"It is not known whether Hawaiian pizza will be served at the wake."

June 11, 2017 10:15 AM

Sam Panopoulos, the man credited with inventing the Hawaiian pizza, has died aged 83.

According to this report,

He and his brothers liked the contrast between the sweetness of the pineapple and the savoury flavour of the ham.
[...]
It was called the Hawaiian after the brand of tinned pineapple used.

But not everyone loves this Chatham, Ontario creation. For instance, Guðni Jóhannesson, Iceland's president, earlier this year declared he was "fundamentally opposed" to the idea of placing pineapple on a pizza. Other Icelanders (and others) begged to differ. There was such a furore the president found it necessary to clarify his views on a pineapple pizza ban.

Funeral home obit

Also, #TeamPineapple

posted by Mister Bijou (66 comments total)

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posted by Reverend John at 10:23 AM on June 11, 2017

Pro-pineapple in a pan.

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posted by peripathetic at 10:25 AM on June 11, 2017

🍍🍕.
posted by zippy at 10:25 AM on June 11, 2017 [3 favorites]

Well, as I learned during the trials that proved I should never surf, NOTHING so deliciously gets the taste of seawater out of your mouth like a slice of Hawaiian pie.

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posted by Samizdata at 10:25 AM on June 11, 2017 [8 favorites]

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posted by Bringer Tom at 10:29 AM on June 11, 2017

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Had a slice last night in his honour.
posted by Cosine at 10:35 AM on June 11, 2017

I am pro-pizza and pro-Hawaii in general, and perfectly fine conflating them. Looking forward to potential Hawaiian pizza wars.

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posted by theora55 at 10:35 AM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

I'm sure he was a wonderful man, but pineapple and pizza do not belong together. Bad idea. Very sad. In fact, how is a Canadian inventing The Hawaiian Pizza not colonialism gone wrong, exhibit A?

Indeed, I've heard it said that in Hawaii, the pizza joints label them Canadian Pizza.
posted by philip-random at 10:50 AM on June 11, 2017 [4 favorites]

I make 2-3 homemade pizzas from scratch every week, and 90% of the time pineapple is involved. Thanks, Sam, for your marvelous creation.
posted by porn in the woods at 11:03 AM on June 11, 2017 [4 favorites]

I am guilty of enjoying pineapple on almost anything (just yesterday, I made a killing on cans of Dole at the local Vons/Safeway, double-dipping a sale price an electronic coupon and a paper coupon to bring the price down to half what cans of house-brand would be, but I digress). But I have never liked ham (except prosciutto; the only pork product that I disdain, oddly), so I experimented and found that a combo of pineapple, pepperoni, onions and bell (not hot) peppers made for me the ultimate pizza experience. And it's a taste, nobody I know shares so I always get it all to myself.

And everyone knows, if it were really "Hawaiian", it would be Pineapple and Spam (which I dislike less than regular ham; yes I am very weird).

.🍕🍍🍕.
posted by oneswellfoop at 11:15 AM on June 11, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm sure he was a wonderful man, but pineapple and pizza do not belong together.

Hello, this is the Internet informing you that you are Wrong and should feel Bad about it. We can call it the Canadian if you want, it will still be delicious.
posted by Dr Dracator at 11:18 AM on June 11, 2017 [11 favorites]

Yeah, but "Canadian Pizza" sounds like it should be Poutine-flavored ... or Kraft Dinner. Of course, you could always name it after one of the other places in the world pineapples are grown, particularly one with a significant pig population too...
posted by oneswellfoop at 11:28 AM on June 11, 2017 [2 favorites]

I used to eat ham and pineapple pizza all the time. I still like the sweetness, but usually end up getting beef and onion since eating pizza also means drinking a can of Coke, so the sweet pineapple plus the sweet cola seems a bit much. Also, I like onions, so the rest may be an excuse. Maybe I should try beef, onion, and pineapple.

Problem is that I hate to possibly waste the money, as it seems like something that could be really good or really bad. In years past it was all free, so I experimented a lot more. Problem is that I don't remember most of the stuff I tried back then...
posted by wierdo at 11:29 AM on June 11, 2017

I didn't like it before, and I don't order it now, but my time of working at a pizza place 25 years ago taught me that the worst part of Hawaiian pizza is the Canadian bacon. Aways undercooked and kinda tough. In fact, there's something about the recipe that causes the whole pie to be undercooked; you never get browned cheese on a Hawaiian.
posted by rhizome at 11:36 AM on June 11, 2017 [2 favorites]

He's in a better place now.

