Pizza With The Works Except Anchovies Day

What the day is

Pizza With The Works Except Anchovies Day is observed on November 12. The name is the joke: everything is welcome except the one topping that has become shorthand for an unwanted ingredient.

Origin and background

The origin of the observance is not documented.

The anchovy's reputation is largely a misunderstanding of what it does. Anchovies are cured in salt, and curing develops free glutamates, the compounds responsible for savory depth. On a pizza they largely dissolve into the cheese and sauce during baking, leaving saltiness and depth rather than fish flavor. A great deal of food people enjoy without question is built the same way: Worcestershire sauce contains anchovies, as do many Caesar dressings and several classic Italian pasta sauces.

The stronger argument against them on pizza is practical rather than aesthetic. Anchovies are already very salty, and combined with cured meats and cheese on a loaded pizza the total can overwhelm everything else.

The works itself is a piece of American pizza history. As pizzerias spread beyond Italian-American neighborhoods in the mid-twentieth century, menus moved toward customization and loaded combinations, a considerable distance from Neapolitan practice where restraint is the rule and a margherita carries three ingredients.

Overloading has a genuine cost. Toppings release water, and a crowded pizza steams rather than bakes, producing the soft center that people blame on the crust.

How to take part

• Order it as named, loaded and anchovy-free, which is the whole point of the day.
• Or try one anchovy fillet on a slice and decide for yourself rather than inheriting the verdict.
• If you do load a pizza, pre-cook wet vegetables such as mushrooms and peppers to drive off water.
• Use fewer toppings than feels generous. Four is usually plenty.
• Get the oven and stone as hot as they go; a loaded pizza needs the heat.