The Herbs on a Neapolitan Pizza, and Why There Are So Few
You may have searched for Italian seasoning. This page explains what a Neapolitan pizza usually carries, and what it leaves off.
Nobody expects you to arrive knowing this
Herbs are one of those subjects where people nod along and hope the topic moves on. You are allowed to say you have no idea whether oregano goes on before or after the oven. Most guests do not, and it changes nothing about the pizza in front of you.
Read this page or skip it. Order what sounds good, ask at the table if you want the list read out loud, and let the kitchen worry about the rest. Curiosity is welcome here; knowledge is not a ticket.
What the words Italian seasoning usually describe
The phrase is used mostly outside Italy. Pick up a jar in a supermarket and read the back of the label: dried oregano, basil, thyme, rosemary, marjoram, sometimes sage. It is a blend built for convenience, not a recipe tied to one place.
Italian cooking tends to name herbs one at a time and use them one at a time. There is no single jar standing in for all of them. That is why a search for Italian seasoning rarely lands on an actual Neapolitan pizza.
Marinara has oregano. Margherita has basil.
The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana publishes a written specification for Neapolitan pizza, the disciplinare, at pizzanapoletana.org. A marinara there is tomato, garlic, oregano and olive oil. A margherita is tomato, mozzarella, basil and olive oil.
Two pizzas, one herb each. Dried oregano in the first, fresh basil leaves in the second. That is the whole herb column of the tradition, and it has stayed that short for a long time.
The taste is meant to come from somewhere else
When a pizza has four or five parts, each part has to hold its own weight. Our dough is a biga, fermented 48 hours at 77 percent hydration, and much of the flavour sits in that time. The tomatoes are San Marzano, the mozzarella is fior di latte, both from Italy.
Then there is the oven: copper, gas fired, running at 400 degrees. A bake that short does not give a pile of dried herbs time to do anything useful. A long list would also crowd out the two or three things that are already saying something.
Come and see how short the list is
We are at 1 Aristotelous in Larnaca, open Tuesday to Sunday from 18:00 to 22:00 and closed on Monday. The natural wine list changes, so we do not print it here. Ask what is open when you sit down.
Questions about herbs, answered plainly
Q.Is Italian seasoning used on Neapolitan pizza?
Not as a blend. The tradition names herbs one at a time: oregano on a marinara, basil on a margherita, as set out in the AVPN disciplinare.
Q.Fresh or dried, which is it?
Oregano is normally used dried, basil fresh. That split is exactly what you see in the two oldest Neapolitan pizzas.
Q.Why is the ingredient list so short?
Because every part has to carry weight: a 48 hour biga dough, San Marzano tomatoes, fior di latte, and a copper oven at 400 degrees.
Q.Can I ask what is on a pizza before I order?
Yes. The list is short enough to say out loud at the table, and nobody here expects you to know it in advance.