Marred for 50 years! This is going o be hard on Christina, my heart goes out to her.
posted by adept256 at 11:48 AM on June 11, 2017

Pineapple & pepperoni is my personal variation.

And let's all remember that the noble tomato is a fruit, not a vegetable. Hence you're already mixing sweet (the sauce) and savory (cheese and meat toppings) on most pizzas anyway.
posted by Insert Clever Name Here at 11:50 AM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

Same, rhizome! Hawaiian/Canadian pizza is always wet. *shudder*
posted by masquesoporfavor at 11:52 AM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

.

The first person I know to ever eat this is my wife, who ate it growing up in Germany. My joy at telling her he was Canadian is... disproportionate (annecdote/ legend has it that its inventor was from Hamburg. Ahem)
posted by From Bklyn at 12:00 PM on June 11, 2017

I don't happen to like pineapple on my pizza, personally, but I'm surprised by the level of vitriol the subject generates online.
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:06 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

Adding jalapeños is my jam; sweet, savory, and spicy for the win.

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posted by peeedro at 12:07 PM on June 11, 2017 [4 favorites]

I don't dine on swine but pineapples and mushrooms on pizza? The best.
posted by 1adam12 at 12:10 PM on June 11, 2017

I love pineapple, but it belongs on things like pineapple upside-down cake if it's not eaten plain. Pizza should never involve pineapple; the only true pizza toppings are pepperoni and mushrooms (although I'll forgive those who add green peppers).

(Worst pizza I ever had was at a US Air Force base in Thule Greenland: their "pepperoni pizza" involved a sweetish bready base --- not proper pizza dough --- with salami layered on that, Havarti cheese over the salami, and the whole thing covered in bad spaghetti sauce. Yikes.)
posted by easily confused at 12:11 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

Yeah, but "Canadian Pizza" sounds like it should be Poutine-flavored ... or Kraft Dinner. Of course, you could always name it after one of the other places in the world pineapples are grown, particularly one with a significant pig population too...

For a double dose of location-based cognitive dissonance, you could get your slice of Hawaiian pizza at Boston Pizza: a Canadian chain, founded by Greek immigrants.
posted by juv3nal at 12:14 PM on June 11, 2017 [6 favorites]

I used to feel like pizza should only have "traditional" (read: American standard for the standard I group on which is very Midwestern) and the only possible exception was Hawaiian pizza.

I've since outgrown that because pizza is a food of the world and there is room for all kinds of pizzas (including different crusts thickness, everyone!).

A friend of mine has just started biking the EV13 (the Iron Trail Bike trail) from the Arctic Circle to the Black Sea basically and one of her first nights she had the Inari (Finland) Special, which was reindeer salami, kebab meat, blue cheese, and pineapple. I feel like this is a tribute to Mr. Panopoulos and his fellow culinary ground-breakers.


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posted by MCMikeNamara at 12:21 PM on June 11, 2017 [4 favorites]

I only take my pineapple in the one form God intended: juiced and incorporated into a tiki drink. Tiny parasol optional. But not really.
posted by slkinsey at 12:26 PM on June 11, 2017 [4 favorites]

I consider Hawaiian to be the best of all possible pizzas. Corn and bacon, which was quite common in Brazil, is a close second. I like my pizza to be a little sweet and involve salty pork, apparently.
posted by jacquilynne at 12:29 PM on June 11, 2017

Good contribution to the world.

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posted by mixedmetaphors at 12:30 PM on June 11, 2017

And, since I was thinking of what to have for lunch as I read this thread, I have just ordered a Hawaiian pizza, because I am lucky enough to live in a world where Hawaiian pizza not only exists, I can have someone bring me one on demand.
posted by jacquilynne at 12:39 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

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Every time his name comes up I have a lot of trouble believing that he had nothing to do with the Panagopolous chain of pizza places in Canada. (like, I literally have to pull up the wikipedia article and read the first sentence of the "History" section to verify every time.)
posted by btfreek at 12:51 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

While never a fan of Hawaiian pizza, a place near me serves what they call a Swedish pizza which features: chicken kebab, pineapple, banana, curry sauce replacing tomato.

It is a force of nature and solely responsible for flipping me re: pineapple on pizza.
posted by dreamlanding at 12:59 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

Pizza is a true cuisine; a culinary canvas rather than simply a 'dish'. Those unnaturally obsessed with 'authenticity', with preserving some mythical True Pizza are on a fool's errand. They are missing the entire point.

