Neapolitan Pizza Marinara
This recipe for pizza marinara is the closest you can get to an authentic Neapolitan pizza outside of Italy! I'll show you how to get an airy, blistered crust and vibrant tomato flavor using a home oven and just 5 simple ingredients. After years of cooking professionally and testing this recipe in my own kitchen, I have plenty of tips to help you achieve Neapolitan pizza perfection in under 15 minutes!
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I've been lucky enough to have real deal pizza marinara in Naples, including at the famous L' Antica Pizzeria da Michele (the one featured in Eat Pray Love) and it really is that good!
It features a thin, airy crust with a chewy center and charred edges, then gets topped with hand-crushed tomatoes, thinly sliced garlic, dried oregano and a drizzle of the best olive oil. One thing it doesn't have? Cheese.
Here in New Jersey, we have something similar called tomato pie, which is essentially just a saucy pizza without cheese. It was likely derived from pizza marinara, but like most Italian American dishes, it's become its own thing altogether.
This simple tomato topped pizza might seem basic, but replicating a true Neapolitan pizza at home can be tricky since most people don't have a rip-roaring, 900-degree wood-fired oven.
But with a few simple techniques, a solid Neapolitan pizza dough recipe, high quality ingredients and a couple of basic tools, you can make an excellent pizza marinara at home.
After lots of testing, trial and error, my version stays true to the pizza marinara I fell in love with in Naples!
What is Pizza Marinara?
Pizza alla marinara is one of the oldest and most traditional pizzas from Naples, Italy. It's topped with crushed tomatoes, garlic, oregano, extra virgin olive oil and absolutely no cheese, ever.
It's one of only two pizzas recognized as traditional Neapolitan style from Naples, Italy, along with its cheesy cousin, pizza margherita. Pizza marinara actually came first, and is considered the one true original Pizza Napolitana.
The name "marinara" is a bit misleading since there's no seafood involved. "Marinara" likely refers to the sailors who would eat this as a quick meal before returning to port. It became popular because it was cheap, filling and didn't spoil quickly since it doesn't contain dairy.
The pizza association in Naples, called Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, has super strict rules about what can be called authentic Neapolitan pizza. Everything from the flour type to the oven temperature is specified down to the letter.
According to their guidelines, the marinara pizza sauce is the same uncooked tomato base used for a margherita pizza, made from uncooked tomatoes that are crushed by hand or passed through a food mill to create a tomato puree and seasoned only with salt.
Thinly sliced garlic, dried oregano and extra virgin olive oil are added directly to the pizza before baking, not mixed into the sauce.
Want more delicious pizza recipes? Try my cheesy quattro formaggi pizza, a tomato-free pizza bianca, or this fun grilled pizza with corn and prosciutto.
Why This Recipe Works
- A simple method to replicate authentic Neapolitan-style pizza marinara at home.
- The broiler helps create a blistered crust with a soft, chewy center, without a traditional pizza oven.
- Using high quality ingredients makes all the difference.
- A light hand with the tomatoes and oil prevents soggy dough.
Traditional Pizza Marinara Ingredients
Pizza marinara has only five components, so the quality of each one is crucial:
Neapolitan Pizza Dough - You can make it at home using flour, yeast, water, and salt with my pizza dough recipe, or buy a ball of dough from a good local pizzeria.
Tomatoes - Use canned whole peeled tomatoes and use the best quality tomatoes you can find. San Marzano tomatoes are traditional, but other good plum tomatoes, like Roma, work too. Read my guide to learn more about how to select high quality canned tomatoes, like San Marzanos. You can use fresh tomatoes if they are in season, but you will first need to blanch them to remove the skins, then squeeze out the seeds.
Fresh Garlic - Thinly sliced garlic is one of the few flavor components, so make sure it's super fresh and use a sharp knife or a mandolin to slice each garlic clove as thinly as possible.
