The following is an online extra from the May issue of Richmond magazine, heading to newsstands now.
Photo by Thinkstock
I’ve never really understood why people like takeout pizza so much.
And don’t worry, you’re not about to be hit with some sort of insufferable pizza snobbery. Geekery, maybe.
I have a suspicion, though, that I’m not alone — that what I’m about to talk about has probably pissed you off, too.
You pick up the pie, you bring it home, you lift the lid, and voila! A soft and sorry thing.
Doesn’t matter if it was a wood-fired Neapolitan with bufala mozzarella; you slip it into that cardboard box and seal it up tight, and you might as well be eating Sbarro at a rest stop.
I put an end to this disappointment some years ago, when I made two important changes to my takeout routine.
First, I began asking the person at the register very nicely to not close the lid of the box.
Yes, I leave the lid open, and carry it home with me that way.
"But doesn’t that leave you with a pathetically cold pizza?" I can hear you asking now.
Yes, but cold you can fix. You can’t fix soggy.
Which brings us to step two.
Turn your oven to 350 as soon as you walk through the door. In the meantime, heat up a large skillet, add a thin layer of olive oil, and place a couple individual slices into the hot, oiled pan. When the oven’s ready, slide that baby in and let the pie reheat, about 10 minutes.
Does all this sound like a lot of work for what is, after all, supposed to be a quick meal? Maybe. Will you risk looking like a lunatic to your friends and lovers? Possibly.
I say it’s a small price to pay to take your takeout pizza experience to the next level.
