Food Theory: New York Pizza is BEST... and I Can Prove It!

water; Na and F will go their separate ways and react to many different things. And scientists have actually studied what this process does in dough. According to the article Inhibition of Ascorbate Oxidase in Dough by Fluoride Ions, adding salts to a dough will make the resulting bread stronger. If this is true, we would expect places with more fluoride in the water to have stronger, crispier crusts. And this is EXACTLY what the data shows us! Both Richmond, Virginia, and Raleigh, North Carolina, keep their fluoride levels as close to the federal minimum of 0.7 ppm as possible. Meanwhile, New Jersey?

They aim for 2! That's more than DOUBLE the amount of body-firming salts that exist within New Jersey water! It's probably yet another factor that's helping New Jersey crusts maintain a solid structure despite their thinness. Therefore, this rigid structure can support the same weight of cheese, sauce, and topping as a much thicker crust made with less fluoridated water. And again, the secret ingredient here is precisely that! It's just water! In short, I think the most interesting takeaway from all of this is that ingredients are not always created equal, even when they seem to be the most innocuous thing in the world.

Everything from soil and climate to local government ordinances can affect the end product of what you actually get, EVEN if it's called by the same name. And all of this applies not only to the raw ingredients themselves, but also to the recipes that are generated from those ingredients. All of this makes me wonder: Could this be the reason why San Francisco is famous for its sourdough, why New Orleans is beignet heaven, or if I checked everything here in North Carolina, if I could learn the secret to making the perfect cookie. In fact, let me know in the comments what your local specialty is.

I would like to see what local delicacies we have represented. And who knows? Maybe me and my pool test kit will end up in YOUR danger zone to understand, scientifically, the magic being created in your kitchen. So next time you're in a different part of the country, or maybe a different country entirely, grab a few bottles from the tap to take home and start cooking! But hey, that's just a

theory

. A

food

theory

. Enjoy.