Introduction: A Global Pizza Showdown
Nikhil: From calorie count to portion sizes, we wanted to find out all the differences between Pizza Hut in the US and in India. This is “Food Wars.”
Pizza Sizes: A Sizeable Difference
The smallest pizza in the US is the personal pan pizza, and it is 6 inches across. In India, our pizzas start at personal size. It’s seven inches wide and has four slices. The US also has a small pizza, but only with the gluten-free crust, and it is difficult. 10 inches wide. So depressing looking. Then we’re on to the mediums. A medium pizza here in India is 10 inches and has six slices.
Joe: A US medium pizza comes in at 12 inches wide. This medium pizza is equal to the small pizza in the US. People in the US, sometimes it’s just really hard not to stereotype you guys.
Mediums, Larges, and Surface Areas
Next up in India, we have nothing. Because medium is our largest size. That’s right, we have only two sizes, personal or medium. No large for us because Pizza Hut is watching our weight, I guess. Stereotype away, my man, because in the US, you know we got this large, and it is 14 inches in diameter. So America’s largest pizza is 4 inches wider than India’s largest. That doesn’t sound so bad. However, if you calculate the surface area of the two pizzas, those few inches make a big difference. The Indian medium has a surface area of 78.5 square inches, while the US large clocks in at 153.9 square inches. To save you from doing the math, that’s a 96% increase. That means the US large pizza is nearly double our Indian medium. What the heck, Pizza Hut?
Crust Comparisons: Hand-tossed vs. Pan
The type of crust you get doesn’t affect the width of the pizza, but how does it affect the value? We’re going to weigh a medium hand-tossed slice versus a medium pan-crust slice to see which one gives you more pizza for your money.
All right, I’m going to do the same with our pan and San Francisco-style pizzas, the medium size.
Flavor Innovations in India
Here is everything you’ll find on the menu at Pizza Hut India that you will not find in the US. And here are all the Pizza Hut menu items from the US you won’t find in India.
Unique Crusts: San Francisco and Schezwan
Let’s start off with the foundation of any pizza: the crust, starting with the San Francisco signature style. To my understanding, it’s basically a pan pizza, but they press the dough in with their hands so it’s kind of hand-tossed. Next up, we have something very special. It’s a Schezwan pan pizza. Oh, my God, yeah. I really like this. It’s spicy. Really yum. Just to give you some comparison, the way chicken tikka masala was invented in the UK but clearly inspired by Indian cuisine, Schezwan sauce was actually invented here in Kolkata by the Chinese community that settled down here.
Stuffed Crusts and Kebabs
Next up they have a stuffed cheese crust Maxx, with two X’s for emphasis. You can already see that this thing is loaded with cheese. Next to the cheese, alongside it, there’s, like, a sort of creamy sauce, which Pizza Hut is calling Peruvian creamy sauce. Whoa! Oh, my God, yeah. This is decadent food. Next up we have a stuffed crust with veg kebab. That’s right. If you don’t know what kebab is, it’s basically meat that’s cooked in a tandoor.
The Non-Veg Kebabs: A Rich, Savory Twist
We also have a stuffed crust with a non-vegetarian kebab. Ooh. As you can see, this is what looks to be chicken seekh. Oh, that’s the best of the lot. That was amazing. Oh, my God. Smashed it, Pizza Hut.
Exclusive Crusts in the US
We also have a variety of crust options in the US, starting down here. You saw it already. Here it is again, the hand-tossed. This to me is, like, classic. This is the default. You guys don’t have hand-tossed?
The Quirky Gluten-Free Option
Moving on: Thin ‘N Crispy. I mean, how much — look at this. They can’t charge the same amount for this, right? I don’t think they should. Moving on over here: the original stuffed crust. They put cheese in the crust. Can you believe that? Ugh, no, it is solidified. That doesn’t stop me from biting into it. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Detroit-Style Pizza and its Unique Flavors
Last and, let’s be honest, least: gluten-free crust. Look, I don’t know what’s going on with gluten allergies, and my apologies if you have one, but I’m looking at this, I’m just like, I’m sorry, guys. I mean, is this that much better? And for a limited time, Pizza Hut in the US has Detroit-style pizza! Let’s go! Let us go. Look at this. Are you kidding me with this? Detroit-style pizza.