Dried Oregano - Fresh oregano is not traditional here. Dried oregano holds up better in intense heat and gives pizza marinara its signature flavor. Look for Sicilian oregano or Greek oregano for best results.
Extra Virgin Olive Oil - Using a high quality extra virgin olive oil will make your marinara pizza the best it can be. Learn how to choose the right one in my guide to Italian olive oils.
Salt - I use Diamond Crystal kosher salt, which is less salty than other brands. Always season to taste.
*Find the full ingredient list in the recipe card below!
Helpful Equipment
- Pizza stone or baking steel
- Very sharp knife or Mandolin
- Pizza peel or inverted sheet pan
- Pizza cutter
How to Make Neapolitan Pizza Marinara
- Place a pizza stone or steel in the middle or lower rack of the oven and preheat to the highest setting, ideally 500-550°F, for at least 45 minutes. Once the oven is hot, turn on the broiler.
Pro Tip: If you don't have a pizza stone or baking steel, place a baking tray and a heavy cast iron pan on the lower part of your oven (the larger and heavier, the better).
- In a small bowl, gently crush the tomatoes by hand until mostly broken down but still a little chunky. Alternatively, you can puree with an immersion blender, food processor, or food mill. Season with salt, taste, and adjust as needed.
- Dust a work surface and one dough ball lightly with flour. Gently press from the center outward, leaving about a 1-inch outer rim.
- Carefully stretch it into a 12-inch circle, keeping the center thin and the edge slightly thicker. Be careful not to let it tear.
- Transfer the dough to a pizza peel lightly dusted with flour or semolina.
Pro Tip: A pizza peel is helpful, but if you don't have one, build your pizza on top of a cutting board or baking sheet, and be super careful when transferring it to the oven.
- Spoon half of the tomatoes onto the top of the dough, in the center and spread it out in a thin, even layer, stopping just before the rim.
- Scatter half of the sliced garlic evenly over the sauce, then sprinkle with ¾ teaspoon of oregano and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
- Shake the peel a little bit to make sure the pizza isn't sticking, then immediately slide it onto the baking stone and close the oven door.
Pro Tip: Cook the pizza on the preheated baking tray if you don't have a pizza stone or steel. Do not take the cast iron pan out.
- Bake until the crust is puffed and lightly charred in spots, about 7-10 minutes, rotating once only if necessary for even cooking.
- Remove from the oven, let rest for about 30 seconds, then slice and serve immediately.
- Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
Coley's Tips For Success
- Let the dough come to room temperature for at least an hour before stretching. This will make it easier to work with and prevent tearing. If it still resists stretching, rest it for 10 minutes and try again.
- Your oven needs to be screaming hot to achieve a true Neapolitan-style pizza crust, so make sure to preheat it and add a pizza stone, steel or even a large cast iron skillet. If you have a home pizza oven, even better!
- Too much tomato sauce will weigh down the dough and make it soggy. A thin layer is all you need. If your pizza comes out soggy in the middle, cut back to ⅓ cup.
- The garlic should be sliced extremely thin. Use a mandolin or very sharp knife for best results.
- If the crust is browning too quickly, turn the broiler off halfway through.
- Finish the pizza with a sprinkle of flaky salt before serving. It will lift all the flavors up!
What to Serve with Pizza Marinara
This homemade pizza marinara is perfect on its own, but a few sides can't hurt! The heat and meatiness of these roasted Italian long hot peppers complement the pizza perfectly.
A simple arugula salad with pine nuts and parmesan, a classic caprese salad with fresh mozzarella or a Sicilian fennel orange salad add something light and fresh to pizza nights.
To keep up with the Neapolitan theme, try this old-school recipe for escarole bitter greens with olives and capers.
How to Store and Reheat Pizza
Pizza is always best enjoyed fresh. If you have leftovers, store them wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, or in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months.
To reheat, place a skillet over medium heat. Add the pizza (thawed if previously frozen) and a splash of water on the side (not on top), and cover with a lid for 2-3 minutes. You can also reheat in a 400°F preheated oven for 5-10 minutes. This crisps up the crust while melting the cheese on top.
