Veganuary, the month of January which every year puts plant-based food in the spotlight, is in full swing
The Gate Restaurant Group, which has been at the forefront of plant-based food for 30 years and is suddenly at the centre of the biggest food movement of the decade, is celebrating with a very special vegan menu devised for the occasion by celebrity chef Ken Hom, OBE.
Ken Hom, the man who showed the British how to cook Asian food and use a wok, and one of the most respected and celebrated TV chefs of all time, has developed a three-course menu with nine dishes at choice, especially for The Gate. It will be launched at the group’s latest restaurant opening The Gate in St John’s Wood, 87 Allitsen Road, London NW8 7AS on Sunday 26 January 2020 between 11.30 am and 4.00 pm. Ken Hom himself will be in attendance together with the Gate’s executive chef Morris Wegrodski, to welcome guests and talk through his own take on vegan food.
‘Chinese cuisine, and most Asian cuisines, naturally lend themselves to vegan recipes, where ingredients such as grains, vegetables, tofu, nuts, noodles are used extensively every day by home cooks and restaurant chefs alike. Growing up in Chicago, we didn’t have much money, meat was rarely seen, and my mother used to send me to school with a flask of hot rice, which other kids always wanted to get a taste of, as it was so different from their burgers. Her food was delicious and I still cook many of her recipes, which were mainly vegan. The synergy with my food and that of The Gate Restaurants was obvious, and I have used my Chinese twists in the dishes I have created’.
Priced at £35 for three courses, the Ken Hom Vegan Menu includes starters such as Crackling Rice Paper Asparagus Rolls, Daoist Braised Chinese Mushroom Beancurd Casserole, Stir-Fried Cucumbers with Hot Spices; mains of Buddhist Casserole, Chinese Ratatouille with Cornmeal-Spring Onion-Ginger Waffles, Curried Spring Rolls; and desserts of Warm Mango Compote with Basil and Vegan Vanilla Ice Cream, Chinese Five Spices & Chocolate Mousse with Spiced Orange Coulis and Warm Banana Compote in Plum Wine with Candied Ginger. The menu will be available in all four Gate restaurants in London until 9 February, starting at £24 for two courses.
Michael Daniel, founder and chairman of The Gate Restaurants Group, says: ‘As a group which has been operating for 30 years at the leading edge of the vegan movement, we continuously look at improving our sustainability in everything we do, from the materials we use to the food we serve. It is, therefore, such an honour to welcome chef Ken Hom to our recently opened restaurant in St John’s Wood and share his incredible knowledge of food which is not only delicious but also highly sustainable. His recipes are delectable and will be warmly welcomed by our guests’.
