The best Margherita pizza, prepared in just 20 minutes, will consecrate the winner of the second edition of Pizza Bit Competition , the competition for pizza makers of Molino Dallagiovanna. Among the nine finalists competing on 9 September at the company headquarters in Gragnano Trebbiense (Piacenza), there is also the Sardinian Simone Pilloni of Uras's “Tziu Mauriliu – The food shop”. Expert in yeasts and professional pizza chef for over 10 years, Pilloni snatched a ticket for the final by presenting the pizza "A Bingia", a tribute to the snacks of the farmers of the past.
«I brought a pizza that wanted to follow the habits of when we worked in the vineyard , focusing on three ingredients: fruit, cheese and home-made bread», he explains.
Behind every pizza prepared, there is attention to tradition. P illoni has always used sourdough and ancient Sardinian wheat flour to make the dough and toppings the pizza with cold cuts, cheeses and other local ingredients . One of his flagships is the pizza called “ Pichettata ”: «It's the pizza that best represents me and last year I took it to the first edition of Pizza Bit Competition, reaching the semifinals. It represents a moment of conviviality, it is made with a dressing of suckling pig, chopped carrots, radishes and celery, wine reduction and myrtle mayonnaise », describes Pilloni.
Among the most purchased pizzas at Tziu Mauriliu is the Zaffanow, a pizza that rethinks the Sardinian tradition with a touch of modernity. «I wanted to offer typical flavors such as saffron, sausage and potatoes, reinterpreting them in a young key. The potatoes are crunchy, the sausage is cooked in the oven on a white base of fior di latte and the saffron is in the form of a so-called sweet and sour sauce», continues Pilloni.
Simone Pilloni arrived at the art of pizza almost by chance. He began by helping his family in the kitchen, preparing pizzas and desserts for the members of the amateur sports association founded by his father. "We started kneading almost for fun - he says - Then with my friend Federico Casciu, who grows native varieties of wheat, we began to experiment to be able to obtain good products from ancient wheat that everyone could like".
The winner of Pizza Bit Competition will represent the Molino Dallagiovanna brand for one year . «It won't be enough to know how to make a good Margherita, but also to have an excellent technical preparation and be able to explain the ingredients and the phases of making the pizza», comments Pilloni finally.