"Oh the only Proper pizza is made by an 87 year old woman in a roadside à taglio 20 miles outside Naples. On Tuesdays. In late spring."

How depressing. How woefully bitter and unimaginative.

Praise pineapple, praise Sam Panopoulos.

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posted by Jimbob at 2:10 PM on June 11, 2017 [16 favorites]

I experimented and found that a combo of pineapple, pepperoni, onions and bell (not hot) peppers made for me the ultimate pizza experience.

I was googling around for what made anti-pineapple-pizza-activist Anthony Bourdain change his mind in Rome, and it was apparently this combination (though who knows what kind of amazing prosciutto was on there).

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posted by RobotVoodooPower at 2:26 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

Pizza is my favorite sandwich. (Second favorite is a hot dog.)
posted by Guy Smiley at 2:40 PM on June 11, 2017 [4 favorites]

Pizza is my favorite sandwich. (Second favorite is a hot dog.)

Flagged as Derail. Offensive. Noise. It breaks the guidelines. Poster should be shot.
posted by jacquilynne at 2:42 PM on June 11, 2017 [11 favorites]

Guy Smiley, pizza is a clearly a pie.

Like Apple Brown Betty, or a toaster strüdel.
posted by Construction Concern at 2:42 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

I was googling around for what made anti-pineapple-pizza-activist Anthony Bourdain change his mind in Rome

Whew, that was a close thing. For a moment there I thought I was about to have to hunt him down like a rabid dog in the street. I couldn't live in a world where Bourdain hated pineapple pizza.

I was setting up to play a music gig once and my host/promoter ran down the street to grab a couple of slices for the crew, and he came back and tried to apologize that they only had pineapple slices left, and I'm just like "Are you kidding me? I love you!"

I must have been about 6 or 7 years old the first time I ever had Hawaiian pizza. It was at a really rowdy beachside beer hall kind of place my dad used to go to with his buddies after surfing to drink beer and play pool and stuff. It was the kind of place with sawdust on the floor, that had ridiculously cheap pitchers of beer.

If I'm remembering correctly I was totally horrified by the concept and might have even cried, because they ordered an entire pizza of this abominable thing because I didn't want to eat it, and I was ravenous and hangry from being at the beach all day. My dad probably badgered me or forced me to eat it, and I remember the first bite... Sweet, browned pineapple, salty cheese and ham, and I was immediately hooked.

I distinctly remember this as a learning moment to try new things and to be an adventurous eater, and that if my dad liked it and told me it was awesome, I'd probably like it, too. Well, except for maybe Steely Dan.

If you like Hawaiian pizza, try this: Crisp, tart apple slices, sweet onions, bacon and/or ham or other salty-sweet pork like prosciutto.

Also, BBQ pizza sauce with pineapple and ham or even BBQ chicken chunks is amazing, too. Try it with some smokey cheese like gouda with tangy mozz.

The only thing I hate about pineapple on pizza is whenever you're ordering pizza on a group not enough people are honest about it. This invariably - without fail, every time - results in not enough Hawaiian pizza is ordered and it almost always vanishes before the rest of the different kinds of pizza, leaving the people who actually wanted Hawaiian in the first place with a disappointing slice of greasy pepperoni or plain cheese or something. Come on, you dorks. I told you we should have ordered more than half of one of the pizzas as Hawaiian.
posted by loquacious at 2:53 PM on June 11, 2017 [7 favorites]

Flagged as Derail. Offensive. Noise. It breaks the guidelines. Poster should be shot.

Picks up giant, floppy Waterfront Pizza slice and slowly, deliberately folds it into a point while making prolonged and rather aggressive eye contact.
posted by loquacious at 2:55 PM on June 11, 2017 [3 favorites]

Rest in pizza my dude
posted by Existential Dread at 3:22 PM on June 11, 2017

My go-to pizza design - tomato sauce, basil, fresh mozza, jalapenos, pineapple, ham or bacon, crumbled danish blue cheese, shredded coconut and a light drizzle of sriracha.
posted by Jessica Savitch's Coke Spoon at 3:28 PM on June 11, 2017

I am picky about my pizza and ham is really the only meat that I like on my pizza, so Hawaiian is my savior for group pizza events. There's always at least 1 Hawaiian. Thank you Panopoulos.

