Pizza Crust?
Our delightful thread on pizza toppings, brings me to another question.
I enjoyed every delicious bite of my slice of Florentine, until I got to the crust. I don't like the crust. I don't hate the crust, I just don't like the crust. So I don't eat the crust.
Am I the only one? Do you eat your pizza crust?
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30 Comments:
I've been wanting to start this thread, izatryt, but you beat me to it!
I'd say great minds think alike, but I'm afraid I do love my crust. My rationale behind eating it is that I usually only have one rather than multiple slices.
Every bite of the pizza, from slightly oily tip to crispy crust has its own charm for me.
HeartofGlass at 9:11AM on 10/22/08
I'm not sure if I like my crust, but I always eat it. Residual "clean your plate" logic left over from my childhood. Sometimes it's good though, especially if the sauce and/or cheese goes farther to the edge than it should....
embolini9 at 9:16AM on 10/22/08
I don't generally eat the crust, I think it just depends on my mood and how good the pizza is.
Southern_bella at 9:23AM on 10/22/08
The crust is the pizza, the pizza is the crust. How can you not eat the crust?
That's like saying you like foccacia, but you only suck out the olive oil and leave the bread on the table.
SqueezeBottle at 9:37AM on 10/22/08
Real St. Louis-style pizza has no edge crust. The biggest local chain has ads poking fun at what people do with their pizza edges - wreaths for the front door, art-gallery-style jewelry, "rings" around Saturn in kids' science projects and so on.
lemons at 9:38AM on 10/22/08
If the crust is good, then I definitely eat it...but the pizza has to come from a good pizza place...none of that fast food pizza crap.
juliebugsmama at 9:49AM on 10/22/08
I eat pizza as a total package, so I can't take away what might be the most important part. I love me some really good crust.
Laurel E at 10:15AM on 10/22/08
As long as it's not so hard, it could break my teeth. Case in point, got some great pizza a couple of days ago, with perfect crust for chewing (NOT dipping - wow, I had never heard of that before). To leave that on the plate would have been a sin - it was SO good! Reheated pizza in the oven last night (ok, a little too long) and the crust got rock hard. Not edible.
PerkyMac at 10:43AM on 10/22/08
If I don't like the crust, I don't eat the pizza. And since I make my pizza at home these days, I always like the crust, and I always eat it. But even when I used to buy pizza, back in Europe - I wouldn't eat the entire slice if the crust was not to my liking - I have to agree with SqueezeBottle on this, pizza is the crust, some of it is topped, some of it is not (although the pizza I make barely has any not topped).
brooke29 at 10:53AM on 10/22/08
I eat the crust. But in alternating bites with the cheesy part of the pizza, so I'm not left with only crust.
Kerosena at 10:55AM on 10/22/08
I'm not fond of the edge crust either...it's like the crust on white bread....I usually leave it behind....UNLESS....I have something to dip it in.
I never got to respond to the ranch dressing/pizza thread.....I do like to dip my crust...usually in blue cheese dressing...but ranch will do in a pinch. I'm not talking about putting ranch dressing ON the pizza...just dipping the naked crust into it.
mepolo at 11:18AM on 10/22/08
I save my crusts and eat them after all the slices are gone... I think it is the best part of the pizza, thus I save it for last.
Pavlov at 11:44AM on 10/22/08
As I mentioned in "Pizza With a Knife & Fork?" - if no one's looking, i take off the crust, eat the crust, then fold and eat the rest.
I don't dislike crust, but the best part of pizza is the cheesy middle. So by eating the crust first, I'm saving the best for last.
nalega at 11:59AM on 10/22/08
Husband leaves the crust if there is any crust like at California Pizza Kitchen. He always orders Donato's to eat at home, so there is no crust.
I would probably ditch the crust. Back in the day when I did eat pizza, if the crust was moist and soft, I'd eat it dipped in Thousand Island dressing. Otherwise, if it was dry, it would get thrown out.
Cassaendra at 12:10PM on 10/22/08
Is the Pope German...there you go. Crust is an essential part of the whole pizza eating experience its like eating a hot dog without the bun
nelson5757 at 12:28PM on 10/22/08
I see now that you don't eat the crust. I'm a huge fan of the crust on 95% of all pizzas. My favorite is Chicago deep dish crust. I like to reserve some extra tomato sauce to dip it in.
