Today's pizza: DiGiorno Thin Crispy Crust Pepperoni Pizza
The directions give you two ways to prepare this pizza -- on the rack, or on a pizza pan. I chose the rack, in order to give the crust the best chance for carmelization and thus the best chance to contribute to the taste of the pizza. As directed on the label, I preheated the oven to 400 degrees, then removed the pizza from the freezer and placed on the rack using an oven mitt. I baked for 17 minutes as directed then removed and let stand for 5 minutes. Then ate. Here is what it was like:
Pepperoni: While the cover mentions that chicken is used in the pepperoni, the pepperoni is still the strength of this pizza. It is suitably tangy and greasy and there is a relatively large amount of it.
Cheese: There is enough of it and it doesn't overpower anything. Not much more to say there.
Sauce: Suitably tangy but not overpowering. Quantity is a bit low though.
Crust: Meh. The crust on a thin crust pizza has a hard row to hoe. There is not much of it, so it must step forth and contribute its taste boldly. This crust, on the other hand, simply lies there. In greater quantity it would provide a good bready base to the pizza, but apparently DiGiorno simply rolled their dough thinner rather than reformulate it for this new application. What works quite well for their thicker pizzas simply isn't adequate for the task of supporting this thinner pizza. On the other hand, it is not greasy or rancid or stale or soggy or otherwise nasty. It just lies there not contributing much.
Cold pizza: Unfortunately, none of the pizza survived to be eaten for lunch the next day. Perhaps I need to re-think that review criteria, especially for thin-crust pizzas which are more likely to be gobbled down in one sitting.
General conclusion: This is a workmanlike thin crust pizza. Given a choice between this and ringer #1 (Little Caesars Hot'n'Ready $5 Pizza), I would definitely choose this one even though it is generally more expensive (I paid $5.50 for this pizza). On the other hand, the lack of contribution from the crust and the somewhat scarce sauce mean that it has some ways to go before meeting my criteria for an "ideal" pizza. We shall see what other pizzas bring to the table in this regard...
Next up: Red Baron "Italian Style" Thin Crust "Ultimate Pepperoni" pizza...
-- Badtux the Pizza Penguin
"Pizza bake-off day 1"? How many days are we looking at here?
ReplyDeleteEither you have a cast-iron belly, or you are losing your mind. I had one large slice of Ukrop's (supermarket) pepperoni pizza Friday. That was all the pizza I ate all week. It was good pizza. It was also all the pizza I needed for one week. I can't handle it the way I used to.
Maybe I ought to switch to cheese pizza only...
I prefer sausage myself. Or a combo.
ReplyDeleteEver cook on a pizza stone? They are pretty cool.
If you click on the 'pizza' link, you get the full details. In particular, see this comment on the oldest post:
ReplyDeleteSo my test will be with straight pepperoni pizzas, prepared according to the instructions on the box. For comparison purposes I will also bring in two ringers -- a pepperoni pizza from Premier Pizza (a "gourmet" pizzaria here in San Jose), and a pepperoni pizza from Little Caesar's pizza. All pizzas will be graded on: crust, sauce, cheese, pepperoni (quality and quantity). I estimate that the test will take approximately two weeks and require two months of walking an hour a day on the treadmill to take care of the ten pounds I estimate that I will gain during the test, but hey, we must all sacrifice for science, eh?
- Badtux the Soon-to-be-more-rotund Penguin
wow -- this is way cool -- also put on here your weight gain -- k?
ReplyDeleteok sorry...um, no i'm not...grin!
enjoy life -- it's ment to be lived to the fullest...