What's On Your Pizza?

I think that food is a universal language Everyone, regardless of where they live of where they were born, needs to eat. One of my favorite foods, or perhaps even my most favorite, is pizza. I also like exchanging and collecting postcards from all over the world.

So, I combined both of these passions. On my profile on Postcrossing, a postcard exchange website, I asked the question: If your country has pizza, what do you like on it? I asked people to answer that question on the postcard when they send it to me. Not everyone who sends me a postcard replies, of course, but I do have an impressive list of international favorites.

I must say, I was surprised how many countries have pizza. Here are the responses I have received, in alphabetical order of the sender's country of origin.

Belgium:

• Onion/eggplant/zucchini/green salad/tomato sauce/cheese/goat cheese

Canada

• Mushrooms/cheese
• Cheese/cheese/cheese
• Ham/pineapple

Chile

• Shrimp/cheese
• All kinds of mushrooms

China:

• Cheese/turkey

Croatia:

• Tomato sauce/mozzarella/smoked ham/oregano

Czechia:

• Spicy salami/cheese/jalapenos
• Margherita
• Salsa/mozzarella/oregano

England:

• Seafood
• Tomato/buffalo mozzarella/basil
• Pineapple/onion/sweet corn/red peppers/a bit of green chilies 
• Tomatoes/mushrooms

Finland:

• Berlusconi: Rye bottom/smoked reindeer/red onion
• Mozzarella cheese/cherry tomato/arugula
• Ham/pineapple/blue cheese
• Chicken/tuna and feta, goat or blue cheese

France:

• Four-cheese
• Cheddar/onions/ground beef
• Goat cheese/walnuts/honey

Germany:

• Mushrooms
• Salami
• Paprika/onions/artichokes/broccoli
• Mushrooms and red onion
• Garlic salami/lots of cheese
• Anchovies
• Salmon and spinach
• Spinach and garlic
• Cheese (Gorgonzola)
• 4-cheese
• Blanca (white pizza) with jalapeno pesto
• Pineapple
• Shrimp/garlic/arugula 
• Tomato/arugula/Parmesan
• Ham/arugula/Parmesan
• Ham/pineapple
• Leeks
• Tuna
• Tomato/mozzarella/pesto/basil
• Chicken/pineapple/curry sauce
• Seafood
• Ham/mushrooms/artichokes/black olives
• Tuna/onion
• Broccoli

Guernsey (Channel Islands):

• Ham/pineapple

India:

• Olives/lots of cheese

Indonesia

• Tuna

Japan

• Corn/mayonnaise
• Basil/Mozzarella cheese

Kazakhstan

• Kebab
• Tomato/meat/cheese

Latvia

• Mushrooms/lots of cheese

Malaysia: 

• Pineapple

Netherlands:

• Garlic/pesto/spinach/mozzarella
• Hawaiian (pineapple)
• Goat cheese/honey/bacon
• Vegan BBQ pizza (tomato/onion/mushrooms/spring onion/vegan cheese/sauce)

Poland:

• Cheese/spinach/chicken/pepper/mushroom/curry or garlic sauce
• Ham/mushrooms/olive/onion/garlic sauce
• Ham/corn/peppers/cheese

Portugal:

• Bacon/olives
• Prosciutto/mushrooms/olives/artichoke

Russia:

• Cheese/sausage/mushrooms/olives/corn
• Papa John's 
• Cheese
• Margarita
• Cheese/Pickles/Mushrooms
• Chicken/Pineapple
• Surimi (fish paste)/tuna/mayonnaise
• Tomato paste/basil/mozzarella/mayonnaise
• Mushrooms/ham/onion/mayonnaise
• Spicy tomato sauce/salami/pickles/mayonnaise
• Ham/tomatoes/pickles/olives/cheese
• Pepperoni/double cheese
• Tick Time: ham/olives/pineapple/red onion/mozzarella/feta/cheddar
• Homemade with olives/mushrooms/peppers
• Chicken/pineapple
• Chicken/bacon/garlic/tomatoes/mozzarella/specialty sauce
• Caesar (it's like Caesar salad)
• Pepperoni
• Cheese/honey/garlic/pears

Spain:

• Jamón serrano (it's a cured ham)/tomato/olive oil
• Onion/barbecue sauce/chicken

Switzerland:

• Tuna/onions
• Salmon/capers/onion/Gorgonzola

Taiwan:

• Seafood and cheese

United States:

• Pastrami (California)
• Spinach and pineapple (Colorado)
• Cheese/buffalo sauce (Maine)
• Italian sausage/black olives/green peppers/mushrooms (Nebraska)
• Ziti pizza: noodles and tomato sauce (New Jersey)
• Pepperoni (New York)
• Vodka pizza (New York)
• Thin crust, no crisp with just sauce and cheese (New York)
• Banana peppers/Italian sausage/green peppers/onions/ham and or pepperoni (N. Carolina)
• Tomatoes/pineapple/Canadian bacon (N. Carolina)
• Thin crust with hot peppers (Oregon)
• Traditional Neopolitan (Utah)
• Hawaiian pizza (Washington)
• Hawaiian pizza with Italian spicy sausage
• Pan pizza with vodka 

My favorite pizza would have ham, pineapples, onions, green peppers and no cheese. However, I never order it this way because toppings cost money. I compromise and get Canadian bacon (for some reason, our pizza place does not have ham), pineapples and no cheese.

I have nothing against cheese, but I tend to enjoy artisan cheeses and am not fond of the corner-cutting (aka: cheap) cheese most pizza places use. I would much rather enjoy tasting the toppings and not have them buried. If there was goat cheese available, I would order my pizza with goat cheese, however. Tom is more traditional: He likes bacon and sausage (with cheese, of course).

On the occasions I've made pizza at home, I really went out of the box. My favorite homemade pizza the way I make it has honey, apples, walnuts and goat cheese. By the way, the picture I used for this post is of said homemade pizza. Can you tell which is my half, and which is Tom's? Anyway, if you think my tastes are weird, I refer you to the international list above! But really, what do you like on your pizza?