Pizza salsiccia e friarielli
Naples' winter white pizza: bitter friarielli greens cooked with garlic and chilli, crumbled pork sausage and fior di latte or smoked provola.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.
- Prep
- 35 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Rest
- 8 hr
- Total
- 9 hr 5 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- Mild
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Pizza salsiccia e friarielli puts two Neapolitan favourites on a white pizza: friarielli, the bitter leafy shoots of the broccoli rabe plant, and fresh pork sausage. In Naples the greens are cooked first, raw, in a covered pan with olive oil, garlic and chilli, until they collapse and turn tender, a dish called friarielli in padella. The sausage is fresh, coarse and mildly seasoned, its casing slipped off and the meat pulled into small pieces so it cooks through on the pizza. There is no tomato: the base is fior di latte or, for a smoky edge, provola. Squeeze the cooked greens to get rid of their liquid before they go on, or the pizza will be wet. Done is a pizza with a blistered rim, melted cheese, crisp-edged nuggets of sausage and soft, peppery, bitter greens.
What you'll need
10 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Dough
- Topping
Ingredients
Dough
- Wheat flour, tipo 00300 g
- Water, cool190 ml
- Yeast, fresh, or a pinch of dried1 g
- Salt8 g
Topping
- Cime di rapa, friarielli: tender shoots and leaves, washed400 g
- Sausages, fresh Italian pork sausage, casing removed200 g
- Mozzarella, fior di latte or smoked provola, torn and drained150 g
- Garlic, lightly crushed2 clove
- Fresh chilli, dried peperoncino, crumbled1 small
- Olive oil, extra virgin44 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Dissolve the yeast in the water, mix in the flour, then the salt, and knead until smooth. Cover and rise 2 hours, then divide into two balls and rise 6 hours more, or 24 hours in the fridge.
15 min
Step 2
Warm 2 tbsp oil with the garlic and chilli, add the wet friarielli and a pinch of salt, cover and cook 15 minutes over medium heat, stirring now and then, until tender. Remove the garlic, cool and squeeze out the liquid.
18 min
Step 3
Heat the oven to its highest setting with a steel or upturned tray inside for 40 minutes.
40 min280°C
Step 4
Press each ball out from the centre with your fingers, leaving a thicker rim. Cover with the cheese, then the friarielli and small pieces of sausage. Drizzle with the rest of the oil.
5 min
Step 5
Bake until the rim is puffed and spotted dark and the sausage is cooked and browned at the edges, 8–10 minutes at home, about 2 minutes in a wood oven.
10 min
Tip: In a home oven, pinch the sausage into small pieces, no bigger than a fingertip, so it cooks through.
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 1292 kcal
- Protein
- 67.4 g
- Carbs
- 123.7 g
- Fat
- 58 g
- Saturated fat
- 22.2 g
- Fibre
- 9.7 g
- Sugar
- 2 g
- Sodium
- 2338 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Milk
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.
Substitutions
Friarielli → Broccolini
Milder and less bitter; cook it the same way, a little longer.
Tips
- Smoked provola is the Neapolitan pizzeria's favourite here; it stands up to the bitter greens.
- Choose a plain pork sausage, seasoned with salt and pepper rather than herbs.
History & culture
Salsiccia e friarielli is one of Naples' great pairings, eaten as a winter side dish, stuffed into a bread roll from a street stall, and on pizza in every pizzeria in the city. Neapolitans insist on the word friarielli; elsewhere in Italy the same plant is cime di rapa, and in Naples it is in season from late autumn to early spring.
The pairing of pork sausage with bitter greens is old Campanian home cooking, from the winter months when pigs were slaughtered and broccoli rabe was the green in the fields. Pizzerias put it on a white base, and over the last few decades it has become one of the most ordered pizzas in Naples.
Traditional — Friarielli cooked in garlic oil, fresh pork sausage and fior di latte or smoked provola, on a white base.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Pizza salsiccia e friarielli take?
9 hr 5 min all in — 35 min prep, 30 min cook, 8 hr rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 2 pizzas. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
Mild.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Milk. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Nut-free.
6 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Frying pan, Oven, Baking tray.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 8 g.
What can I use instead?
Friarielli → Broccolini. Milder and less bitter; cook it the same way, a little longer.
Any tips from this recipe?
Smoked provola is the Neapolitan pizzeria's favourite here; it stands up to the bitter greens. Choose a plain pork sausage, seasoned with salt and pepper rather than herbs.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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