A pizzaiolo is any person dedicated to the preparation or sale of pizzas, generally in a pizzeria. The culinary practice originated in the city of Naples, Italy. It has been practiced since the 16th century and has been passed down through generations. With an estimated 3,000 artisans, it serves as a source of livelihood.
There are three categories of pizzaiolo: master pizzaiolo, pizzaiolo, and baker. A master pizzaiolo, or masto in the local Neapolitan language, is someone who has mastered all stages and is responsible for nurturing the next generation of pizzaiuoli. A masto can also perform pizza art in public. Beneath the masto is the guaglione, or young pizzaiolo. This person follows the master's body movements and ensures the art of becoming a master. Lastly, the baker is responsible for baking the pizza in a wood-fired oven (also called pampuglie) and has the ability to distinguish the wood needed and how to manage it so that the resulting pizza is perfect.
In practice, pizzaiolo involves four stages to produce a pizza. The first stage is rolling the dough and then forming it into a ball, called staglio. The second is to stretch (ammaccatura) and rotate the dough until it can be given pizza toppings. This term is called schiaffo or when the dough becomes wide and elastic. Next, the master pizzaiolo spreads tomato sauce and the remaining ingredients are sprinkled from the center outwards in a clockwise direction. The final stage is to put the pizza into the wood-fired oven and rotate it with a pizza shovel. The shovel is used to protect the hands from the heat of the oven.
