Cuban pizza, the only dish that can compete with congrí and roast pork.
Pizza in Cuba is one of the dishes that has become so typical that today it is as popular and almost as Cuban as our roast pork, congrí and yuca con mojo.
Of course, we are talking about Cuban pizza, smaller in diameter than the Italian one, but thicker; less crispy and softer. The average Cuban is not used to eating pizzas flavored with basil and oregano, which are originally essential to him. Here, pizza has been Cubanized.
Cuban pizza is of vital importance to Cubans looking for a quick and cheap meal. Along with pan con lechon and minuta de pescado.
Currently, many independents have developed countless gastronomic projects of different categories and you can already find yourself at the typical chinchal*, as well as at excellent Italian restaurants with a real pizza, or something very close to it to be honest. However, the prices have changed so much that you can no longer go with the whole family on such a Sunday adventure.
Creole pizza, with a thick and soft crust, which can be purchased for between 10 and 15 or even 20 Cuban pesos (CUP) in any timbirichi* in this country, continues to be the classic alternative for Cubans to "matar el almuerzo" or fill their stomachs at noon. This typical pizza is one of the most consumed daily foods in Cuba.
In the difficult and unforgettable times of the special period, when we were at university, there were times when we had only one of these vital pizzas for a day of study and we were lucky to be able to buy it.
How is Cuban pizza then?
This pizza is rather small, it resembles the diameter of a traditional plate and its edges are burned by the heat of the oven and because the cheese that falls in this area also melts.
When the pizza comes out of the oven, the traditional thing is to add a little salt to the consumer's taste, fold it in half and put a piece of cardboard on it so you can grab it without burning yourself, because it is usually sold to take away and you eat it on the street corner with a glass of soda and that's it.
In Trinidad, for example, it is customary to add mayonnaise to the preparation of these pizzas. Otherwise, everywhere else in Cuba, they especially like to prepare them with ham, onions and peppers.
While Cubana pizza doesn't leave your clothes dirty with dripping sauce or grease, the moment of eating it isn't so well-liked. When pizzas are done right, they drip grease and melted cheese down the sides, inevitably ending up on your clothes.
If it wasn't, then the pizza wouldn't have been any better.
In any corner of Cuba there is a pizzeria, of different categories it is true, but the important thing is that in almost all of them you will find an authentic product that will help you out when you are hungry at noon, a pizza made in a different mold but full of Cubanness.
Don't hesitate next time, queue up like another Cuban, and enjoy a Cuban pizza in the simplicity that makes it unique.
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