Mozzarella for pizza – choosing, drying and portioning
The wrong mozzarella floods your pizza. Fior di latte, bufala and supermarket mozzarella compared, how much to use per pizza and how to get the water out.
Quick answer: Fior di latte (cow’s milk) is the standard choice at most Neapolitan pizzerias, mozzarella di bufala (buffalo milk) brings more flavour and more moisture, and supermarket mozzarella works but often needs the water squeezed out. Allow around 80–100 g per pizza – any more and it drowns.
Three types, three results
Fior di latte (see fior di latte) melts evenly and predictably – the usual choice in Naples, even though many people outside Italy believe buffalo mozzarella is the standard. Mozzarella di bufala (see the bufala guide) has more moisture and a clearer, tangier flavour, but can make the pizza wet if it isn’t handled properly. Supermarket mozzarella usually has a higher water content than the Italian originals and should be squeezed, or torn and lightly dried, before it goes on.
How to avoid a wet pizza
Cut or tear the cheese into smaller pieces rather than big slices – smaller pieces melt more evenly and leak less liquid. How much water different cheeses actually release is what the planned mozzarella test is set up to measure. If the pizza still turns out wet, see wet pizza.
Recipes to try the cheese on: margherita, bufalina and caprese.
