Well – how did it happen?

I got curious as to why, exactly, the Swedish pizza had evolved the way it did. Because it’s pretty unique – Swedish pizzas have been this way for as long as I can remember. So I asked some pizza-makers and was soon able to piece together some sort of explanation. During the 60s Sweden, like many Northern European countries, had a sever labor shortage and they hired guest workers from Turkey, Greece and Yugoslavia. Some of guest workers ended up working together and setting up restaurants and dining places. Turns out that the pizza’s physical construction makes it an exceptionally easy item for all of these different people to mix and match their various food cultures. The pizzas is flat, cooks quickly, cheaply and easily and naturally allows for experimentation with food ingredients. Once the associative barriers around a traditional Italian pizza had been broken down the field was wide open. It, quite literally, became the place where the cultures mixed igniting an explosion of creative ideas.

Comments

[david drake]

Finally an answer to a question that occurred first when I left Sweden. The flat, thin pizza was how I thought all pizzas were made in all countries until I left Sweden. Aquavit, World Bar and Ulrika's need to be complemented with some Swedish pizza.

[pizza]

swedish pizza. first time i am hearing of it. all i get is pizza hut at home