Can a meatless beef bowl pass the “meat” examination?
All those who reside or have lived in Japan will be acquainted with the chain cafe Sukiya, which is a informal eatery that serves beef bowls with all sorts of toppings, curry, and even minimal-time-only menu products. What you could not know is that Sukiya has expanded to other parts of Asia, like Taiwan, wherever our Japanese-language reporter Yui Imai life.
In truth, Yui took place to be traveling to her community Sukiya for a chunk to eat when she discovered one thing sudden on the menu: meatless beef bowls. They have been named “素肉丼” or “vegetarian meat bowls”, and, primarily based on the photograph, their “meat” seemed just like pork. But how would they style? And would they have the suitable texture? Yui was curious, so in lieu of her typical get, resolved to attempt it.
The “meat” is created with soy, but considering the fact that it utilizes the same broth as the regular beef bowl, it’s not certainly vegetarian, so that’s some thing to remember if you preserve to a strictly plant-based diet program. But if you’re seeking to eat a lot less meat, this could be a good option. There were a few kinds: basic, topped with kimchi, and topped with okra.
Yui requested the simple Vegetarian Meat Bowl for 99 New Taiwan Bucks (about 442 yen, or US$3.22). For an excess 40 NTD, she extra a established that came with boiled seasonal greens and miso soup, for a full of 139 NTD (in circumstance you had been thinking, when Sukiya in Japan serves salads in its sets, Sukiya Taiwan serves boiled vegetables as an alternative.)
When Yui’s Vegetarian Meat Bowl arrived, she truly could not think her eyes. It seemed just like pork!
But it unquestionably didn’t style like pork. The “meat” was much softer than she envisioned, and its fairly limp constitution was a little bit surprising. It lacked the gritty texture of meat stir-fried in oil, and the smoothness of it was odd on her tongue. It actually didn’t have significantly resemblance to meat at all, but the faint soy taste of the plant-centered meat was wonderful, and it had soaked up the sweet and spicy sauce flawlessly, so in the end, Yui in fact rather favored it. As very long as you are not going into anticipating to have the very same experience as meat, you may like it much too!
Of system, if you are a real vegetarian, this won’t be a superior selection for you. In that circumstance, we endorse CoCo Ichibanya Taiwan’s Plant-centered Hamburger Curry alternatively, considering that its roux and “hamburger” are both of those plant-based. If you are in Taiwan craving a taste of Japan but seeking to skip the meat, you can not go wrong with these selections!
Photographs © SoraNews24
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