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Ep247: All about Pizza · Kidcast Daily

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  Spin the wheel, let's take a ride.
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  Sports and science bursting from inside a world of wonder.
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  Open wide. Come on kids, let's amplify kid
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  cats. Daily starts yours.
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  Welcome to Kit Cast Daily, where we bring news, trivia, fun
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  facts, and more just for curious kids like you.
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  Today's episode is all about pizza.
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  We're going to learn where pizza came from, what goes into making
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  it, and the many delicious types you can find around the world.
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  So get ready to discover why pizza is one of the most popular
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  foods on the planet. Let's start with the history of
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  pizza. Even though pizza feels like a
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  modern treat, it has actually been around for a very long
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  time. Long before pizza looked the way
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  it does today, people ate flatbreads with toppings.
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  Thousands of years ago. In ancient Egypt, Greece, and
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  Rome, people baked flatbreads in ovens and topped them with oil
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  and herbs. These early versions didn't have
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  tomato sauce or cheese, but they were a tasty way to use bread as
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  a plate for other foods. The pizza we know and love today
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  began to take shape in the city of Naples, Italy.
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  Naples is a coastal city, and in the 1700s and 1800s it was a
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  busy place full of workers and families who needed food that
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  was affordable, quick and filling.
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  Bakers and Naples started selling flatbreads topped with
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  tomatoes, which had just been brought to Europe from the
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  Americas. At first, not everyone liked
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  tomatoes because some people thought they were poisonous, but
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  the Neapolitans gave it a try. Soon these tomato topped
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  flatbreads became very popular. One of the most famous pizzas,
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  the Margarita, was created in Naples in the late 1800s.
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  The story goes that a chef wanted to make a pizza for Queen
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  Margarita of Italy. He topped the pizza with
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  tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and fresh basil.
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  These three toppings made the pizza look like the Italian
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  flag, red, white and green. The queen loved it, and the
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  Margarita pizza became famous not only in Italy but around the
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  world. Now let's talk about the
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  contents of a pizza. At its most basic, a pizza is
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  made-up of three main parts, the crust, the sauce, and the
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  toppings. The crust is the base of the
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  pizza. It's made from dough, which
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  usually contains flour, water, yeast, salt, and sometimes a
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  little bit of sugar or oil. The yeast helps the dough rise
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  and become fluffy. Some crusts are thin and crispy,
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  while others are thick and chewy.
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  Some pizzas even have stuffed crusts, which means there's
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  cheese baked inside the edge of the crust.
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  Next comes the sauce. The most common pizza sauce is
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  made from tomatoes. The tomatoes are crushed and
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  cooked with herbs like oregano, basil and garlic to give the
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  sauce a rich flavor. In some places, people use
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  different sauces like pesto, which is made from basil, pine
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  nuts, cheese and olive oil, or even a white sauce made from
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  cream or cheese. After the sauce comes the
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  cheese. Mozzarella is the most popular
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  cheese for pizza because it melts well and gives pizza that
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  stretchy, gooey texture that many people love.
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  Some pizzas use other cheeses too, like cheddar, parmesan,
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  provolone, or ricotta to add different flavors.
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  Finally, we have the toppings. This is where pizza gets really
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  creative. Classic toppings include
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  pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onions, bell Peppers, and
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  olives. Some people love extra cheese,
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  while others add vegetables like spinach, artichokes, or even
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  pineapple. In some parts of the world,
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  people use seafood, corn, or even eggs as toppings.
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  There are so many options that almost anyone can find a pizza
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  combination they like. Did you know that in Japan, you
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  can find pizzas topped with squid, mayonnaise or even
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  teriyaki chicken? In Brazil, green peas are a
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  popular topping. In Sweden, people sometimes put
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  bananas and Curry powder on their pizza.
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  These different toppings show how pizza has changed and
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  adapted to different cultures and tastes all over the world.
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  Now, let's explore the different types of pizza you might see or
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  try. There are many styles, but here
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  are some of the most famous ones.
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  First, there's Neapolitan pizza. This is the original Italian
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  pizza from Naples. It has a thin soft crust, simple
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  tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella cheese and basil.
