Hong Kong plant-based food innovation brand, Plant Sifu™, celebrates Earth Month and the roots of its quest to forge exceptional plant-based Chinese cuisine by joining hands with 3 acclaimed restaurants in the new “Reimagine Dim Sum with Plant Sifu™” partnership. Spanning culinary fusion and classic Cantonese, Mott 32, D.H.K. Seafood Restaurant and Sha Tin 18 masterfully showcase the beauty of plant-based dim sum, embracing the low-fat Plant Sifu™ Mince and Ground pork with patented food technology – AROMAX™.
This new campaign is a salute to the annual Earth Month in April, and the artisanal skills proudly practised to make perfect dim sum – with a new-age plant-based ethos that is environmentally aware and health-conscious while remaining true to beloved tastes and traditions.
A desire to enjoy the same delicious flavours and aromas of their favourite pork dim sum, without the meat, was one of the main spurs for Plant Sifu™ innovators Joshua Ng and Dr. Andrew Leung, who founded their flagship company Good Food Technologies in 2020. In a breakthrough that has powered Plant Sifu™ plant-based meat to achieve next-level texture, juiciness, aroma and cookability, the pioneering duo developed the patented technology AROMAX™ with konjac and 100% plant ingredients that emulate pork fat. AROMAX™ also turns translucent once cooked, enhances the juiciness of any dish, and significantly reduces the use of animal fats (like lard), making it an ideal component for Chinese dim sum that is a feast for the eyes and the palate.
Mott 32 – A Captivating Quartet in World-class Chinese Culinary Finesse
(Available from 6 April to 30 June 2023 – lunchtime)
Known for his elegant traditional Chinese dishes with a Western twist, Mott 32 Group Executive Chef Lee Man Sing is no stranger to plant-based ingredients. “Sustainability has been at the heart of Mott 32 since our conception,” says Chef Lee. “From ethically sourcing sustainable ingredients to seeking to push culinary boundaries using only plants and meat alternatives, we have carefully applied traditional Chinese cooking techniques to recreate Mott 32’s signature dishes and customer favourites.”
The Shanghainese staple of Traditional “Pork” Shanghainese Soup Dumplings (HK$85/4pcs) is reinterpreted with Plant Sifu™ Ground pork and a hint of ginger for the guilt-free stuffing. A bite into the thin dumpling skin brings a steaming rush of juicy “meaty” goodness but without the common use of pork. Crispy Rice Paper “Pork” Cheung Fun (HK$120) is a textural contrast of soft rice noodle roll over a layer of crispy rice paper, wrapped around mushroom, mixed vegetables and Plant Sifu™ Mince. A siu mai resembling no other, Morel “Pork” Siu Mai (HK$80/4pcs) sees luxurious and aromatic morel mushrooms melded with Mince pork, while Scallion “Ham” Roll (HK$75/3pcs) is a taste of home in a moreish steamed bun rolled in marinated Minced pork and scallions.
D.H.K. Seafood Restaurant – 6 Dim Sum & 8 Cantonese Specialty Dishes
(Available from 6 April to 30 June 2023 – dim sum at lunchtime; specialty dishes all day)
D.H.K. Seafood Restaurant, mentioned in Michelin Guide Hong Kong and led by veteran restaurateur Chan Lian, a prominent figure in Hong Kong’s Chinese culinary scene for over 4 decades, takes guests to the past with premium authentic Guangdong cooking. It is a milestone for Plant Sifu™ to have recruited such a time-honoured restaurant and team to try a new-age ingredient in the new series of pescatarian (with seafood) and vegetarian dim sum (offered daily before 2:30pm) and specialty dishes (all day).
D.H.K. adheres to the “old-school” way of making pork and shrimp siu mai with the most important “secret” ingredient – dried batoidea fish powder – to give Plant-based Pork Siu Mai (HK$80/4pcs) extra umami flavour. Other pescatarian dim sum staples are Plant-based Pork & Shrimp Dumpling Soup (HK$70/3pcs) and Plant-based Pork & Shrimp Bean Curd Roll in Broth (HK$70/3pcs). For vegetarian options, the must-try is Pot-seared Sichuan Peppercorn Plant-based Pork Bun (HK$70/3pcs), a tender bun seared until golden-brown with fragrant peppercorn-seasoned filling that tingles on the tongue – on point for aroma and taste.
The chefs wholeheartedly embraced this partnership and extended their creativity to classic Cantonese specialty dishes with Plant Sifu™. Available all day, some of the choices are Sweet and Sour Plant-based Pork (HK$240) and Fried Plant-based Pork Pipa Tofu (HK$240), which deliver bites of nostalgia for a wholesome experience; no-one would know they are vegetarian. [See Appendix for the full menu]
Sha Tin 18 – 5-star Preparations of Classic Dim Sum Favourites
(Available until 30 April 2023 – lunchtime)
Sha Tin 18’s Chef de Cuisine Ho Chun Hung works his magic with “the contrast of natural flavours” in mind to create 5 springtime dim sum sensations at the Hyatt Regency Hong Kong, Sha Tin. Each dim sum thoughtfully pairs the original flavour of Plant Sifu™ pork with a stronger-tasting ingredient like sweet or pickled vegetables. “Through the chefs’ creativity and craftsmanship, we hope customers will be more accepting of new concepts like plant-based meat, and it will become more universal and popular,” says Chef Ho.
Steamed Plant-based Pork, Beetroot Dumpling (HK$60/4pcs) is a visual treat as fresh beetroot juice blushes the translucent dumpling skin, which encases sweet hand-diced beetroot paired with low-fat plant-based pork. Crafted to resemble a phoenix eye, Steamed Plant-based Pork, Preserved Root Vegetable Dumpling (HK$60/4pcs) dazzles in an appetising Spring-green hue made with spinach juice; Chinese pickled mustard (mildly spicy, sour and salty “jar choy”) and courgette combine for the healthy filling.
For something more indulgent, the Northern China-inspired Steamed Plant-based Pork, Red Date, Glutinous Rice Dumpling (HK$60/4pcs) is a standout siu mai topped by red dates that add sweetness and fragrance to the sticky rice. Steamed Plant-based Pork, Preserved Vegetable Bun (HK$60/3pcs) has a fluffy dough with juicy Ground plant-meat and pickled greens (sweet, savoury “mui choy”) on the inside. Rounding off the plant-based series with some heat, Crispy-fried Plant-based Pork, Spicy Marinated Cabbage Spring Roll (HK$60/4pcs) is a mix of plant-based Mince and spicy and sour Korean-style marinated cabbage to bring a kick to the taste buds.
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