Essential Pizza Seasonings

Don’t you love making pizza? We know we do! When you’re crafting your next pizza masterpiece, don’t forget about seasonings. Often, when people are making pizza, they get so caught up in everything else that they forget. With so many seasonings and herbs to choose from, it can be difficult to tell what the best combination is. That’s what we’re going to talk about in today’s post. We’ll fill you in on essential pizza seasonings and herbs you can’t forget. 

Without seasoning your pizza, you will end up with a piece of bread slathered with meat, cheese, and sauce. You’re too much of an artisan to make something like that. Let’s jump right in and talk about these essential pizza seasonings.

Salt & Pepper

You might think this one is pretty obvious. Well, to some people, it’s not. Many prefer the taste of salt but not pepper, and vice versa. Despite this, the beauty of salt and pepper is that they complement each other well. Another thing that’s great about these baseline seasonings is that you don’t need much of either. Too much of one, and you won’t be able to taste the different flavors your pizza offers. 

When we say salt and pepper, we don’t mean the kind you buy from the store that’s fine ground. At Backyard Brick Ovens, we value texture and all-natural ingredients. Fresh-cracked peppercorns serve any dish better than fine-ground black pepper. This coarse-ground pepper adds a level of consistency and flavor that the other pepper doesn’t. As for the salt, we often recommend coarse ground sea salt. Sea salt not only comes from the ocean but also offers a separate palette of flavors. The ocean provides its sweet, airy flavor to various foods. It does the same for salt. 

When you pair the textures of fresh salt and pepper with the textures of your dough, cheese, meat, veggies, etc., you create a complex and masterful pizza. 

Basil 

Fresh basil, not dried, is arguably the most essential herb on any pizza. Please, though, do not add basil before baking your pizza! When basil gets hot, it starts to lose its flavor. Additionally, dried basil does not maintain the classic sweet, minty, and peppery taste. If you use basil on your pizza, add it at the very end as a delicious garnish, and create a pop of color.

Oregano

When it comes to pizza sauce, oregano is essential. Oregano offers a traditional pizza flavor through a combination of slight bitterness and sweetness. Fresh oregano is less potent than dried. In its dried form, it offers a more pungent smell and taste. 

Garlic

Garlic, like oregano, is an essential ingredient in any tomato-based pizza sauce. Its pungent, spicy flavor tones down once cooked. We always use fresh garlic for the best garlic flavor. Fresh garlic provides a more diverse flavor profile that you won’t get from the jarred stuff. 

Rosemary 

Rosemary is an excellent herb for any Italian dish, and it provides an unmatched piney, sweet flavor and scent. Add it at the end of cooking or before. Be careful, though. A little bit goes a long way when it comes to rosemary. It has a tendency to overcome anything else if used too much.

Want To Learn More About Pizza Or Looking For An Oven?

Now that you know about the essential pizza seasonings and herbs, you can get cooking! At Backyard Brick Ovens, we specialize in world-class service and ovens. Reach out today if you’d like to talk about our backyard brick pizza ovens. If you want to learn more about making great pizza, we have a pizza school like no other. Check it out here.