The world pizza champion Giuseppe Cutraro has two addresses in Paris. He gives us the secrets of his production.
It’s not easy to follow. Giuseppe Cutraro, known as Pepe, which is also the name of his two Parisian pizzerias, has a busy schedule. But when we hug him, he doesn’t count his time and willingly answers the question that torments us: how did he win the coveted title of World Pizza Champion in Naples in 2019? “To stand out, you need to give a pizza a personal stamp. Mine is dough. It is honeycomb, crispy on the outside, soft on the inside. And so digestible that you don’t feel heavy after eating.
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This paste took him time to work it out. The enthusiast, who grew up in Naples’ red light district, spent two weeks testing the flour from Caputo’s Neapolitan factory before perfecting the kneading technique. His recipe. He puts it within everyone’s reach in his book, Neapolitan pizzasin a more affordable version.
Pour 1 kg of flour, 2 g of fresh yeast, 45 ml of water into a bowl and knead for 10 minutes. Then add 27 g of salt, 7 g of sugar, 235 ml of water, 1 g of olive oil. Kneading should be done more and more vigorously until a smooth dough is obtained. This ball of dough should rest for 10 minutes before rolling. Then another 30-minute rest period under a damp cloth is necessary. Then we divide the dough into 300 g balls, which are wrapped on themselves and left to rest for another 6-8 hours in a closed container. And that is enough to approach Pepe’s perfection.
Four cheese pizza. Sandra Mahut
However, it will take practice before you can claim to equal it. Because Pepe learned his craft very early. At the age of 16, he already works in a small pizzeria. At the age of 18, he left to practice his profession in New York. Then there will be Malta, Spain, Switzerland and Paris, where he is employed by the Big Mamma group. Everywhere he filters… Always with one dream in mind: to own his own pizzeria. He finally opened it at Place Saint-Blaise in Paris in 2019. The title of champion and word of mouth quickly brought him success.
But above all, its contemporary pizzas, obsession with quality, meticulous seasonings cement its star position. In 2021 and 2022, Peppe is appointed by the guide 50 best pizzas as Europe’s best pizzeria outside of Italy. – and, in 2022, as the third best pizzeria in the world. “For a pizzaioli, it’s like getting a Michelin star. Moreover, today we are real leaders. We don’t just pull out the classics, we use seasonal products, create our signature recipes,” he explains. A vision that does not prevent him from developing the simple image of pizza. “Despite these developments, it should remain popular and accessible to all families.”
Peppe Pizzeria, 2nd place Saint-Blaise, 75020 Paris, and 61, rue des Martyrs, 75009 Paris. The book : “Neapolitan pizzas»by Giuseppe Cutraro, Éditions Marabout, 120 p., €12.90.
Source: Le Figaro
