Pizza Toppings Real Italians Swear By

Aside from prosciutto, the two meats nearly every expert we talked to mentioned are the Italian dry salami soppressata, and the sausage mortadella (which some refer to as Italian balogna). Both go well on a standard tomato-and-cheese pie. While you'll rarely see pepperoni on an Italian pizza, if you're hooked on that smoky and salty flavor, you'll probably find soppressata even better. And chef Dan Holzman, who has spent time in Rome and Naples learning about pizza and has a "pizza meatball" on the menu at his New York restaurant chainlet The Meatball Shop, says mortadella is common on Italian pizzas; slice it paper thin so it crisps up slightly in the hot oven.