French Pissaladière Pizza with Olive Béchamel, Caramelized Onions, Anchovies and Mozzarella

Originally from Vaucluse in the heart of Provence in France, award-winning chef and author Denis Job has a strong affinity for southern French cuisine: think ratatouille and salade nioçoise. But there’s one dish in particular that he loves that’s a lesser-known epitomical dish to the region: pissaladière. Similar to a savory tart, the pissaladière is typically topped with ingredients local to southern France, like onions, olives and anchovies. 

According to Saveur, “Originating from the Nice region of France, pissalat (or pissala) is made by layering baby anchovies and sardines with salt, spices, and herbs and fermenting the mixture for 45 days before pressing through a sieve to remove the tiny bones.” No surprise, then, that peis salat in Niçard translates as salted fish, thanks to the anchovies that give it its distinctive taste. 

Today, this Niçoise classic can be found all over Provence, and Denis has reimagined it here as a savory pizza. There’s no red base on this pie, but rather, an indulgent béchamel sauce with black olive purée for a Mediterranean twist. (Béchamel, a classic French sauce, is made with butter, flour, milk, salt and nutmeg, and involves melting butter in a saucepan and then adding all-purpose flour to create a roux.)

For toppings, Denis adds fior di latte mozzarella, candied onions with honey from Vaucluse, and, of course, anchovies. Slightly sweet, salty, briny and creamy, this pizza is a slice of Southern France on your plate.