Pizza toppings, even something as relatively innocuous as pineapple, are often the dispute of the night when it comes to ordering one for a group to share. But what if someone proposes ordering a pie with kimchi, oysters or even snake soup on top?
Let us think about what makes a pizza a pizza. When you break it down, it is just dough, a sauce and toppings so, technically, you can add whatever you like and it would still be a “pizza”.
Snakes on a plate: Pizza Hut Hong Kong collaboration that’s off the scales
Snakes on a plate: Pizza Hut Hong Kong collaboration that’s off the scales
Below, we take a look at some of the most wild Pizza Hut creations that have been launched in Asia over the years.
1. Taiwan: coriander, intestine and oyster vermicelli pizza
2. Mainland China: durian and stinky tofu pizza
The creation featured traditional Changsha stinky tofu, fermented to a deep black hue, paired with creamy yellow durian, sprinkled with garlic and chilli.
“It sounds outrageous but tastes great,” said many people, attracted by the weird combination, on China’s social media.
3. Japan: rice pizza
It is not just toppings that Pizza Hut gets creative with – it launched rice pizzas in Japan in 2022, swapping out the traditional dough base for rice that was grilled until it formed a crisp crust.
There are three rice pizza sets, priced at 1,350 yen (US$9) each. The “Japanese”-flavoured one is topped with barbecue beef, teriyaki chicken and mentaiko mayonnaise; the “European” features Iberian pork with pesto, shrimp and lobster salad, and Milanese sausage; the “American” has garlic shrimp, barbecue pork, and salami.
4. Singapore: army stew pizza
5. India: momo pizza
A vegetarian version featured vegetable and paneer momos, bell pepper, onion and sweetcorn.
“During the pandemic, we found that consumers were longing for desi (local) street-style food, and momos emerged as the dish they were craving most, after golgappas [a puff-pastry ball],” says a Pizza Hut India spokesman. “This led to multiple experiments and we finally perfected Momo Mia’s recipe.”
