Italian Pizza Toppings Ideas
- niko
- 7 days ago
- 6 min read
By this point, I assume you have perfected your Neapolitan dough technique or at least my Italian quick dough recipe, you've bought your kit and gadgets and are seeking some pizza topping ideas.
In this post, I’m sharing some of my all-time favourite pizza toppings—born from a mix of cookbook inspirations, eating pilgrims through magnificent Italy, and countless slices devoured at pizzerias and shacks across the UK and Europe. Rather than revisiting the usual Italian topping suspects found in every blog or recipe book (think prosciutto e rucola or quattro stagioni), I’ve curated a list of interestingly flavoursome combinations that have become banging hit crowd-pleasers at my garden parties and weekend feasts. Each topping idea stays true to traditional Italian principles (which I will talk next), while offering a personal twist, and I’ve included little secrets for success, from pairing tips to gourmet product suggestions, to skyrocket your homemade pizza toppings to the next level.
And while the list of toppings can be endless and highly creative, there are a few fundamental principles and rules to follow when it comes to toppings.
The 5 Pizza Topping Rules
01: Less is more: Only a few, high-quality ingredients are needed. Consider pizza margherita, for instance, and add one or two more toppings.
02: Balance and harmony: Toppings must not overpower the dough, sauce, or each other. Avoid piling up excessively or creating thick layers that overlap.
03: Add Parmesan: Parmesan (grated) will give this extra sour and salty kick that your sauce needs so badly.
04: Use Mozzarella: Avoid using Gouda or Cheddar, as they tend to produce a greasy saturated surface and lead to indigestion. Buffalo mozzarella is a suitable choice, but remember that it's whiter and a bit more moist, so you should drain it well before using it to prevent your pizza base from plunging into hot brine. Fior di Latte (cow’s milk mozzarella from Campania) is my personal favourite because it's lower in fat and easier to digest (lower in lactose).
05: Keep it in order: The layering order should be followed ritually: sauce first, followed by cheese, then toppings, drizzle of olive oil and basil leaves.
The Top 5 Ingredients for my Pizzas
Truffle Olive Oil: Just a few drops of this luxurious, intoxicating aroma and rich, earthy essence of premium truffle oil can transform a simple dish into a gourmet experience. It's an indispensable secret weapon which I use with pasta (right after draining to prevent sticking), risottos, scrambled eggs, and mashed potatoes. The Fillipo Berio brand is pretty famous in the UK and great value for money.
Lemon Infused Olive Oil: except it is a vibrant addition to my kitchen, offering a refreshing burst of citrus in every drop, I drizzle it not just on pizza but also over salads, roasted vegetables, toasted bread or grilled fish and effortlessly elevate my dishes. Ranieri is made in Italy and made of high-quality extra virgin olive oil and natural lemon essence and is a versatile pantry staple in my arsenal with a clean, bright flavour.
Vegan Nduja: Bleazu is a reputable brand of high-quality, premium sauces and pastes, and their vegan nduja is no exception. With hardly a chemical ingredient in the mix, Bleazu's Vegan 'Nduja offers an equally explosive taste profile. It evokes the warmth of Harissa but with a milder heat and a distinctive "Italian" character. Don't worry about leftovers! This versatile paste can effortlessly elevate a variety of dishes, adding a new dimension to stews, roasts, or even sandwich spreads.
Sweet pickled peppers: bite sized peppers in a jar boasting a layered, sweet and tangy flavour, complimented by a mild heat. These Peppadew brand antipasti peppers will give some extra crunchiness in your pizza and are they are nicely paired with the Italian salty salami to provide a tone of freshness and crispiness. Got leftovers? eat them straight from the jar or toss in salads or chop in pasta sauces.
Kalamata Olives: No introduction needed for the most famous black olives in the world. Of course, any black pitted olive of your taste will do the trick in pizza, but I like going premium on my dishes, and for this reason, I like to choose small independent Greek brands like the Odysea in the UK.
01 Mushrooms with Thyme and Truffle Oil
This is my take on fungi pizza, which I have enhanced with some matching herbs (thyme mainly) and a drizzle of truffle oil to give an extra dimension.
Ingredients (for 1 pizza)
2 ladles of Pomodoro sauce
1 tsp fresh (or dried) thyme leaves
100 gr chestnut mushrooms, thinly sliced - ideally lightly precooked briefly with oil, garlic and wine, but can do great raw.
