Everything You Need To Know About Pepperoni, Pizza's BFF

No Little League game would be complete without cardboard boxes full of piping hot pepperoni pizza. The same can be said for Field Day, football night, or a relaxed Friday at home, where it's the perfect low-fuss dinner (and even tastes good cold). While the dedication to this spicy cured meat topping is deep, though, how much do you really know about pepperoni?

Well, you're in luck, because here's your complete primer on all things pepperoni: what it is, how it's made, how to store it, where to buy it, how to cook with it, how to jazz up your frozen pizza with it, possible issues associated with this heartburn-y meat, and more. And it's not just pizza: you'll also learn what else you can do with pepperoni once you routinely stock it in your home kitchen. The truth is, pepperoni might be pizza's BFF, but it's a much more interesting and versatile food than many people realize.

In a YouGov poll of U.S. citizens in which people assigned a score to pizza toppings ranging from "love it" to "hate it," pepperoni weighs in just behind extra cheese. While 51% ranked max cheesiness as a love of theirs, 50% of people claimed to adore the spicy sausage as well, making it the most popular topping overall. (That's if you assume that cheese is a given. And you should, because cheese-less pizza is nuts.) Likely you won't be surprised to learn that anchovy was the most-panned topping.

Despite the true-blue American love for pepperoni, its popularity varies overseas. It's a hit in the U.K., which often follows U.S. tastes. However, it's harder to get on Europe's mainland, where sausage is usually preferred. And while pizza abounds in Southeast Asia, you'll usually find Margherita or veggie pizza ... though hot dogs are not an uncommon addition in this traveler's experience. In Italy, you can avoid disappointment by studying the menu carefully. There, peperoni, spelled with just two p's, signals bell peppers, so make sure to ask for "pizza diavolo" instead.

Pepperoni's flavor comes straight from its production process. It has a delicious spiciness, which isn't the same as being hot, although it can be. You'll also taste rich pork and beef, not to mention experience that fatty mouthfeel that comes only with good dried sausage. The fat comes largely from the pork cuts used: shoulder and belly for the most part. Common spices like paprika and garlic come forward on the palate.

The type of meat from which the sausage is made has a lot to do with its flavor, so newer pepperonis made with turkey may have a subtler, slightly gamier, yet less rich taste to them. Anyone who has tasted the difference between turkey and beef jerky can imagine the change in flavor. Pepperoni is also less fatty when you use turkey, since the latter lacks the high fat content of pork belly and shoulder.

Another difference in the dining experience comes from what type of casing the sausage uses. This won't necessarily change the flavor of the sausage, but it may affect the bite and chew. Collagen casings are made from modified animal hide and are tougher than natural casings made from intestines. (You may have noticed this as a weirdly thick peeling layer on the outside of a sausage.) Traditional pepperoni doesn't use collagen, and you can determine the difference by reading the package before you buy it.

There exist many varieties of pepperoni. In addition to home recipes, you can find almost every variation under the sun when you shop for it: turkey versus the classic pork and beef, mild or extra spicy, and with or without chemical additives (sodium nitrates and nitrites), for instance. Many pepperoni sausages are cured (e.g. fermented and smoked) while some are uncured like the typical Italian sausages you'd eat for dinner. There are many good options, and some to steer clear of.

Ideally, you want to skip anything that has nitrates or nitrites in it. These are food stabilizers, meant to make pepperoni last longer. While the compounds themselves aren't harmful, they can interact with other compounds in the body to form carcinogens that over time may increase your risk of cancer, according to a study in the journal Antioxidants. Where possible, buy pepperoni that is free of nitrates and nitrites.

The good news is that people have been curing meat for tens of thousands of years using nothing more than salt, spices, and friendly bacteria. These recipes are still widely available. Among these options, you'll find many different types of meat, spices, heat levels, widths, and sliced or unsliced versions. All pepperoni is cured, which performs the same microbe-killing benefits as cooking, so you can eat it right out of the package if you like.

"Vegan pepperoni" might sound like an oxymoron, but in fact, much of pepperoni's flavor comes from the spices used to make it. Sure, if you're a carnivore, you probably won't be convinced by fake pepperoni. However, if you're a vegetarian/vegan or you simply try to limit your meat, you could be surprised by how convincing vegan pepperoni is.

So what's it made of? That will vary with the brand. Typically, the colloquially named "fake meats" are composed of combinations of soybeans, other legumes, mushrooms, wheat, and fermented soy products such as tofu or tempeh. To this, vegan pepperoni makers add the standard pepperoni spices as well as liquid smoke to give it that realistic smokehouse finish. More and more frozen pizza lines offer vegan pepperoni pizza.

If you're a consummate foodie who loves trying new recipes, you can even make it yourself by subbing out the meat for plant-based protein, adding the same pepperoni spices, salt, and a few drops of liquid smoke, and cooking it. Some recipes have you roll out the mixture and make cookie-cutter circles before baking, while others create a true sausage log you can slice afterward. Choose your own adventure!

All right, so you don't have enough (or any) pepperoni for tonight's cheesy plans. What's a cook to do? Luckily, there are quite a few other cured sausages that will taste delicious on your pizza as well and won't change the overall effect that much.

First, note that Italians call pepperoni "salame piccante," which means "spicy salami." That should clue you in to the similarities between pepperoni and what you might call "regular" salami, which are many. They use similar meat, both have a high fat content, and are cured in similar ways. The only difference is the spiciness factor, making salami a nice substitute for pepperoni if you're out. Try to buy the smaller salami logs so that the pizza has the same speckled-across-the-pizza effect rather than being covered with giant pieces. If you want to bring the spice kick back in, you can use red pepper flakes or jalapeños. Other hard sausages you might consider include chorizo, soppressata, and any type of hard salami (of which there are many). As discussed, vegan pepperoni isn't too bad, either.

If you're really stuck, you can ditch sausage altogether and opt for short ribs or another kind of meat. Anything pork or beef will likely have a pepperoni-esque feel since they're both main ingredients in the sausage. That makes ham, bacon, ground beef crumbles, and pulled pork good options.

While we think of pepperoni as a savory food best eaten at lunch or dinner, pepperoni is actually a wonderful addition to the breakfast tray. Like its more commonly morning-centric cousin chorizo, pepperoni brings a spicy, fatty kick to egg dishes, breakfast sandwiches, and more.

Consider putting it in a morning sandwich made of a biscuit or English muffin, slice of cheese, and fried egg. (You can sub out the fried egg for a pile of fluffy scrambled eggs if you prefer.) Use pepperoni to liven up baked eggs in ramekins, crisp it up and then put it into quiche, or simply use it to season your eggs and toast by crumbling over the top.

Because pepperoni is so fatty, it's fun to use it as a base layer in veggie scrambles. Simply fry it like bacon, then remove when it's crispy but leave the fat in the pan. Use this to sauté mushrooms, green vegetables, bell peppers, and onions.

Let's not lie: Pepperoni may be delicious, but your esophageal sphincter might have something to say about it afterward. That's the muscle that's supposed to clench your stomach closed and make sure that what goes in doesn't come back out. Sadly, fatty foods like cured sausage relax that muscle and allow stomach acid back up the pipe ... which explains the gastrointestinal afterparty to which we so often wish we weren't invited. Even worse, spicy foods do the same thing, making pepperoni an acid reflux one-two punch.

If you eat pepperoni and notice common symptoms such as a burning sensation, a lump in your throat, or regurgitation, it could be you're sensitive to such foods. You can diminish your symptoms by eating veggies along with your meal and taking an antacid if needed. However, if you take antacids more than four times a week to diminish symptoms, you should see a doctor, according to UC Davis Health.