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posted by LizBoBiz at 3:30 PM on June 11, 2017

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posted by mikelieman at 3:41 PM on June 11, 2017

I'm pretty sure I'm on record with this Controversial Pizza Opinion already, but just in case: my problem with Hawaiian Pizza is not the pineapple but the tomato sauce. Pineapple is so much better on a white pizza, where it's not just doubling down on the acidity of the tomatoes.

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posted by tobascodagama at 4:15 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

My go-to pizza design - tomato sauce, basil, fresh mozza, jalapenos, pineapple, ham or bacon, crumbled danish blue cheese, shredded coconut and a light drizzle of sriracha.

This would be like $45 for a medium where I live.
posted by rhizome at 4:19 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

Yeah, but "Canadian Pizza" sounds like it should be Poutine-flavored ... or Kraft Dinner

Canadian pizza is mushrooms, pepperoni, and bacon (example). Ate a fair bit of this varietal as a kid growing up in Southern Ontario.
posted by bismol at 5:21 PM on June 11, 2017 [3 favorites]

I'm not sure it makes any difference, but I prefer my Hawaiian pizza with diced ham instead of Canadian bacon. I would like to try with spam, though.
posted by ckape at 5:31 PM on June 11, 2017

Pro tip: when in Canada, please refer to "back bacon", not "Canadian bacon" as the meat of choice for your pie. Source: a random guy on the net who says he's a 'pro'.
posted by Napoleonic Terrier at 5:46 PM on June 11, 2017 [1 favorite]

When ordering for a pizza party, always make sure to get at least 1 Hawaiian. Half the people will refuse to eat it which means the Hawaiian is mostly *mine* and I get to stuff myself to the point of not being able to take anymore, which is the goal of any pizza party.

N.b. Technique also works with anchovies.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 5:53 PM on June 11, 2017 [2 favorites]

Derail: my favorite "not standard" hamburger variation was always and remains to this day Carl's Jr's first 'specialty burger', the Western Bacon Cheeseburger, with BBQ sauce and crisp onion rings instead of regular onions. Now I am seriously pondering the possibility of the Western Bacon Pizza, with beef, BBQ sauce, onions and bacon bits. Why is it the ONLY pizzas with a BBQ sauce (restaurant, delivery or frozen) come with chicken? Now that's missing out on a world of possibilities...
posted by oneswellfoop at 6:04 PM on June 11, 2017

Pro tip: when in Canada, please refer to "back bacon", not "Canadian bacon" as the meat of choice for your pie. Source: a random guy on the net who says he's a 'pro'.

I can't think of a single Canadian pizza place I've ever ordered pizza from that offered back bacon as an option. Bacon, yes, but it's often some weird thing that is kinda like bacon bits if they weren't cooked properly. Maybe that is originally back bacon before they deform it? I dunno, but even if it is, it'll just be listed on the menu as bacon.

A hawaiian pizza is properly made with ham, not bacon of any kind, though some places will put those bacon crumbles on in addition to the ham.
posted by jacquilynne at 6:20 PM on June 11, 2017 [3 favorites]

The most Canadian pizza is the donair pizza, it's peculiarity to the Maritimes notwithstanding. Or basically any pizza with a bucket of donair sauce to dip it in.
posted by Space Coyote at 6:35 PM on June 11, 2017

I hate pineapple. So I hate this.

Come at me, bro. I got a pizza cutter.
posted by mephron at 7:28 PM on June 11, 2017

Team Pineapple here. Pizza peel to the face will see off your pizza cutter. Mahalo y'all!

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posted by inflatablekiwi at 11:16 PM on June 11, 2017

This is a side note, but there's a legendary, early scene in Pulp Fiction, in which a spot is mentioned as a Hawaiian burger joint, Big Kahuna Burger. A tasty burger, we hear. I've always been curious as to what made that burger Hawaiian. Rings of pineapple? There's certainly no tradition in Hawaii of Hawaiian burgers. Maybe a Tarantino expert can weigh in.
posted by flod at 12:03 AM on June 12, 2017

Well, if the Western Bacon is my favorite burger, Carl's Jr. also has my LEAST favorite, and it does have pineapple on it. It's not called a Hawaiian Burger but a "Teriyaki Burger" and it puts "Teriyaki Glaze, Grilled Dole® Pineapple and Swiss Cheese" on one side of the beef patty and "Red Onion, Lettuce, Tomato and Mayonnaise" on the other, creating the worst possible kind of fusion burger cuisine and taking several ingredients I like in their proper place and puts them all in an improper place.

