a mild kick - banana pepper. Hardly anywhere actually has banana peppers though - except for more upscale pizza places. - may be regional. Dunno"
Don't forget your greens.
"Spinach."
"Or arugula at the very end. Delish."
"Spinach and roasted red peppers is my favorite combo when I make a homemade pizza."
The controversial topping.
"I'm about to start a war here....Pineapple."
"Before I tried Hawaiian pizza, I would've argued against it; But after trying it, I will wholly support you."
"Ham and pineapple is okay, but ham is already a sweet meat. I prefer my pineapple with a more savory meat, usually either pepperoni or sausage or bacon. Yeah those are often also made of pork but they're smokier or spiced, so it hits different and I enjoy it more than regular ham. Throw some jalapeños on there and I'll wolf it down."
"This is the best answer. It seems that reddit hates pineapple on pizza for some reason, and yet obviously plenty of people love it since it's offered as a topping by every pizza place that exists."
"It's weird because I'd call pineapple a top 3 topping. Like if I was ordering pizzas for a big group and I was doing 3 types, I put pineapple on a bunch of them."
"It's extremely popular. I had no idea it was even supposed to be controversial."
According to Huffington Post, the top three are pepperoni, mushrooms, and onions.
If none of these are your favorite, not to worry. It's all just pizza anyways.
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There is nothing more alienating than saying “No" to splitting some avocado toast.
Instagram and Pinterest have ramped up the strength and frequency of food obsessions. There are certain condiments, specific veggies prepared a certain way, and jars of viscous liquids of all sorts that go great on sandwiches.
They all grow so popular and talked about that having something from a food truck can make someone feel a strange, undeserving pride. It's as if one of the nutrients listed should be cultural capital.
Some, however, are left on the sidelines. They simply cannot rouse the taste buds to like the “in" thing. So they access pride through an equal and opposite energy: they trash the food into oblivion on a Reddit forum
deadlydude2448 asked, "What is something a lot of people enjoy that you hate the taste of?"
“Another Round of Ginger Ales, Please”
"I don't care for booze. I live in the UK so this means no social life." -- GoatGoatGadget
"One of my good friends in college didn't drink. Often times I would rinse out my beer bottle and fill it with water for him to carry around at parties. He would even participate in chugging events and nobody ever noticed."
"I do't think people generally would have cared, but he hated answering the 'why don't you drink?' questions that he would inevitably get." -- Xeibra
Steer Clear of Bistros
"Truffles/truffle oil. I can't stand it and people think it's so fancy and great. It's gross." -- hicanipetyourpupper
"God. I agree that a lot, if not all, people that use truffle oil have no idea what they are doing. Especially if they are just gonna straight up add truffle oil onto something and not even try to balance it out. Less is more, for sure." -- Abundantly-Addicted
"Yes thank you! Would burger joints PLEASE stop ruining their perfectly good fries and mac and cheese. I'm beggggiiinnnnggg." -- MsAlyssa
Flakes of Horror
"Coconut. Nature makes it just to frighten me out of eating candy." -- shleppenwolf
"I have personal hate against whoever made coconut water in cans." -- RedDemonCorsair
"Can confirm, one time I was on vacation on a Caribbean island, and we were chillin' on the beach. We spot these dudes coming towards us brandishing machetes and we were all like 'OH SH*T.'"
"But then they all pulled coconuts out and chopped em open with the machetes and gave some to us. Best coconut ever, especially considering I wasn't murdered." -- The3MiteeyLambo
Screw the Microbiome
"Kombucha. Get that fermented cow's p*ss away from me." -- idkjustsomedude
"I liked it okay until I saw where it comes from. I can't stop picturing that disgusting blob they call a 'Mother' and it makes me gag." -- SlapCracklePlop
"It looks like something you'd pull out of an infected sinus cavity." -- Flamboyatron
WHAT IS RANCH DRESSING MADE OF
"Ranch. I can't even stand the smell of that putrid excuse of a sauce!" -- OmniTheProdigy
"The thing with Ranch for me is, I don't think I know what Ranch is. I swear, every where I go to the thing taste different. When I try to go to a store and get some for myself there're like 20 different version of Ranch for each brand."
"And these things range from being utterly disgusting to heavenly tasty." -- Hippobu2
Eggs are cool. Oil is Cool. But Mayo is NOT
"Mayonnaise, absolutely disgusting." -- BentNotBroken12
"It's the devil's semen! Anything with the texture of mayo is a turn off for me." -- xendaddy
"It is vile." -- i_said_no_mayonnaise
Something’s in the Water
"Cucumber. I can taste that sh*t a mile away."
All forms. Sprays, water, lotion doesn't matter, if cucumber in any shape or form is involved, I'm f*cking out." -- TheGodmama
"Yes! Finally someone who shares my hatred."
