Australian Pride: Meet Aussie Chef Who Tops Pizza World Championships

Australia has grabbed the crown for the world's best pizza from Italy which has been long known for a yummy gourmet.

Chef Johnny Di Francesco of Australia bested the rest of the 600 contestants coming from 35 countries worldwide during the recent Campionato Mondiale Della Pizza or Pizza World Championship in Pharma, Italy. He brought home the coveted title, "Specialita Traditionale Garantita."

In a CNN report, Chef Di Francesco said: 'It's been an amazing reaction. Honestly, I just went to Naples to do what I love. I didn't think it was going to make such a stir."

Fondly called as Mr. Pizza, Chef Di Francesco had been preparing yummy pizza since he was 12 and after taking up a cooking course in Naples called DOP augmented his culinary expertise in preparing Neapolitan-style pizza.

While all the other contestants during the championship used machine to prepare their dough, Chef Di Francesco prepared his pizza by hand. His traditionally prepared margherita has transformed his tiny restaurant called 400 Gradi in Melbourne, Florida into an instant sensation.

The pizza champion cited, "A lot of people think it is easy to produce a margherita, but it is one of the hardest things to produce in the world."

The margherita that Chef Di Francesco prepared has a diameter of less than 25 centimeters with a raised edge and cooked traditionally from wood-fire oven.

"With a lot of other pizzas it is easy to mask the flavor with toppings so you don't really get the flavor out of the dough. However, there is no hiding of incorrect ingredients when it comes to margherita," Chef Di Francesco said.

So what are his secrets in making the world's best pizza?

Chef Di Francesco recommended starting off with high-quality dough and ingredients. He also used pizza stone or finished off the pizza tray directly into the stovetop to make the bottom part brown. Finally, his perfect pizza had basil leaves and extra virgin olive oil.

His winning feat indeed is a joy and pride of Australia and whole pizza lovers in the world.