The ONLY commercially available exception to my previous statement of "I like pineapple on almost everything".
posted by oneswellfoop at 12:33 AM on June 12, 2017

In the US at least, an Australian hamburger has pineapple. And egg and beets.
posted by snofoam at 3:17 AM on June 12, 2017

A tasty burger, we hear. I've always been curious as to what made that burger Hawaiian. Rings of pineapple? There's certainly no tradition in Hawaii of Hawaiian burgers.

Maybe they put a loco moco on a bun.
posted by tobascodagama at 5:32 AM on June 12, 2017

Pineapple on pizza is acceptable. Hawaiian pizza is also acceptable. But there's a caveat: only on individual slices. I suppose if you have enough people who want pineapple on pizza to order a whole pie, that's one thing, but I'd give a sideeye to any individual who ordered a small pizza with pineapple on it.

However, if you wanna get a Pineapple/Hawaiian slice? Go for it. I might get one tomorrow for lunch just to memorialize Mr. Panopoulos.

(Also one of my favorite slices is buffalo chicken. A slice of that, and a slice of white pizza with spinach makes a yummy lunch.)
posted by SansPoint at 7:31 AM on June 12, 2017

A tasty burger, we hear. I've always been curious as to what made that burger Hawaiian. Rings of pineapple? There's certainly no tradition in Hawaii of Hawaiian burgers.


Everyone knows that in Hawaii it's basically just normal food -- pizza, burgers, spaghetti, nachos, pancakes -- with pineapple on top.
posted by Slarty Bartfast at 8:44 AM on June 12, 2017 [1 favorite]

The 1997 edition of Joy of Cooking inexplicably refers to pineapple and Canadian bacon pizza as “Seattle Pizza.”
posted by mbrubeck at 9:10 AM on June 12, 2017

Everyone knows that in Hawaii it's basically just normal food -- pizza, burgers, spaghetti, nachos, pancakes -- with pineapple on top.

You call it pineapple, I call it "Hawaiian avocado."
posted by rhizome at 9:56 AM on June 12, 2017 [3 favorites]

Milennial Hawaiians are spending too much on pineapple toast
posted by Greg_Ace at 12:12 PM on June 12, 2017 [6 favorites]

There are no rules to pizza. Anything and everything is welcome as a topping.

I may not like all varieties, but nobody should claim any of them are wrong or "not pizza".
posted by rocket88 at 1:14 PM on June 12, 2017 [2 favorites]

The most Canadian pizza is the donair pizza

The Maritimes are also home to this oddball pizza - The Pictou County Pizza.

Americans please stop making Haiwaiian Pizzas with your "Canadian" bacon (neither Canadian nor bacon). Use ham or side bacon. You will thank me later.

Poutine pizza does exist in Quebec for those looking for it. The Canadian pizza mentioned above is called pizza québécoise there (because Quebec).
posted by Ashwagandha at 4:13 PM on June 12, 2017 [1 favorite]

Guy Smiley, pizza is a clearly a pie.

Pie is my favorite calzone.
posted by Guy Smiley at 6:01 PM on June 12, 2017

And remember, if you burn your Hawaiian pizza, next time cook it on aloha temperature.
posted by mephron at 10:08 PM on June 12, 2017 [3 favorites]

Ok, try this: Since Canadian bacon is about as dull as an evening of ritual Groacian grimacing, take some thinly sliced Spam. Pan fry it til lightly browned, that enhances the flavor as well as removes some of the grease from the meat. Smoke or grill some very thin pineapple slices. Grate or thinly slice some pepper jack as well. Now go to your local Korean/Asian food market and get some pa kimchi (scallion kimchi). Or make it yourself, starting five days ago.

Now either make your pizza dough or use a ready made pizza crust. Spread your choice of base sauce on the crust liberally. I like using alfredo sauce instead of red sauce on this pie. Layer on your Spam, then cover the meat lavishly with your pepper jack. Then take your pa kimchi and lay it on top of the cheese. I fashion a grid pattern out of the stuff, making about one inch squares. Use more or less according to taste, it's strong stuff. Make sure you drain it very well, you don't want any excess liquid making your pie soggy.

Bake according to instructions, let cool a bit, and dig in. The scallions will crisp slightly, adding a lovely flavor. Since you grilled or smoked your pineapple slices, they're going to be super concentrated in flavor. To me this is a vastly superior recipe to the original Hawaiian pizza. I hope you try this out, and I hope you really enjoy it. Mahalo!
posted by Purposeful Grimace at 5:12 AM on June 13, 2017 [1 favorite]