The Exact Time To Cut Your Pizza For The Cleanest Slices

Everyone should experience the mouth-watering aroma of a fresh-out-the-oven pizza once in their life. Baked dough commingling with the scent of melted cheese, along with the smokiness of any topping that you want on your pizza wafting through the air ... it's the siren call of any foodie.

But here's a pro tip for all the home chefs out there: When you're baking homemade Neapolitan pizza and want to cut and portion it nicely, good timing is key. Don't make the mistake of waiting too long or letting your pizza cool down completely before slicing into it. If you do, you'll end up with jagged edges and mangled toppings, no matter how sharp your cutting tool is.

The key is to get to work right away while your pizza is still piping hot out of the oven. At this point, the crust is at its crispiest, which makes it easier to cut through. The dough will crumble and part nicely beneath the blade instead of turning rubbery and sinking when you try to slice it. Plus, the cheese, toppings, and sauce are all at their perfect temperature, making them far more sliceable than when they've cooled down.

If you've ever eaten a slice of pizza that's been sitting out for a while, you know exactly what happens when it cools down and why it's so frustrating to cut. The once crispy, firm crust turns chewy and tough. This rubbery crust is the number one reason why your pizzas are much harder to cut once they have been allowed to cool.

When a pizza is fresh out of the oven, the crust is crispy because the dough is free of moisture and held together by a strong gluten network that has allowed it to rise. However, as time passes, the dough begins to reabsorb moisture from the air, causing it to become softer and mushier. Even the cheese on top loses its stringy, soft texture and becomes a bit harder. All these factors combined explain why even a freshly sharpened pizza cutter may struggle to get through the crust, leaving you with messy slices instead of the perfect, symmetric triangles you crave.

So don't delay and lay your Margherita pizza out and cut it right away while it's still hot. You'll have plenty of time to take in the sight and the smell later once you've portioned it out!