Impossible Foods opens up Asian market with Hong Kong debut
The alternative proteins provider has started to supply high-chain restaurants across Hong Kong, including Little Bao, Happy Paradise and Beef & Liberty, and has confirmed plans to expand into Singapore.
Little Bao will serve the ‘Impossible Bao’, a traditional sandwich made with plant-based meat, black pepper teriyaki sauce, salted lemon kombu salad and fermented tofu sauce, between two house-made steamed buns, for HK$118, while the ‘Impossible XinJiang Hot Pocket’ – a Chinese street snack – will debut at Happy Paradise, served with pickled daikon and XinJiang spices, for HK$88.
Meanwhile, Beef & Liberty will serve the ‘Impossible Thai Burger’ with chilli, coriander, mint, basil, spring onion, soya mayonnaise, crispy shallots and garlic, for HK$135.
Little Bao and Little Paradise’s chef, May Chow, who was named Asia’s best female chef in 2017’s The World’s 50 Best Restaurants awards, said the Hong Kong public was demanding to be on the “bleeding edge” of global culinary trends.
“The Impossible Burger is delicious, versatile and perfectly timed to take this city’s world-class restaurant scene by storm,” said Chow.
The Impossible Burger will also be available on a limited basis through Asia’s leading importer and distributor, Classic Fine Foods, which has been operating throughout Asia and Europe since 2001.
The plant-based meat substitute burger is served in more than 1,400 outlets across the US, from award-winning restaurants to mom-and-pop diners. It is made using ingredients including water, wheat protein, potato protein and coconut oil, as well as heme, which gives the product its “meaty” taste, according to Impossible Foods.
Impossible Foods CEO Patrick Brown said the business was confident that Hong Kong would be home to the most innovative ‘Impossible’ recipes yet.
The business revealed that it was exploring opportunities to launch into additional markets throughout 2018.
Last year Impossible Foods announced plans for a new factory aimed at making up to four million plant-based burgers a month.
