5 Health Benefits of Wood Fired Pizzas
It may sometimes get a bad rap, but pizza can be a nutritious dish if you apply the right ingredients. Toppings like fruits, vegetables, and light cheese can turn this dish up a notch from delicious to healthy and delicious. And one way to ensure that you’re eating healthier pizza is by using a wood fired oven to fire up your pie.
Yes, wood fired pizza is packed with health benefits, from perks for your personal health to even your financial well-being. Here are five benefits to eating pizza from a wood-fired oven.
1. Heating a pizza over an oven flame helps cook the fruit and vegetable toppings faster and also helps them maintain their nutrients and antioxidants. Some of the most nutritional pizza toppings include ham (which is lower in fan compared to sausage), pineapple, low-fat cheese (which proves to be higher in protein), broccoli (if you’re feeling adventurous), and spinach, which isn’t just a fan favorite of Popeye—it’s also a favorite of nutritionists who praise it for containing more than 13 flavonoid compounds that work to prevent cancer.
2. Faster cooking time means that you can enjoy your pie faster, and if you’re feeding a lot of people, this means they can enjoy their meal faster. But because it’s right out of the oven, they’ll also have to eat slower, which aids in greater satisfaction from the meal and feeling full. When you eat too fast, this can lead to putting on weight and even worse, not feeling satisfied with what you eat. Thus, eating something right out of the oven and waiting for it to cool allows you not to plow through a pizza—but to savor it and enjoy it more.
3. Wood-fired ovens are also an economically friendly option, as they require no electricity or gas. So not only are you eating healthier pizza, but you’re also saving money, since wood-fired ovens will save you money that might be spent on utilities. With the money you save, you can purchase more cool healthy pizza toppings (what would butternut squash and sage taste like on a pizza?).
4. Wood-fired ovens are safe for cooking any type of food and topping included in your pizza pie, including gluten-free breads, so they can be applied to different diets. However, you might have to play with the cooking time to accommodate the unique ingredients. Gluten-free pizza will needed to be heated longer to 3 minutes to come out fully cooked.
5. Wood-fired pizza also distributes the heat more evenly, so you’re not consuming slices that are half done. Every part is cooked to perfection. Along with the more even heat distribution, wood-fired pizzas have a smoky flavor that adds something to the pie that normal ovens aren’t able to recreate.
Pizza doesn’t have to be unhealthy, and wood-fired ovens can be an integral tool to making pizza taste better and feel better for your body. All it takes is the right equipment and ingredients to make for a healthier pizza pie.