Abruzzo Frittella (or pizz’onta as it’s called in dialect) is the best fried pizza you’ve likely never had. This sneaky good crispy-on-the-outside, super soft, and puffy-on-the-inside fried pizza is delicious. In fact, I can say it’s one of the best breads I’ve probably ever eaten. Golden brown shallow-fried dough sprinkled with Maldon sea salt, you can serve these mini pizzas for aperitivo, antipasti, or for lunch with toppings like burrata, ricotta, prosciutto di Parma, pecorino, sundried tomatoes, grilled vegetables, or olives. Or take family pizza night up a few notches and add tomato sauce, mozzarella, and your favorite pizza toppings. One fried bread, endless options.
Watch the Video in the Recipe Notes to See How Fluffy, Crispy & Delicious this Pizza Fritte Is
What is Pizza Fritte (aka Pizza Fritta or Pizzonte Frittelle Abruzzese)?
Pizzonta frittelle or pizza fritta salata is an Italian fried dough (aka fried pizza). It’s a typical street food with origins in Abruzzo, Italy, and much like the pizza fritta from Naples, it began as a way to not waste anything. Frying up leftover bread or pizza dough just makes sense especially if you’re craving pizza, but don’t have a wood-fired oven at home. This easy yeast bread rises twice, is shaped into rounds, and shallow-fried until puffy and golden brown then sprinkled with Maldon salt, and topped with all kinds of delicious toppings. You can eat this fried Italian dough by itself, turn it into the base for one of the best pizzas of your life, or top it with sautéed vegetables, cheese, or prosciutto — you can even stuff it and then fry it like a calzone.
Pizzonte Frittelle Abruzzese or “pizza fritte” literally translates as “fried pizzas from Abruzzo” and it goes by many names (pizza unta, pizzonta frittelle, pizza fritta, pizz’onta, pizz’onte, and pizzonte). Written as “pizz’onta” it translates as “greasy pizza”. And there are at least 3 kinds of pizzonte frittelle: “dolce” (sweet), “salata” (savory), and “farcita”or “ripiena” (stuffed). Every family or restaurant has its own recipe with some using lard, milk, and/or mashed potatoes in the dough. But no matter what, this pizza is always fried and 100% delicious. All regions throughout Italy (including Naples in the Campagna region) all have their own versions of pizza fritte.
Why We Love This Pizza Fritta Recipe
- Fried pizza is incredibly easy to make
- Uses just 7 basic pantry ingredients (and that includes water)
- Only about 30 minutes of actual hands-on time (this includes frying the pizzas)
- Easy recipe for kiddos to help make
- Makes a perfect edible canvas for an antipasti platter or a quick lunch
- Uses basic pantry ingredients
- Fried pizza is always delicious
- The dough can be made 1 to 3 days in advance
- If you’ve ever failed at making great homemade pizza, this fried pizza will change Pizza Night forever
Italian Pizza Fritte Ingredients (Pizzonte Frittelle Abruzzese)
Every family (or restaurant) recipe for pizza fritta varies. Some include milk, lard and even mashed potatoes. This fried pizza yields the best, crispy-on-the-outside, super soft, and puffy-on-the-inside fried pizza dough. I recommend using the gram measurements below which makes this recipe very easy to pull together plus, it’s more accurate. But for those of you without a kitchen scale, I’ve also provided imperial measurements.
- Italian 00 flour *sub all-purpose flour
- yeast
- milk
- water
- extra virgin olive oil
- sugar
- salt
- oil for frying
How to Make Pizza Fritte (Savory Fried Pizza)
Pizza fritte is a really forgiving Italian yeast dough and incredibly simple to make at home. All you just need is to mix, knead, and allow the dough to rise, then shape it and let it rise again before frying it. This is a great starter dough for anyone new to making yeast bread or for kiddos just learning how to make homemade bread.
- Make the pizza fritte dough. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, yeast, and sugar and whisk well to combine. Add the extra virgin olive oil and warm milk and stir to incorporate. Slowly add the warm water just until the dough starts to come together but isn’t wet or too sticky. Add the salt and stir to combine until everything comes together and you can form a ball. *Depending on the humidity in your environment and the absorption potential of the flour you’re using, you may not need all of the water, or you may need just a teaspoon or two more if it’s dry. See recipe notes.