1 tbsp truffle oil
Some fresh basil leaves
Stretch the pie and spread the sauce evenly on the pie. Add your mozzarella and some grated parmesan, and spread the mushroom slices. Top with the thyme leaves, some dried oregano. Sprinkle some fresh basil leaves, drizzle the truffle oil and slide into the oven.
02 Salame Piccante with Nduja and Pesto
Nduja is the ingredient that makes waves in the pizza world as of late and is served with hot honey, which is an interesting combination that I quite like. However, in my version, I used some leftover pesto, which nicely came to balance out the quite intense flavour of a rather interesting take on vegan nduja - which is absolutely delicious!
Ingredients (for 1 pizza)
2 ladles of Pomodoro sauce
1 tbsp Nduja (or try Belazu's vegan nduja)
1 tbsp pesto sauce
Sliced "Salame Piccante" (Neapolitan salami) or any other salami of your choice
Some fresh basil leaves
Stretch the pie and spread the sauce evenly on the pie. Add your mozzarella and some grated parmesan, spread your slices of salami and then top with small patches of nduja and pesto. Add a drizzle of olive oil and some fresh basil leaves, and slide into the oven.
03 Pizza Blanca with Gorgonzola and Lemon
This is a story that dates back to a pizza masterclass session I took in Sorrento, Italy. Little I knew back then about pizza, not least about pizza blanca and lemon olive oil. And while my brain always instructs my hand, almost mechanically, to grab the tomato sauce after I've stretched my dough, I never saw that coming - at the end of my pizza class back in South Italy, my pizzaiolo master prepared and served a pizza without tomato sauce and with 3 simple toppings that rocked my taste buds: Mozzarella, lemon zest and olive oil! Of course, I never managed to 100% reproduce the Amalfian lemon magic (as I have no access to these incredible lemons here in the UK), but I worked around some combinations with lemon-flavoured oil that get the experience quite close to the real thing. I also devour the mildness and creaminess of gorgonzola which gives a posh tone without overpowering like blue cheese or stilton does. When we are close to spring, I also like the addition of asparagus for some extra crunchiness and colour.
Ingredients (for 1 pizza)
1 unwaxed lemon, zested
1 tbsp Lemon-infused olive oil
4-5 asparagus tips, halved and diagonally sliced - preferably precooked or blanched for 5 mins in boiled water
2 tbsp gorgonzola (or gambozola) cheese, roughly cut in smaller pieces
Some fresh basil leaves
Stretch the pie and add your mozzarella, some grated parmesan, and the gorgonzola, distributing them evenly around the pie. Add the lemon zest, a drizzle of lemon-infused olive oil, the asparagus (if using), some pepper and 3-4 fresh basil leaves and slide into the oven.
04 Salame Piccante with Sweet and Spicy Peppers
Another banging combination that pleases my guests and is also my wife's favourite (happy wife, happy life, they say). The secret here is the right peppers. Here in the UK I am using an amazing Greek mix of sweet red and spicy green peppers pickled in sweet brine (the Bevelini all star pepper mix) but can also work nicely with a mix of any sweet red pickled peppers (like these) and jalapeno for example.
Ingredients (for 1 pizza)
2 ladles of Pomodoro sauce
2 tbsp pickled sweet peppers and spicy (jalapeño) peppers
1 tsp dried oregano
Thinly sliced "Salame Piccante" (Neapolitan salami) or any other salami of your choice
Some fresh basil leaves
Stretch the pie and spread the sauce evenly on the pie. Add your mozzarella and some grated parmesan, spread your slices of salami and sprinkle the pickled peppers around. Add a pinch of oregano, a drizzle of olive oil and a few fresh basil leaves and slide into the oven.
05 Capricciosa
And now a classic which I particularly adore as it boasts one of my favourite vegetables: artichokes. Since I left Greece to live in the UK, this is one of the vegetables I've missed heaps, so I find solace in this pizza even with the pickled substitute. Traditionally, Capricciosa is made with black olives (like Kalamata), but I also love the twist with green!
Ingredients (for 1 pizza)
2 ladles of Pomodoro sauce
1 slice of good-quality cotto ham, chopped
2 tbsp pickled antipasti artichokes, sliced
1 tbsp dried oregano
Few pitted olives, halved or sliced
Some fresh basil leaves
Stretch the pie and spread the sauce evenly on the pie. Add your mozzarella and some grated parmesan, spread your slices of ham and sprinkle the artichokes and olives. Add the oregano, a drizzle of olive oil and a few fresh basil leaves and slide into the oven.
Need more inspiration and appropriate tools to make pizza easier and more efficiently? Look at my Pizza Masterclass post for pizza cookbooks and essential equipment to buy
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