The Secret Sauce Behind Dough&Deer’s Legendary Pizza (Literally!)
At Dough&Deer, we’re all about keeping things simple — because in 2025, less really is more. Just clean, simple ingredients, no nasties, that speak for themselves. And when it comes to our Neapolitan-style pizza, there’s one ingredient that quietly steals the show: our tomato sauce.
But here’s the twist — our sauce has just three ingredients. Yup, that’s it. Because when you’re starting with the world’s most perfect tomato, you don’t need to overcomplicate greatness.
If pizza had a celebrity ingredient, it would be the San Marzano tomato — tall, elegant, and grown in the rich volcanic soil at the foot of Mount Vesuvius in Italy’s Campania region.
This tomato’s got a resume: thick flesh, delicate sweetness, and less acidity than your average tomato. It’s basically the “Ferrari” of tomatoes — sleek, balanced, and 100% Italian.
And because we’re not into imposters, we only use DOP-certified San Marzano tomatoes. That means they’re grown under strict Italian rules (think tomato royalty standards) in one of just 41 official communities around Naples, Salerno, and Avellino.
San Marzanos don’t just taste amazing — they’re packed with lycopene (hello, antioxidants) and a lineup of vitamins so strong it could have its own gym membership: A, B1, B3, B6, C, E, and K.
So yes, you can feel slightly smug knowing your pizza is technically good for you
We don’t mess with perfection. Our sauce recipe is simplicity in its purest form:
San Marzano tomatoes
A pinch of salt
Fresh basil
Then we crush the tomatoes by hand — the old-school way — to keep the seeds intact and the flavour pure. That’s it. No blender, no nonsense. Just pure tomato bliss.
Our go-to? The Strianese brand from the Rega family — tomato legends who’ve been cultivating in the Sarnese Nocerino area, right near Mount Vesuvius. The combo of volcanic soil, mountain water, and sunshine gives their tomatoes an unmatched depth of flavour.
Every bite of our pizza is a love letter to tradition — and a little trip to southern Italy without the flight delay.
So next time you take that first bite and taste that rich, sweet, tangy sauce… remember, you’re tasting the soul of Campania.
Love & Pizza,
D&D 🍕