Hong Kong's first completely vegan pâtisserie, Bien Caramélisé, is now open for business serving up a delicious array of plant-based patisseries
If you step inside Hong King’s newest pâtisserie, Bien Caramélisé, you will be greeted with a delicious array of delicate and delicious pastries on offer from mille-feuille and eclairs to lemon tarts.
What you might be surprised to discover is that everything on offer at the pâtisserie is completely vegan and made with organic plant-based ingredients.
According to Time Out, founder and chef Jessic Chow said: “We are healthier not in the sense of our products being low in fat or calories, but more in using a wider variety of nutritious ingredients, which makes our pastries better for you and the environment.”
Positive feedback
Chow said the decision to open the cities first all-vegan patisserie was a big risk as she wasn’t sure whether there would be demand for vegan treats.
She told Time Out: “One of our biggest concerns in opening as the first plant-based patisserie in Hong Kong is not knowing how the market will react to our food and concept,” she says, “But so far we’ve had some very positive feedback.”
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Plant-based innovation
According to its website, Bien Caramélisé says it uses a “range of different natural ingredients” to ensure “more sustainable food systems and reduce the harmful impact on our planet.”
“Being on a plant-based diet is only one way to help the earth. We also work hard to minimize wastage in our cooking, daily operations, and packaging.”
Chow works closely with a network of local farmers in neighbouring countries such as Taiwan, the Philippines, and China to source the organic ingredients used in the recipes.
The talented patisserie chef has spent the last three years perfecting her plant-based recipes to ensure they are so tasty that even non-vegans will love them and you won’t be able to tell they contain no animal-derived ingredients.
Sweet treats such as the pâte à choux (cream puff dough) are made with plant-based ingredients such as brown rice and chickpea, olive oil and psyllium husk for a boost of healthy fats and fibre.
“But you wouldn’t notice it when you eat it!” she said. “The texture and appearance are almost identical to the egg and butter-rich choux puffs.”
Chow plans to change the menu according to seasons and produce availability and is exciting about the possibility of playing with more unusual ingredients she discovers to create innovative new desserts.
Bien Caramélisé is located at Shop D, 1/F, Hentiff Bldg, 160 Prince Edward Road West (at the Mong Kok Flower Market).