- Knead the dough and let it rise. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead it for 10 to 12 minutes until it’s soft, smooth, and pliable. Only add a sprinkle of flour if needed to keep the dough from sticking to the countertop, but be careful not to add too much. Place the kneaded dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise for 2 hours in the oven with the light turned on until doubled in size.
- Portion the dough and let it rest. Deflate the dough and divide it equally into 6 portions and roll them into uniform balls. Cover the balls with the bowl turned upside down over the tops and let them rest for 10 minutes.
- Shape the dough & let them rise. Working with one piece of dough at a time, press each ball down with the tips of your fingers to create a circle approximately 5 inches (13cm) in diameter. Place the formed dough rounds onto a lightly flowered sheet pan and cover loosely with sustainable cling film. Repeat with remaining dough and allow them to rise covered in the oven with the light turned on until they become slightly puffy (about 30 minutes).
- Fry the pizza fritte. Working with one or two pizze fritte at a time, fry the dough rounds in a preheated 350°F/176°C skillet with about 1 to 2 inches of oil for about 2 minutes on the first side. Use a spoon to make make a slight indention in the middle of the pizza fritte as they fry on the first side. Flip them over and fry for 1 to 2 minutes more, or until golden brown and puffy. Remove them to a paper towel-lined platter and sprinkle them immediately with Maldon sea salt of your favorite salt. Serve hot and enjoy right away as classic mini pizzas, or top them with prosciutto, grilled vegetables, and cheese as antipasti, and Enjoy!
Savory Pizza Fritte (Pizzonte Frittelle Abruzzese) step-by-step recipe photos
What Should I Serve With Pizza Fritte?
Depending on what you’re in the mood for, you can choose to make mini pizzas or the best antipasti platter ever. For classic pizza fritte top the fried dough with your favorite pizza sauce, a little mozzarella, and Parmigiano cheese (and any other pizza toppings you choose), and pop it under the broiler for a couple of minutes to get melty-ooey-gooey. For aperitvo or antipasto, you top the fried pizzas with any of the following ingredients, or add them to a serving platter and let everyone choose what they want to add to their pizza fritta.
- Shaved Pecorino, Parmigiano-Reggiano, or Grana Padano cheese
- Fresh Mozzarella, Mozzarella di Bufula, Burrata cheese, or Ricotta
- Sun Dried tomatoes or Roasted Tomatoes with Olive Oil & Herbs
- Black Olives or Green Olives
- Spicy Salami or Ventricina
- Grilled or Pan-Seared Vegetables
- Tomato or Pizza Sauce & Mozzarella Cheese
- Prociutto Cotto, Prosciutto di Parma, Speck di Asiago, Culatello, or other deli cold cuts
A Few More Italian Recipes to Make
If you love Italian food as much as we do, below are a few of our tried and true family favorites below.
- Anniversary Pasta (Spicy Shrimp Tomato-Alfredo Sauce w/Rigatoni)
- Italian Duck Ragù with Bigoli (Bigoli al Ragù d’Anatra)
- Classic Lasagna Bolognese (authentic Italian recipe)
- Shrimp Fettuccini Alfredo Pasta Recipe (w/Parmigiano Cream Sauce)
- Baked Ziti with Ragù (from Scratch)
- 15-Minute Shrimp Pasta w/Garganelli (the Italian Way)
- Spaghetti alla Carbonara (Cook Pasta Like A Roman)
- Tagliatelle al Ragù (Northern Italian Beef Ragù w/Pasta)
- Spicy Abruzzo Ventricina and Salsiccia Pasta (with Gold-Drawn Verrigni Soqquadro Pasta)
- Triple Shrimp Trighetto Pasta (Creamy Shrimp Pasta)
- Abruzzese Almost-Bolognese (Lasagna al Ragù w/Porcini Béchamel)
- Italian Speck & Asparagus Lasagna (w/Asparagus Béchamel & Zucchini Crema)
- Pasta all’Amatriciana (Spaghetti w/Smoky Pork, Tomato + Pecorino)
- Creamy Pasta with Sausage & Wine Sauce (Almost Pasta alla Norcina)
Let’s get started!