Stereotypes and Toppings: A Cultural Exploration
The toppings we found under the categories classic, favorites, and delight. Very arbitrarily named, but, yeah, let’s jump into it. The first option is chicken sausage. Smells really good. A lot of onions. I love onions. Mm. It’s pretty classic. The next pizza is spiced paneer. Paneer, if you don’t know, is cottage cheese.
Pizza Specials and Surprising Twists
Next up we have the Veggie Feast. It’s got some herbed onion, capsicum, and sweet corn. This is such a wholesome, chill pizza. It’s definitely a classic. It’s something your mom would make at home. Next up, we have the veggie tandoori, which I have already taken a bite of. We got this one with the Schezwan crust, so it’s definitely spicier than the typical pan pizza you’ll get.
Meat-Lover’s Delights and Over-the-Top Pizzas
Next up, we have spiced chicken meat-a-balls! It’s a very straightforward pizza, but we got it with the cheese-burst filling. Next up, we have the Chicken N Corn Delight. It already has the word “delight” in the name, so I’m assuming it should be a delight, but I’ll be the judge of that.
More Unique Pizzas and Regional Favorites
Next up, to round it all off, this is the double chicken sausage pizza. Am I wrong in saying that this just looks like a boring version of the normal chicken sausage pizza, which has onions and just feels a lot better? We have a pepperoni pizza that is made of pork and not chicken and a Pepperoni Lover’s pizza.
The Supreme vs. The Super Supreme
The supreme pizza. It has pepperoni, mushrooms, green peppers, onions, and that’s it. But if that’s not supreme-y enough for you, we have the super supreme, which, now they’ve introduced black olives. Meat Lover’s, baby! Meat Lover’s! You got pepperoni, you got bacon, you got sausage. I bet there’s something else on there that I don’t know, another meat.
Vegetable Pizza Debate: A Mixed Opinion
This next pizza is the Veggie Lover’s, and I absolutely hate it. You want veggies? Go get a salad. Don’t put it on pizza. Like, you’re not fooling anyone, all right? Backyard barbecue chicken. Yuelei, do you have enough B-roll? I think, it’s barbecue chicken, but I think they use barbecue sauce instead of pizza sauce. Genius. Genius! This is so good.
The Hawaiian Pizza Debate and Signature Pizzas
Oh, yeah! The Buffalo chicken. It’s, like, surprisingly good. Pizza Hut does not have a straight Hawaiian pizza on the menu. The only thing they have is Hawaiian chicken.
Regional Desserts and Drinks at Pizza Hut
Here are India’s exclusive desserts, starting with a choco lava cake, baby! Ooh! Molten. The choco lava cake in Domino’s? Much better. Next up, you get a whole range of ice cream. Some Kwality Wall’s, one of India’s biggest ice cream manufacturers.
Pizza Hut in India vs. the US: Pricing and Value
Let’s take a look at Pizza Hut’s pricing, particularly some clever marketing tricks they’re using to make you believe you’re getting more value for money than you actually are. In the US, a medium cheese pizza on the pan crust will cost you $13.49. In India, a medium Margherita pizza will cost you 319 rupees, which is currently 3.93 US dollars.
Calories and Health Considerations
What about the most calorific pizza in the US, you ask? Well, that would be a large pan-crusted Meat Lover’s, which this isn’t. So imagine it bigger and thicker. OK. An entire one of these contains a whopping 3,570 calories. That’s 178% of your daily allowance.
Fun Pizza Facts: Geometry and Surface Areas
Also, this pizza is not particularly round. It’s shaped like a — one, two, three, four, five, six — hexagon. Look at that. Just a fun fact in case you’re a geometry nerd.
Let me know if you’d like any further edits!
