Fresh Sauce and Mozzarella Ensures Pizzas Fit for a Five Star Hotel at Prego

Kyle Mullin | Nov 17, 2015 1:00 pm | Add a comment | 1111 reads

With voting in the Final Match of the 2015 Pizza Cup open until tomorrow Nov 18  (click here to cast your last minute opinion), we continue our Pizza Profiles series introducing some of Beijing's best pies.

In today's edition we speak with Clement Chen, executive sous chef at Prego, one of Beijing's best options for authentic but modern Italian food. While not in the running for the championship, Prego ended their run in this year's cup ranked a respectable #16.

How long have you plied the trade? 
I began studying in Germany in 1993, then in 1995 went back to China, which is where I have been to this day.

What's your style/pizza philosophy? 
Pizza is not hard to make. But all the ingredients need to be fresh, especially freshly made sauce. The method for making the base is also important. I also like good, quality imported ingredients.

In a market crowded with over 100 different pizza shops, what do you do to stand out? 
We make Italian style pizza, which is the most traditional pizza, compared to fast food like Pizza Hut. We like to make the base of the pizza and use fresh toppings. Our sauce is also made daily, since we have high quality standards and a good supplier to make sure everything suits a five star hotel. 

What would you say your style is?
Italian, Chinese or fast food pizzas are never considered traditional pizza, people will never get the real flavor from them.

Thick vs Thin: What's your take? 
Thin.

What kind(s) of cheese do you use and why? 
Mozzarella cheese, because its flavor isn't too strong to distract from the other ingredients. This means mozzarella plays an important part of making our pizza, by enhancing the other toppings' flavors.

Tell us about your standard pizza
Name: Margherita.
Thick or thin crust? Thin.
Type of sauce? Tomato sauce.
Type(s) of cheese? Mozzarella Cheese.
What other things make it special? We add some chili to give it a little more flavor before it goes in the oven.
How many sizes does it come in? A 30cm pizza is RMB 98 plus 15 percent surcharge. 

Tell us about your most unique pizza
Name: Chicken tikka. 
Thick or thin crust? Thin.
Type of sauce? Tomato.
Type(s) of cheese? Mozzarella.
Additional toppings? Chicken tikka.
What other things make it special? The chicken is infused with tandoori spices.
How many sizes does it come in? A 30cm pizza will set you back RMB 128 plus a 15 percent surcharge.

Hungry for more? Compare and contrast some of Beijing's best pizzas in our ongoing Pizza Profiles series.

Photo courtesy of Prego