Perfect pizza

CHEF JAMIE Oliver, actress Gwyneth Paltrow, concrete sewer pipes, and fresh horse manure — what binds them? Wood-fired pizza ovens.

As global a plat du jour as the burger, most of us are pizza fans: purists go for slimmed-down Naples originals. But we’ve broadened our palates and bowdlerised the basics: some put curry sauce on top, others ham and pineapple — truly, there’s no accounting for tastes.

If you’re Italian, Momma makes the best pizza, but for everyone else it’s open competition as to how you cook it. Hot ovens are the key, for the best bases and melded toppings. Top of the heap is the wood-fired oven for hand-made pizza.