As each year passes, we witness new epicurean tendencies in the pizza sphere, and the year 2023 is no different. At UpwardsCalability, our mission includes keeping a close eye on what delights and intrigues pizza aficionados globally. Dive into our list of this year's top pizza toppings that are grabbing attention.
1. Fermented Vegetables
With growing awareness around gut health, fermented vegetables have emerged as a crowd-pleaser on pizzas. Highlights include kimchi, sauerkraut, and pickled onions which add a zesty tartness, pairing wonderfully with the rich cheese and savory sauce. These toppings aren’t just packed with probiotics, they also add a novel textural layer to the quintessential pizza.
The newly introduced Fermentation Fiesta pie boasts in-house sauerkraut, kimchi, and gorgonzola cheese, all balanced out exquisitely with a squirt of local honey. This unusual mix is garnering quite the demand as one of our hot-ticket specialty pizzas.
2. Plant-Based Proteins
As the adoption of plant-forward lifestyles continues its ascendancy, the call for pizzas adorned with inventive meat alternatives has surged. Moving past basic veggie toppings, the advent of plant-based proteins is now pleasing even staunch carnivores.
Our menu now frequently lists plant-derived Italian sausage bits, savory tempeh pieces, jackfruit marinated to mimic pulled pork, and pea protein pepperoni. These aren't solely for vegetarian palates—customers are opting for them due to their distinctive taste profiles and gentler impact on digestion.
3. Regional Chili Varieties
For those who crave spice, 2023 has been a year of seeking out particular regional chili flavors instead of the typical crushed red pepper. While Calabrian chilies continue to hold their ground, Aleppo peppers, smoldering Spanish ñora chilies, the fruity Peruvian aji amarillo, and Korean gochujang are now finding their way onto many a pizza.
The International Zest pizza offers a quartet of these diverse chilies, with each lending an individual flavor to the quarters of the pizza, catering to our more intrepid eaters.
4. Seasonal Foraged Ingredients
The trend of foraging has extended from the fields to pizza with a newfound popularity of season-specific wild ingredients. Leading the pack are mushrooms such as chanterelles, morels, and hen of the woods, spotlighted during their natural growing seasons.
Apart from fungi, we're innovating with wild leek ramps, sea greens like dulse and nori, and even spruce tips for their signature fragrance. These ingredients offer a taste of the wilderness and provide flavors that can’t be matched by farmed counterparts.
5. Specialty Honey Drizzles
Honey's ability to add a sweet note to savory dishes has solidified its role in modern gastronomy. Continuing from the popularity of spicy honey, 2023 has brought a variety of specialty honeys to pizza finishing, including options such as truffle-infused honey, fermented garlic honey, aromatic mesquite honey, and even CBD-enhanced honey, which add sophisticated layers of flavor to even the simplest of pizzas.
Honorable Mentions
A couple more toppings that narrowly didn't make our main list but deserve acknowledgment include:
- Cured egg yolks finely grated over the pizza akin to a dusting of gold
- Pickled fruits, notably stone fruits such as peaches and cherries
- Heritage grain garnishes, including crisp farro or puffed sorghum for a textural contrast
- Dollops of artisan butter, especially those infused with culture or herbs
Whether you stand by tried-and-true classics or are open to exploring daring flavor mixes, pizza remains an infinitely customizable and universally adored dish. At UpwardsCalability, our approach is to honor time-honored traditions while welcoming new trends—that's why our menu features both staple Margheritas and trailblazing specialty creations.
Have you sampled any of these buzzworthy toppings? Or perhaps you have a distinctive topping combo you'd love for us to try out? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments or on your next visit!