The world champion among pizza chefs cannot actually realize what has happened to him. Svetoslav Mitev is just 23 years old; lives in the Bulgarian city of Shumen and until recently worked as a pizza delivery guy in a local restaurant. But life is full of twists and turns. A few days ago, the young Bulgarian grabbed the award of the Pizza World Cup 2023, held in Rome. About 180 pizzerias from all over the world participated in this year's competition. Svetoslav Mitev was the only Bulgarian and became the winner with the unanimous decision of the 20-member jury.

"My idea was to combine the flavors of two countries and unite different products. The products were Italian tomato sauce and Italian fresh mozzarella. I added Bulgarian purslane (Portulaca oleracea), Elena-style pork leg, Bulgarian goat cheese and truffles. Finally, I added hot pepper jam, goji berries and pumpkin seeds. The sweetness combined with the taste of the goat cheese and things turned out quite well. The Bulgarian product that stood out the most, in my opinion, was the purslane, because they hadn't seen anything like it used in pizzas," Svetoslav Mitev says in an interview with Stoyan Stoyanov from BNR-Shumen.

Three years ago, Svetoslav started working as a delivery driver in a pizzeria in Shumen. However, his culinary talent quickly got him into the kitchen.

"While I was doing the orders, I watched what was happening in the kitchen. I even got in trouble because I mixed up addresses for that reason. But for me what was happening in the kitchen was more interesting. Time passed and I received an offer, which was more like a joke, to help in the kitchen as they needed cooks. That's how it all started," Svetoslav recalls. Time passed and the work turned into his passion.

The young Bulgarian entered the vast world of pizza making, read books and did research, started to produce yeast and improve his skills. And being a "self-taught" craftsman may have its advantages. Most of Svetoslav's competitors in the Pizza World Cup have graduated from prestigious culinary colleges, have international prizes and many years of experience behind them. However, the Bulgarian was recognized as the master of the classic pizza for 2023:

"I saw that people who know and can do a lot try to show this by putting too many products that are properly combined, but you don't know what to try first. In my opinion, one slice should give you the taste of the whole pizza. The other thing was that very few contestants thought about offering a drink. I combined my pizza with Bulgarian Mavrud wine from 2019, which has three Bulgarian awards and was a perfect addition."

The young Bulgarian had just 12 minutes available to impress the jury with his skills. "My goal was not to embarrass myself and I wanted to represent our country. I did not expect that I would win, as I am just 23 years old. I just wanted to gain experience," Svetoslav says. He adds that from now on he starts preparing for the next Pizza World Cup.

"I hope that next year I will be able to present Bulgaria with a Roman-style pizza. Unlike the classic pizza, which has a thin crust and is round, the Roman pizza is oblong and has higher hydration of the dough. It becomes even crispier than the classic one, because there are special techniques in the preparation of the dough itself. I also want to study other pizza varieties, such as Pizza Napoletana, or gluten-free pizza... I hope to develop in this direction in the coming years," Svetoslav Mitev says in conclusion.

See also :

• British Chef Gareth Lee Gradwell or what is the taste of Bulgaria

• Life can be tasty, life can be fun with Alya Markova, between Bulgaria and Spain

• Leo Bianchi – more about the Bulgarian dream and bright side of life

Text: Veneta Nikolova /based on an article by Stoyan Stoyanov, BNR-Shumen/

English: Al. Markov

Photos: Bulgarian Association Pizzaioli, BTA, BNR-Shumen