Hillary
Chew on That
Chew on That at 12:31PM on 10/22/08
I usually eat the crust unless it's nasty.
This, oddly enough, is one of the few issues where other people's food habits can annoy me. But only in certain situations.
For example, you order a pizza to split among X number of people. One person proclaims that they're on a diet and avoiding carbs, so they proceed to suck the cheese and sauce and toppings off the base of the pizza, leaving all the crust -- not just the edge crust, but the whole crust.
Of course, since this dieter is only eating a portion of each serving, she (it's always a she) will take twice or three times as many pieces as everyone else and will also eat twice or three times as fast, thus claiming a larger percentage of the pie.
If there's sufficient pizza that everyone gets enough, it's fine. But if the pizza's gone and some people are still hungry, seeing those naked pieces of dough irks me.
dbcurrie at 1:22PM on 10/22/08
^dbcurrie that is just wrong! If someone is low-carb, that does not give them special rights to 'hog' three slices of pizza and leave the nasty crust, unless there is a dog nearby who will gobble it up!
People who do that get sent to the 'naughty' corner with a copy of Dr. Atkins' last book, with low-carb bread and water for dinner.
HeartofGlass at 2:17PM on 10/22/08
Speaking of dogs, we always save a bit of our crusts, which our Great Dane knows as "pizza bones". But, I'm of the the crust is the pizza and the pizza is the crust camp, so yes, I eat *almost* all of mine. :-)
scarletini at 2:28PM on 10/22/08
I love the pizza crusts. It is usually my favorite part.
lakeloverhh at 4:46PM on 10/22/08
I don't care for big chewy crusts around the edges, but I'm from the school of clean your plate as well, so I sometimes eat it (dipped in sauce). I much prefer thin crispy crusts.
yankeesgal at 5:08PM on 10/22/08
thin pizza well done.
dearrie at 7:06PM on 10/22/08
My mom is pushing 90 and when I make pizza for her, I substitute 1/4 to 1/2 cup potato flakes for the flour in a three cup recipe. Makes a nice easy to eat crust. When I was a kid, she and our dad took us to Pepe's Apizza in New Haven, CT (back when you didn't have to wait hours in line) so we were raised on thin chewy and charred at the edges crusts.
DavidinCT at 10:13PM on 10/22/08
I love pizza crust. Crunchy edges of a Sicilian slice or the chewy, foldable "handle" of a Neopolitan. Sinking my teeth into the depths of a Chicago slice also ranks way up there.
I do a whole wheat spinach pizza that really sends spin-pizza lovers into the stratosphere. If you like, I'd be happy to post the recipe. If I get too distracted by other stuff (you know...life? LOL) and don't check this thread, e-mail me - chiffonade@hotmail.com.
I must also mention that my dog, a Springer Spaniel, LOOOVES bread in any way, shape or form. My BF says, "English Springer, my foot. That dog is Italian."
therealchiffonade at 7:25AM on 10/23/08
@chiff ~ Please do post the recipe. There are so many pizza lovers on SE.
izatryt at 9:26AM on 10/23/08
I have to admit that ALL of my best pizza experiences have been crustless as the shape of the pie was more free form than round or square. White clam pizza made with chopped fresh clams and lots of garlic. No cheese, no sauce, only really good olive oil, cooked in an ancient brick oven. Not Sally's, not Modern, but Pepe's or The Spot. New Haven, CT. If you've never been, you gotta go. New Haven also occupies a special place in hamburger history from what I hear. But that's another web site.
Clay Gordon at 1:17PM on 10/23/08
I adore crust, both on bread and on pizza. It's totally the best part, and yet us crust lovers are a minority.
I selectively eat crust on bread, usually skinning the loaf. My roommate loves only the insides, so between the two of us a baguette does not stand a chance.
Aynsl156 at 9:55PM on 10/24/08
pizza crust is the best part!
plyeng at 1:47AM on 10/28/08
My weirdo fiancé eats the crust before she eats the rest of the slice, making the whole thing rather sloppy and difficult. It's her theory that the center of everything is the best part - the liquid center of Freshenup gum, the cheesy bit of the Combo, the non-edge part of a hamburger - so she saves the tip for the end. That's if she can stop me from eating it before she gets there.
kenjialtci at 9:11PM on 10/28/08
Even on Thanksgiving morning as Clay Gordon transports me back to PePe's and an amazing clam pie - I drool and long for one.
sharongina at 9:15AM on 11/27/08