Meet the guy who went from baker to pizza master

When William Tan first moved over to Plank Sourdough Pizza from Baker & Cook, he had to go back to the basics as he didn’t have any prior experience making pizzas. Today, Tan celebrates four years of working in the B&C family, and is one of the key staff coming up with innovative flavours for Plank’s monthly specials.

HOW DID YOUR BAKING EXPERIENCE HELP, WHEN YOU STARTED LEARNING TO MAKE PIZZA?

Before I moved over to Plank Sourdough Pizza, I only had experience baking bread. Pizza is a whole different set of skills and techniques. I knew how to knead and shape dough, but I had to go back to the basics. I also picked up the art of sliding the pizza in and out of a very hot oven.

HOW DO YOU COME UP WITH THE MONTHLY SPECIALS AT PLANK SOURDOUGH PIZZA?

Chef Jenna White, the team leads from each outlet, and myself will sit down and discuss different ideas. Because we all receive different feedback from our customers, we bring this to the table and try to find a mix that will work.

WHAT’S BEEN YOUR FAVOURITE MONTHLY SPECIAL SO FAR?

The Hawaiian Pizza and Mango Pork Pizza. Plank’s version of Hawaiian pizza is very different from the ones outside as we use pineapple crème fraiche and add lots of chili flakes for that spicy kick. I also love the Mango Pork Pizza because you’ll usually find pulled pork in a burger, but we found that the combination of spicy pulled pork and salsa worked very well on a pizza too.