Pizza Alla Ferrovia
Submitted by 12345
Pizza alla ferrovia is a Neapolitan railway-station-style pizza: crisp rectangular crust topped with tomato sauce, olives, mozzarella, crumbled tuna, and a generous hit of red pepper flakes. Salty, spicy, and defiantly old-school.
YIELD
1 pizzaPREP
25 minCOOK
20 minREADY
45 minPizza alla ferrovia (railway pizza) is a Neapolitan street classic, sold for generations near the train stations of southern Italy as a quick hot lunch for travelers. The combination of tomato, mozzarella, canned tuna, olives, and crushed red pepper sounds unlikely to American pizza fans but delivers a hit of umami, salt, and heat in every bite.
The rectangular shape is part of the tradition. Pizza ferrovia is baked in sheet pans and sold by the slice, so stretch the dough to fill a 12×15 inch pan. Uneven thickness is fine, it gives you that coveted variety of crispy edges and chewy centers.
Tuna goes on raw over the cheese. In the oven it warms through and melds with the tomato and mozzarella, turning into a briny undercurrent rather than a chunky fish topping. Use good oil-packed tuna, the cheap water-packed stuff dries out and tastes flat.
Bake at high heat on the lower rack for maximum bottom char. A pizza stone or steel under the sheet pan gets you even closer to a proper Italian forno finish.
Pro Tips
- Use a tangy tomato sauce, San Marzano based is ideal. A sweet sauce overwhelms the tuna.
- Pit and roughly chop the olives to spread flavor more evenly across the pizza.
- Drain tuna well before crumbling, excess oil pools on the pizza and keeps it from crisping.
- Slice with kitchen shears instead of a pizza wheel for cleaner cuts through the toppings.
Variations
- Add thinly sliced red onion for extra bite.
- Swap tuna for anchovies and you have pizza alla Napoletana.
- Scatter fresh basil over the pizza right after it comes out of the oven for aromatic lift.
Ingredients
Directions
Preheat oven to 424 degrees F.
Dust a clean work surface lightly with flour.
Place entire dough on surface, spread it out, and flatten with fingers or rolling pin until you form a large rectangle (about 12 inches by 15 inches, and ¼ inch to ⅜ inch thick).
Dust sheet pan with flour and place dough on pan, stretching it to reach all sides.
Using a kitchen spoon, smooth a thin layer of tomato sauce over pizza dough all the way to the edges.
Sprinkle with olives.
Place mozzarella and crumbled tuna over entire rectangle.
Sprinkle with hot pepper and bake 20 minutes, or until golden brown on bottom and cheese is melted.
Remove and serve immediately.
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