PrintPizza Fritta Abruzzese (Abruzzo Fried Pizza)
- Total Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
- Yield: 6 Fried Pizzas 1x
Description
Abruzzo Frittella (or pizz’onta as it’s called in dialect) is the best fried pizza you’ve likely never had. This crispy-on-the-outside, super soft, and puffy-on-the-inside fried pizza is delicious. In fact, I can say it’s one of the best breads I’ve probably ever eaten. Shallow-fried to perfect golden brown and sprinkled with sea salt, you can serve these mini pizzas for aperitivo or antipasti with toppings like burrata, ricotta, prosciutto di Parma, pecorino, sundried tomatoes, grilled vegetables, and olives. Or take Family Pizza Night up a few notches and add tomato sauce, mozzarella, and your favorite pizza toppings. One fried bread, endless options.
Ingredients
- 8 3/4 ounces (about 2 cups) Italian 00 flour (250g)*sub all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 teaspoon yeast (6g)
- 2 7/8 ounces (5 3/4 tablespoons) lukewarm milk (80g)
- 4 tablespoons lukewarm water (60g)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (14g)
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar (2g)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (3g)
- oil for shallow frying
Instructions
- Make the pizza fritte dough. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, yeast, and sugar and whisk well to combine. Add the extra virgin olive oil and warm milk and stir to incorporate. Slowly add the warm water just until the dough starts to come together but isn’t wet or too sticky. Add the salt and stir to combine until everything comes together and you can form a ball. *Depending on the humidity in your environment and the absorption potential of the flour you’re using, you may not need all of the water, or you may need just a teaspoon or two more if it’s dry. See recipe notes.
- Knead the dough and let it rise. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead it for 10 to 12 minutes until it’s soft, smooth, and pliable. Only add a sprinkle of flour if needed to keep the dough from sticking to the countertop, but be careful not to add too much. Place the kneaded dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise for 2 hours in the oven with the light turned on until doubled in size.
- Portion the dough and let it rest. Deflate the dough and divide it equally into 6 portions and roll them into uniform balls. Cover the balls with the bowl turned upside down over the tops and let them rest for 10 minutes.
- Shape the dough & let them rise. Working with one piece of dough at a time, press each ball down with the tips of your fingers to create a circle approximately 5 inches (13cm) in diameter. Place the formed dough rounds onto a lightly flowered sheet pan and cover loosely with sustainable cling film. Repeat with remaining dough and allow them to rise covered in the oven with the light turned on until they become slightly puffy (about 30 minutes).
- Fry the pizza fritte. Working with one or two pizze fritte at a time, fry the dough rounds in a preheated 350°F/176°C skillet with about 1 to 2 inches of oil for about 2 minutes on the first side. Use a spoon to make make a slight indention in the middle of the pizza fritte as they fry on the first side. Flip them over and fry for 1 to 2 minutes more, or until golden brown and puffy. Remove them to a paper towel-lined platter and sprinkle them immediately with Maldon sea salt of your favorite salt. Serve hot and enjoy right away as classic mini pizzas, or top them with prosciutto, grilled vegetables, and cheese as antipasti, and Enjoy!
Notes
- You may not need to add all of the water called for in the recipe depending on the absorption potential of the flour you’re using and the humidity of the environment you’re working in. This is why we add the water last and just a little at a time. On the other hand, if you’re working in a very dry environment, you may need a couple of teaspoons more water. The dough should come together and not feel dry or crumbly, nor be wet or too sticky. Instead, it should feel “tacky” (see step-by-step photos in the main post for what to look for).
- Adding the salt toward the end keeps it from killing the yeast before it has a chance to start activating.
- Make sure the oil is hot enough before adding the pizza fritte to fry or they’ll become greasy. You can check to see if the oil is ready by placing a wooden chopstick into the center of the oil and if bubbles come up around it (that look like carbonation in a soda) then the oil is hot enough. You may also use a candy/deep-fry thermometer to make sure the oil is at 350°F/176°C.
- If you want to make classic fried pizzas add a spoonful of tomato sauce or pizza sauce to the tops of the fried pizza, then top it with mozzarella, parm and any additional pizza toppings of your choice like pepperoni, mushrooms, olives, or cooked sausage then pop it under the broiler for a couple of minutes to melt the cheese. Best pizza night ever!
Watch the Video Below to See What the Texture of Pizza Fritte Should be Like
- Prep Time: 15
- Rise or Proofing Time: 90 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Shallow Fry
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pizza fritta
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