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  Neapolitan pizzas are usually cooked in a very hot wood fired
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  oven for just a couple of minutes, which gives them a
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  slightly charred, puffy crust. Next is New York style pizza,
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  which is very popular in the United States.
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  It has a thin, wide crust that's crispy on the outside but soft
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  enough to fold in half. New York pizzas often come in
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  large slices, and people like to grab a slice as a quick snack or
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  lunch. The classic toppings are tomato
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  sauce and mozzarella cheese, but you can find all kinds of
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  options, from pepperoni to mushrooms to extra cheese.
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  Chicago style deep dish pizza is another American favorite.
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  Unlike most pizzas, this one is baked in a deep pan, which gives
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  it a thick, buttery crust. The toppings are layered in
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  reverse order. Cheese goes on the bottom, then
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  meat or vegetables, and finally a chunky tomato sauce on top.
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  Deep dish pizzas are hearty and filling, almost like a pizza
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  pie. Sicilian pizza comes from the
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  island of Sicily and Italy. It has a thick, rectangular
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  crust that's soft and airy, almost like focaccia bread.
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  Sicilian pizzas are often topped with tomato sauce, onions,
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  herbs, and sometimes anchovies. In the United States, Sicilian
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  pizza is sometimes called grandma pizza and is served in
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  square slices. California style pizza is known
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  for its creative and unusual toppings.
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  Chefs in California like to experiment with fresh
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  ingredients like arugula, goat cheese, smoked salmon, or
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  roasted vegetables. The crust is usually thin and
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  crispy, and the focus is on fresh, local ingredients.
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  There's also Detroit style pizza, which has a thick, chewy
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  crust that's baked in a rectangular pan.
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  The cheese goes all the way to the edges, so it gets crispy and
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  caramelized. The sauce is often spooned on
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  top of the cheese and toppings instead of underneath.
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  Of course, there are many more local and regional styles of
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  pizza around the world. In India, you might find pizzas
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  with spicy chicken tikka or pain or cheese.
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  In Turkey, there's a version called pied that's shaped like a
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  boat and filled with meats, cheese and vegetables.
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  In Australia, people sometimes add BBQ sauce and shrimp to
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  their pizzas. Here's another fun fact.
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  In the United States alone, people eat about 3 billion
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  pizzas every year. That's almost 350 slices per
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  second. Pizza is so popular that there's
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  even a National Pizza Month celebrated every October.
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  Pizza has also set some impressive records.
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  The largest pizza ever made was over 13,000 square feet and was
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  baked in Rome, Italy in 2012. That's bigger than many houses.
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  The longest pizza stretched over a mile long and was made in
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  California, USA in 2017. Pizza isn't just delicious, it
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  can also be healthy depending on how it's made.
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  If you choose whole wheat crust, lots of vegetables, and less
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  cheese or fatty meats, pizza can provide important nutrients like
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  protein, fiber, and vitamins. But even if you like your pizza
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  cheesy and gooey, it's a fun food to share with friends and
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  family. Let's do a quick recap of what
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  we learned today. Pizza started as a simple
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  flatbread in ancient times and became the cheesy, saucy treat
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  we know today thanks to the people of Naples, Italy.
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  The basic parts of a pizza are the crust, the sauce, the
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  cheese, and the toppings. Around the world, people have
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  created many different types of pizza, from thin and crispy
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  Neapolitan to thick and hearty Chicago deep dish, and they use
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  all kinds of toppings to suit their tastes.
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  No matter how you like your pizza, it's clear that this food
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  has a special place in the hearts of people everywhere.
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  Next time you take a bite of pizza, remember you're eating a
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  meal with a history that's thousands of years old and
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  enjoyed by millions of people around the world every day.
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  Thanks for tuning in to Kick Ass Daily, where we bring you fun
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  facts and stories to keep your curiosity growing.
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  If you have a favorite pizza or a fun pizza story, share it with
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  your friends or family. Who knows, you might even invent
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  the next great pizza topping. See you next time for more
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  amazing facts and discoveries. Keep exploring and stay curious.