Italian-born, but London-based chef Marco Fuso is a true pizza champion. Since 2014, he’s won pretty much all the awards there are to win, including UK Pizza Maker of the Year 2017. Today, he runs a pizza consultancy, sharing the secrets of his trade with pizza professionals all over the world.
Marco Fuso is originally from Lecce, right at the heel of the Italian boot. He’s worked with pizza for more than two decades, spear-heading multiple award-winning restaurants. Looking back at his career, Marco Fuso traces his love of pizza all the way back to his childhood in Italy.
“My grandfather was a baker and when I was a child I used to love to see him work. One of the reasons why I became a pizza chef wasthat the whole dough-making process really reminded me of what my grandfather used to do,” he explains.
To Marco, making authentic pizzas is an art-form, whether you make a traditional thin-crust Neapolitan pizza or Roman-style deep-pan pizza. Simplicity, craftsmanship and creativity are critical.
“Always remember that a pizza should never be something you just eat. It should be something that you feel. If you take that approach, your customers will reward you with loyalty.”
Pizza partners
For 2021, Marco Fuso has joined forces with Arla Pro. The goal is to develop and deliver unique new content that can inspire pizza chefs and add new perspectives to the art of pizza making, like exclusive recipes and helpful insights on how to run successful pizza businesses.
“This partnership is a great match. Arla Pro has a wide range of high quality dairy products and is very aware of the needs of chefs. By working with Arla Pro, I can reach an even larger audience of professional chefs dedicated to learning new things. It’s a great opportunity to inspire and provide useful knowledge that can be applied directly in the kitchen,” says the pizza expert.
Awards and accolades
Marco Fuso has won numerous awards, including:
2018: Top 5 Takeaway Chef
2018: UK Best Margherita, PAPA Awards
2017: UK Pizza Chef of the Year, PAPA Awards
2014: World Pizza Championship finalist
Since 2019, Marco Fuso has been a member of the judges panel of the PAPA Awards for Pizza Chef of the Year competition
Cheese recommendations from the pizza champion
See which types of cheese Marco prefers.
Arla Pro Large Diced Mozzarella 2kg
Arla Pro; made specifically for professional chefs & operators in mind. Arla Pro Mozzarella Large Diced is delicious pre-cut cubes made from high-quality mozzarella ideal for easy application. The dice are creamy light yellow in colour and offer fresh flavour and optimal meltability.
See productKey benefits:
- Once cooked it resembles softer mozzarella such as buffalo, burrata and fior di latte
- Low moisture content allows the pizza to be cooked more evenly, giving a crispy base and a golden crust
- A 10x10mm cut size is making it the perfect solution for operators who use super-hot pizza ovens
Arla Pro Large Shredded Mozzarella 2kg (Sticks)
Arla Pro; made specifically for professional chefs & operators in mind. Arla Pro Large Shredded Mozzarella has a delicious mild fresh taste with a light colour. A thicker cut size than grated (4x4x20mm) offering excellent melting, golden browning and high stretch, this solution is ideal for both dining-in and delivery.
See productKey benefits:
- Perfect for delivery, retaining opacity as its transported from kitchen to consumer
- A 4x4x20mm cut size means more stretch on the cheese once cooked
- Retention of colour/opacity means you don’t need to overload with cheese to achieve the desired result on delivery
Want to learn more from Marco?
Download our guide "Passion for Pizza".
