Pizza topped with ham and pineapple, a sweet-savory combination invented in Ontario in 1962 by a Greek-born Canadian at the Satellite Restaurant in Chatham. A genuine, documented Ontario origin story with great narrative value.
Hawaiian pizza was invented in 1962 by Sam Panopoulos, a Greek-born Canadian, at the Satellite Restaurant in Chatham, Ontario. He added canned pineapple to a ham pizza to introduce a sweet-savory contrast that was then uncommon, naming it after the brand of canned pineapple he used. It is a genuine, documented Ontario origin story, and the pizza became one of the most divisive and most popular pizzas in the world. The dish is a surprising Canadian food-invention story with strong narrative value.
A classic thin crust under tomato sauce and mozzarella, with savory ham and bright, juicy bursts of sweet pineapple, the salt of the cheese meeting the fruit's acid. Eaten hot, it is sweet, savory and the polarising Canadian original.
The pizza follows the classic Italian-American thin-crust method: a yeasted dough stretched thin, topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, diced ham and drained canned pineapple chunks, and baked hot. The key is balancing the amount of pineapple, too much makes the pizza soggy, and draining the chunks well. The ham should be a savory counter, not overwhelmed. Baked at high heat (230C-plus) on a preheated surface for a crisp bottom.
Variations
A version adds bacon instead of ham. Some add jalapeños for heat.
On the Palate
Where Hawaiian Pizza sits in the Canadian flavor cloud
Ingredients
Serves 6How it's made
6 steps · 40 min
- 115 min
Prepare pizza dough (500g flour, 1 tsp yeast, 1 tsp salt, 300ml water, 1 tbsp oil); rise 1 hour.
- 25 min
Divide in two; stretch each into a 30cm round on parchment.
- 34 min
Spread 100ml tomato sauce over each; top with 150g shredded mozzarella each.
- 44 min
Add 100g diced ham and 100g drained pineapple chunks per pizza.
Watch outDrain the pineapple chunks well — wet pineapple weeps into the dough and leaves you with a soggy pizza.
- 514 min
Bake at 230C on a preheated tray 12-15 minutes until the crust is golden and the cheese bubbly.
Watch outBake hot on a preheated tray until the crust is golden and the cheese bubbles — a cool tray gives a pale, limp bottom.
- 64 min
Slice and serve hot.
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