"I actually bought of bottle of Sprite a few months ago, took a swig and it was cucumber flavour!? The bottle looked exactly the same. It was absolutely rancid." -- surelywolfbeak
"Agree. Apparently their smell is what could also scare cats away. I often thought I am indeed a cat." -- 9december3
GiphyThicc
"Milk tastes like phlegm and smells like a barn floor. On this I can not be moved." -- claire_goolihey
"I grew up drinking it. Then left to college, never really had it anymore, then when I came home on break I had a glass or something and thought I was going to die." -- chuullls
No Pineapple, Got It
"Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. Pineapple. It's way too tart, sweet, and sour all at once. Keep it away from me and my pizza." -- TheRebelWarden
A Very Hot Take
"Avocados. They are absolutely horrible. I tolerate guacamole but avocados can f*ck off." -- Hopewolf115
"Avocados are disgusting. Just musty off tasting." -- splintercinder
"Avocados. All slimy and disgusting and tastes like fricking soap." -- asarcasticgirl
Multiple Hypotheses, All Terrible
"Redbull. It smells like urinal cakes." -- just-keep-walkin
"I like red bull. I think I've just discovered a tasty new snack!" -- HoggishPad
"It also smells like Drano. I had a bad clogging situation in my bathroom and it smelled like red bull for like a week after resolving it." -- CLTalbot
Plant-Based and Grotesque
"Cilantro. It tastes like chewing on the seventh circle of hell. It destroys everything it accompanies." -- Buhhfly
"There's a gene that makes cilantro taste like soap to some people." -- ellumenohpee
"I've never tasted a stink bug but the flavor of cilantro really reminds me of the smell those things expel when agitated." -- nicoleyotova
A Scathing Review
"Carp. Tastes more like crap to me." -- ChilliPuller
"Carp is to fish what Velveeta is to cheese." -- kalidava
"Same!! I think fish in general are gross." -- poptarts4me
Going With Your Gut
"Pumpkin flavored anything. A few years in a row, when pumpkin spice season came id be all excited and get pumpkin flavored things."
"And then remember that I HATE pumpkin. I think I've finally come to accept that I hate it. Even pumpkin pie. I much prefer sweet potato pie."
Some Concise, yet Aggressive Views
"Horseradish. It is the edible embodiment of pungent sweaty armpits." -- thebiggsad
"Celery. It ruins every single dish. It's impossible to change my mind." -- zoishiez
"Mushrooms. These disgusting squishy f*ckers." -- poppy_poppin
Pluckin' Up Trash
"BEETS!"
"Before you ask, yes I have had the very best beets prepared by the finest chefs at Michelin rated restaurants and they still taste like god-damn DIRT."
"I get tempted by the gorgeous colors, the addition of goat cheese (my favorite) that maybe this time they will taste different, but no. It is a curse."
-- whipsmade
A Dedicated Few
"White chocolate idk why." -- justanredditacount
"I do too! You're the only person ever to agree with me. You might as well just pour some sugar on some butter and eat that. Super gross." -- kalidava
Rage Against the "All the Rage"
"Sweet potatoes. I hate them. They're literally one of the only things I won't eat." -- MericaMericaMerica
"Yes especially when they're made into 'fries.' I swear people only order them in restaurants because it's marketed as an 'upgrade' and they feel like being fancy, but I'll take the fried russet potatoes every day over those abominations." -- Aero_Jet
Seeing Red
"Bell Peppers! If I have just a small piece I can taste it for hours afterwards. And it is put in so many things." -- Jaerynn
"They are poison. Poison everything they touch. In summer husband makes stuffed ones on the grill so I don't have to suffer. The smell of them cooking literally has made me ill to my stomach since I was a child." -- deviantelf
Do you have something to confess to George? Text "Secrets" or "" to +1 (310) 299-9390 to talk him about it.
Even if you're a diehard foodie there has to be a menu of options that sours the palette. Some foods, no matter how rare or delectable they are known for being just don't suit the intestines of everyone. Sometimes food reactions are linked to past experiences which renders them inedible due to triggers. And sometimes, some food, is just straight up gross!
Redditor u/Yahya_2000 wanted to see what foods are a permanent no for people's tummies by asking.... What food do you refuse to eat?
Oh my Gagh!
GiphyAnything that is still moving in the plate. BakonNigiri
Only correct way to eat Gagh. Don't complain to the chef that your Gagh is still wriggling. G_Morgan
Your description makes me want to Gagh. Goat17038
Internal Organs.
I'm pretty turned off on most organs (brain, eyes, liver, lungs, ect..) at this point. I've tried them a lot when I was younger, but it's a tough sell now. nightandshade
Not Mr. Ed!
So in my country we have a soup that has horse's intestines filed with other organs, it's called ''Sopa de Manguera'' (hose soup) I live in Ecuador btw. HealthyMinder
Ok I'm out! sn00t_b00p
So Chewy.
Celery. I don't care about the taste, but that stringy texture is ugh. ButtholeSpiders
It tastes like bitter lawn grass with a stinging, peppery finish. It's unbelievable people actually like it. Polly_Peptide
The Quivers....
GiphyLiver. Just, ugh. mcgrooty
Correct me if this is factually incorrect but I believe it was George Washington who once wrote, "Liver makes my nips quiver." SchneebsTheGinger
Ba-yuck!
Balut! Mike5brown
It tastes good but i hate being reminded that i'm eating duck embryo. NotSoRainbow
Taste-Free.
Skim Milk. It's water that's lying about being Milk. MMacKillop
Anything less than whole milk is white water. unopposablethumbs
Breakfast Duds....
Spoiled food and if I can avoid it- fennel. Bolzenschneider
No bigger turn off than thinking you just bought some kick a** breakfast sausages and they turn out to be like 20% fennel. I don't get it, like sure it can impart good flavors in a dish, but the actual pods are like chewing on a bath bomb.Daisypusha1323
No Yokes About It!
Eggs. For a really long time I loved eggs and ate them as often as I could. But one day I had the flu and ended up puking up the eggs I ate that day. Ever since that horrible day, the scent/taste/texture of eggs makes me instantly gag. It was one of my favorite things to eat. bohdiii
PTSD Fish!
GiphyTuna casserole. That's all my mother made growing up besides overdone roast on Sundays and overcooked spaghetti on birthdays. Won't touch the stuff I don't care how you cook it the smell gives me flashbacks. TinyTinasRabidOtter