Pizza Marinara FAQ's
The pizza steel or stone helps retain heat inside the oven, which gets you closer to the intense conditions of traditional wood-fired ovens. This allows the dough to rise rather than staying flat and drying out, while also shortening cooking times. Additionally, it reduces swings in temperature, so it cooks pizza more evenly.
I highly recommend investing in a baking steel or stone, but if you don't have access to one, the next best thing is using a large cast iron pan or pot instead and following the same method. Always preheat the oven to the highest temperature possible for at least 45 minutes. Without any of these techniques, it's likely your pizza won't have the right texture and will take way longer to cook if using a home oven.
You need less than you think. Stick to a light coating. Too much moisture will weigh down the dough and make it soggy.
Traditional marinara pizza only has crushed tomatoes, garlic, dried oregano and olive oil. You can always add other toppings and the method will stay pretty much the same with great results, but it wouldn't be an authentic marinara pizza anymore.
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Authentic Neapolitan Pizza Marinara Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 balls Neapolitan style pizza dough about 8-9 ounces or 240 grams, room temperature
- 1 cup whole peeled tomatoes best quality possible
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt more or less to taste
- 2 garlic cloves sliced paper thin
- 1 ½ teaspoons dried oregano more or less to taste
- 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil plus more for serving
- all purpose flour or semolina for dusting
Instructions
- Place a pizza stone or steel in the oven and preheat to the highest setting, ideally 500-550°F, for at least 45 minutes. Once the oven is hot, turn on the broiler.
- In a small bowl, gently crush the tomatoes by hand until mostly broken down but still a little chunky. Alternatively, you can puree with an immersion blender or food mill. Season with salt, taste, and adjust as needed.
- Dust a work surface and one dough ball lightly with flour. Gently press from the center outward, leaving about a 1-inch outer rim.
- Carefully stretch it into a 12-inch circle, keeping the center thin and the edge slightly thicker. Be careful not to let it tear.
- Transfer the dough to a pizza peel lightly dusted with flour or semolina.
- Spoon half of the tomatoes onto the center and spread it out in a thin, even layer, stopping just before the rim.
- Scatter half of the sliced garlic evenly over the sauce, then sprinkle with ¾ teaspoon of oregano and drizzle with 2 tablespoons of olive oil.
- Shake the peel a little bit to make sure the pizza isn't sticking, then immediately slide it onto the baking stone and close the oven door immediately.
- Bake until the crust is puffed and lightly charred in spots, about 7-10 minutes, rotating once only if necessary for even cooking.
- Remove from the oven, let rest for about 30 seconds, then slice and serve immediately.
- Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
Notes
- Let the dough come to room temperature for at least an hour before stretching. This will make it easier to work with and prevent tearing. If it still resists stretching, rest it for 10 minutes and try again.
- If you don't have a pizza stone or baking steel, place a baking tray and a heavy cast iron pan on the lower part of your oven (the larger and heavier, the better).
- A pizza peel is helpful, but if you don't have one, build your pizza on top of a cutting board or baking sheet, and be super careful when transferring it to the oven.
- Your oven needs to be screaming hot to achieve a true Neapolitan-style pizza crust, so make sure to preheat it and add a pizza stone, steel or even a large cast iron skillet. If you have a home pizza oven, even better!
- Cook the pizza on the preheated baking tray if you don't have a pizza stone or steel. Do not take the cast iron pan out.
- Too much tomato sauce will weigh down the dough and make it soggy. A thin layer is all you need. If your pizza comes out soggy in the middle, cut back to ⅓ cup.
- The garlic should be sliced extremely thin. Use a mandolin or very sharp knife for best results.
- If the crust is browning too quickly, turn the broiler off halfway through.
- Finish the pizza with a sprinkle of flaky salt before serving. It will lift all the flavors up!
