Pizza chiena means the heartiness of its filling; in dialect it gives us a sense of greatness… a pizza chiena! It is a preparation usually made on Good Friday, and should be eaten the next day. This rule gives the pizza additional flavor because the resting period melds the flavors, binding them to the dough inseparably.
The pizza chiena should be at least 2–3 inches high. It is certainly not a vegan dish, considering its substantial filling made of soppressata, cheeses and fresh eggs. It is often further seasoned with a pinch of black pepper. There are variants with pieces of fresh cheese and other cured meats.
Unmissable for the Easter Monday picnic!
Try these tasty Easter recipes:
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Moderate
- Rest time: 5 Hours
- Preparation time: 30 Minutes
- Cooking time: 50 Minutes
- Portions: 10Servings
- Cooking methods: Oven
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Easter
- Energy 598.36 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 35.26 (g) of which sugars 0.80 (g)
- Proteins 39.36 (g)
- Fat 32.65 (g) of which saturated 9.78 (g)of which unsaturated 7.55 (g)
- Fibers 1.26 (g)
- Sodium 1,223.35 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 200 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
INGREDIENTS FOR PIZZA CHIENA
- 2 cups All-purpose flour
- 2 cups Manitoba (strong) flour
- 2 tbsp Lard
- 2 tsp Salt
- 3/4 cup + 2 tbsp Warm water (warm)
- 2.25 tsp Fresh brewer's yeast (about 7 g)
- 8 Eggs
- 1 Soppressata (diced)
- 10.6 oz Cooked ham (diced)
- 12.3 oz Primosale cheese (diced)
- 5.3 oz Parmigiano Reggiano
Tools
- 1 Stand mixer
PREPARATION OF PIZZA CHIENA
Proceed to make the leavened dough by combining all the ingredients and let it rise overnight. If you wish, you can substitute part of the all-purpose flour with finely milled semolina.
Then roll it out into 2 discs, one slightly larger than the other. Use the larger disc to line a 9.5-inch diameter pan (after buttering it with a little lard).
Pour in the mixture obtained by whisking the eggs with all the other filling ingredients. You can also omit the cooked ham and increase the amount of soppressata.
Cover with the second disc and seal the edges well so the filling doesn’t leak out.
Before baking at 392°F for about 45–50 minutes, brush with a bit of the egg from the filling.
To check for doneness, do the knife test by inserting the tip both into a corner of the pizza and in the center. If the tip comes out dry, it is cooked.Enjoy the pizza chiena after at least 4–5 hours so it has time to settle properly.
Adriana’s Tip
The pizza chiena will keep for about 4–5 days wrapped in plastic wrap.
