Pizza is a delicacy consisting of flat bedded bread usually topped with cheese and various ingredients varying with the preference of the consumer. With its origin being traced back as a traditional dish in Italy, it has grown to be the most favorite and popular fast food in the world. Today’s pizza recipes have grown to accommodate every taste, preference, beliefs, cultures and affordability making it the friendliest anytime meal in parties and almost all manner of gatherings and events.
With the several ingredients that make pizza so delicious, it is worth noting that pizza is most enjoyable when taken warm or hot. This preserves its aroma and also avoids bacteria from multiplying since some of the ingredients such as cheese, meat and tomatoes encourage the same at low temperatures.
There are various ways on how to keep pizza warm;
Covering in an insulated food basket;
You can use an insulated food container to preserve the warmth. With the pizza in its box, wrap it in a cotton or wool fabric. Place it inside an insulated food basket. This will preserve the pizza warm for about 2-4 hours or maybe longer depending on how well you do the insulation.
Aluminium foil;
Just by wrapping pizza in aluminium foil can preserve the temperatures for longer. You can have the pizza heated in the wrappings for about 9 minutes at 200 degrees Celsius. However, make sure that you use about two or three layers of foil to keep the pizza from losing the heat at all. Although it is not a very effective way especially if you are planning to keep the pizza for a time exceeding 2 hours, it comes in handy picnics and park eating.
The pizza stone;
Heat the pizza stone in the oven for about 25-35 minutes at a temperature of about 100 degrees Celsius. This should begin before you receive the pizza delivery at home. Get the stone from the oven after the time lapses.
Remove the pizza from its box and place it directly on the stone. With the oven off, place the pizza stone on the oven shelves and close the door. This will ensure the pizza keeps its crispiness and warm enough to be eaten later. Another alternative to the pizza stone is a stainless steel frying pan. Readily available in any kitchen, follow the same steps and keep your pizza evenly heated. So far, this is considered the safest, efficient and effective way of how to keep pizza warm.
Keep the pizza in a microwave;
Although this way is a bit tasking, one could use a microwave to keep the pizza warm. This task requires extra attention. When your pizza delivery arrives, place the pizza slices on the microwave plate/bowl. Place the plate/bowl back in the microwave and set the 12minutes heating intervals after every 20 minutes. Most people do not like to use microwaves to preheat their foods due to the health risks involved with the wave microwaves. However, it can be one of the ways to keep that pizza warm.
Keeping pizza in the oven;
Put the temperature function at minimum after ordering a delivery. When the pizza delivery arrives, turn off the oven. Leave the pizza in the original delivery box and place it in the oven. Make sure the air vents on the box are open to allow free movement of the hot air in and out of the oven. The pizza box will keep the pizza losing moisture fast and hence the pizza won’t dry out. This method is the most efficient since it has been tested and also works great for other foods too. The material that makes a pizza box can only burn at temperatures above 250 degrees Celsius so no need to worry about it catching fire.
In conclusion, keeping pizza warm is not only useful for preserving quality. It is also necessary as a food safety health standard as it keeps. Potential bacteria (dangerous) which could lead to sickness grow on the pizza if it is exposed to temperatures below 60 degrees Celsius. Of course there are other ways of storing pizza for longer periods of time but either way, ultimate care is advised on storage. Make sure to have that pizza hot and enjoy every bite and slice of your favourite flavour.
