This spicy slice of meat has become a staple pizza topping at local pizzerias. A recent poll showed that American’s favorite pizza topping was (no surprise) pepperoni with 52% of the vote. For those who may not know,  pepperoni is dried sausage made of pork, beef and, spices (most often pepper, thus the name). How did the meaty topping become one of the most popular pizza orders for people?

In 1978, Darren Ezzo’s great-grandfather made some of this sausage at his grocery store. The popularity of this pizza topping exploded. Many years later his family business, Ezzo Sausage, in Columbus, produces pepperoni for some of the country’s most talked-about pizzerias.

He explained that the rise in popularity of pepperoni had to do with convenience. The first American pizzerias had to replace what they usually used in Italy. For example, capicola, a spiced and
smoked pork shoulder cured in a natural casing, would take too long to produce. They needed something quick and that’s where pepperoni came in.

Pepperoni expanded even more once mainstream pizza chains started utilizing the round meat topping. As these chains grew, they needed toppings that could be mass-produced. Pepperoni had the advantage of being salty, cheap and lasting through transport.

Inspired by our Italian ancestors, we have been making pepperoni pizza for 70 years. Our experience shows as John P. wrote, “We get their pizza almost every Friday. Best around….”. So, grab a bite of the best pepperoni pizza in CT 🍕