For decades, people have wondered in the culinary world - pizza or calzone, which is better? Well, there's no way to settle the debate since everyone has their own opinion. Whether you like pizza or calzones, it's all good as long as you enjoy it! 

However, we must ask, are calzones and pizza the same? Well, in short, definitely not. They're similar in toppings/fillings, but they're different in shape, size, taste, and texture. 

In today's article, we've come to curate calzone characteristics and distinguish the differences between pizza vs. calzone. Hence, without any further ado, let's start!

What is Pizza

Indeed, we're all exposed to the world of pizza. Starting from children to the elderly, everyone loves a good slice of authentic, tasty Margherita pizza. Pizza is always a comfort food one may go to after a good or bad day. Not only is it famous in the United States, but all across the world.

As for pizza, the dough is made from simply 00 flour dough, pizza sauce, and an array of toppings, depending on your choice. All of this is included over a flatbread, which is either thin or thick. 

You can eat pizza on any occasion. Whether it's a birthday party or a hangout with a friend, pizza is our trustworthy friend in need! You can eat it in versatile ways. 

Hence, whenever there's a debate between pizza and calzone, we always tend to ask ourselves how we can betray our beloved pizza. Thus, let's talk a bit more about calzones. 

What is Calzone

Calzones are also called to be a type of pizza, but inside out. Yes, you heard it right- calzones are bread stuffed with stuffing instead of having a flatbread layout for your toppings. It's compact, and you can get all the flavors in one bite. 

If you like pizza, you'll surely be amazed at why you didn't find calzones before. Calzones are packed with different flavors depending on what the customer wants. 

While pizza is mostly famous for being a savory dish, it's not the same with calzones. Calzones can be stuffed with almost any flavor and nature of any kind. Hence, there are delicious calzones you'll find with sweet and savory insides. 

If you try sweet calzones, you may even fall in love with them more than the savory version. If you're asking yourself which best calzones near me deliver, you can order any pizza from Pizza Bien and finish your meal by treating yourself to a chocolate hazelnut calzone. The combination will leave your mouth wanting more.

Calzones are pretty large, but you can't tell unless you taste them in real life. While eating pizza with your hands, eating calzones with the good-old fork and knife is recommended. 

Calzones were pretty hard to find even a few years ago. But as Italian cuisine is widely spreading, calzones have now become easy to find. 

However, you must make sure to order from authentic Italian pizzerias. They bear the significance of Naples, the birthplace of pizza and calzones, just like Pizza Bien. If the recipe is fondled with, you won't receive the original deliciousness of calzones!

Pizza vs Calzone

We've all heard debate about calzone vs pizza and discussions questioning are calzones and pizza the same. But, there's only so little that we've known about calzones! Let's see what's different about calzones, the biggest competitor of pizza. 

Calzones originated back in Italy. In Naples, they used to call it something resembling "pant legs," meaning they were the portable form of pizza. 

Throughout Italy, it achieved recognition which didn't last for long. Soon, calzones spread across the globe and made themselves a good reputation.

Let's see seven reasons why calzones are the best!

1. Calzones can be customized into anything

When you first take a bite out of your calzone, you don't know if it's going to be sweet or savory. It's full of exciting elements and surprises! On top of that, when making a calzone yourself, you can use almost anything.

Whether you're a vegetarian, meat lover, or a desert person - calzones are a go-to! In different cuisines, calzones have existed with varying names for decades.

It's always enjoyable to fill your calzone with the ingredients you love most. And, there's a huge scope to unleash your creativity and go wild here!

2. They're perfect for crust lovers

Calzones are indeed made for those who eat the crust of their pizza before they eat the toppings part. Every bite of your calzone will have crispy, crunchy, and good crust surrounded.

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3. The crust keeps the heat inside

When we put cheese over pizza, it dries out easily in a matter of a few minutes. However, the crust is all covered up in a calzone ensures the intactness of the gooey insides. The toppings are all warm for a long time.

Even at the end of your calzone, you'll have a warm bite. Safe to say, your mozzarella garlic, tomato, and parmesan-filled pie will remain safe and friendly!

4. You can take it anywhere

Pizza has to be eaten when you're seated and in a comfortable place. It's not something you can take anywhere with you on the go. It's tough to stash a pizza inside a tiffin box as well if you're planning to host a picnic. However, with calzone, things are a lot better. 

You can take a calzone anywhere you want simply because of how portable they are. The crust also protects the grease of pizza crust and topping. Calzones are a lot less fussy since you can have them in one bite!

5. If you're a cheese lover, it's perfect!

Calzones are filled with cheese to the brim. Cheese of all kinds, starting from Aged Havarti, mozzarella, cheddar, parmesan, ricotta, and a lot more, can be stuffed with calzones. If you're a cheese lover, you can customize a four-cheese calzone. It's going to satisfy your palette.

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6. Customizable amounts

When we order pizza, it's almost out of our hands if we want more or less of an ingredient. However, with calzones, you can customize anything from the amount of sauce to the number of toppings, all in one go. 

7. Wide array of dipping sauces

If you're a fan of dips, you'll love the ones which come with calzones. You can dip your calzones in marinara sauce, pesto sauce, cheese sauce, ranch, and a lot more. All you need to do is focus on not ordering too much since a bit of dip goes a long way. 

Calzone Making Tips

You can always order yourself a cushy chocolate hazelnut calzone from Italy and bake it yourself easily. However, if you're in the mood to make calzones, here are a few tips that'll help you achieve the perfect calzone every time. 

To begin, roll out each 5 oz. Dough ball (150g). It should be the size of an apple. For a nice-sized dish, roll the dough into a 7-inch circle. You don't want it too thin for calzones. Even if you like thin crust pizza, going too thin with calzones risks filling blowouts.

While the alternatives for calzone filling are practically unlimited, choose products with low moisture content to avoid soggy middles. For a filling, sauté mushrooms or zucchini first, then cool on a paper towel to remove extra moisture. 

You can substitute sun-dried or oven-roasted tomatoes for a fresh taste. Jarred vegetables like artichokes and roasted red peppers are also great options. Before usage, dry them with a paper towel.

Keep contents away from the edges (sauce in the corners makes it tough to seal!). Place a large mound of filling in the middle and gently stretch the dough around it. The contents will shrink as they cook, providing a good dough to filling ratio.

Seal your calzone completely, taking careful attention to the corners. Before sealing, brush away any sauce from the sealing edge. You can make sure your fingers don't stick by using a bit of flour. 

Make a few small holes on the top before putting it in the oven to let steam escape while cooking.

Allow them to cook for the whole time suggested, even if they seem cooked on the outside. The inside must cook to perfection! Soon after, you'll have the best homemade calzone.

Conclusion

Many people seem to wonder, is calzone a pizza? Well, we hope by now you know it's a pizza but of its kind. There are different varieties of calzones in the market. Whether you want to have a calzone that exactly resembles a pizza or something completely different is up to you. 

Hence, we hope you've come to know everything about calzones! If you have any more calzone tips to share, make sure to comment them down below! 

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