HONG KONG– Impossible Foods announced the commercial launch of Impossible Pork Made From Plants, available in restaurants in Hong Kong starting on Oct. 4 and in Singapore later this fall. Chef David Chang will debut Impossible Pork at his famed Momofuku Ssäm Bar at Pier 17 in New York City.
In a blind taste test of more than 200 consumers in Hong Kong, Impossible Pork Made From Plants was preferred 54% to 46% over ground pork from pigs, scoring higher on all attributes tested, including overall liking, appearance liking, flavor liking, texture liking, and purchase intent.
Impossible Pork is vastly more sustainable than ground pork from pigs, using 81–85% less water, 66–82% less land and generating 73–77% less greenhouse gas emissions based on an ISO conforming Life Cycle Assessment.
“Earlier this month, we beat the animal with the launch of Impossible Chicken Nuggets,” said Dennis Woodside, president of Impossible Foods. “With Impossible Pork, we’re beating the animal again while satisfying even more types of cuisine — another important step towards making the global food system much more sustainable.”
Like meat from pigs, Impossible Pork features a mild savory flavor and balanced umami richness without being gamey or overpowering. It can be served in any ground meat dish including spring rolls, meatballs, dumplings, xiao long bao, shumai or tacos, and can be cooked in a steamer, oven, charbroiler, flat-top grill or saute pan.
Impossible Pork is certified gluten-free and contains no nitrates, no animal hormones and no antibiotics. Compared to a 4-ounce (113-gram) serving of 70/30 U.S. Department of Agriculture ground pork, Impossible Pork contains 37% fewer calories (220 vs. 350 calories), 59% less total fat (13 grams vs. 32 grams), 36% less saturated fat (7 grams vs. 11 grams) and 2.7 milligrams compared to 1 milligram iron per serving for pork from pigs. Impossible Pork contains 0 milligrams of cholesterol (7 grams saturated fat and 0 grams trans fat) per 4-ounce serving (113 grams).
Originally previewed at CES 2020, Impossible Pork has already been named Time Magazine’s Best Inventions of 2020, and it has received a number of accolades and awards including the National Restaurant Association 2020 FABI Award, Mashable’s Best Tech of CES, Women’s Health Best of CES, and more.
Quintessential Asian Cuisine
David Chang was the first chef to launch Impossible Foods’ flagship Impossible™ Burger on the menu of his famous Momofuku Nishi hotspot in 2016, and he launched Impossible Chicken Nuggets earlier this month at his fried chicken concept Fuku. Beginning tomorrow, Impossible Pork will be featured on the menu of his acclaimed Momofuku Ssäm Bar at Pier 17 in one of the restaurant’s most iconic dishes – Spicy Rice Cakes – now served with Impossible™Pork Ragu.
“Our menu calls for high quality, versatile ingredients, and Impossible Foods’ products always deliver,” said Momofuku Culinary Director Max Ng. “Impossible Pork replicates the delicious flavor and juiciness of pork, making it a perfect fit for one of our most iconic dishes.”
Chef May Chow was one of the first Hong Kong chefs to launch the Impossible Burger when it debuted in the region in 2018, predicting that it would “take [the] city’s world-class restaurant scene by storm.” On Oct. 4, Chef Chow will debut Impossible Pork dishes at Little Bao, which will serve a Taiwanese “LuRou” Scotch Egg, and Happy Paradise, which will serve Impossible™ Dan Dan Noodles.
“Minced pork is central to so many classic Chinese recipes from dumplings to spring rolls to dan dan noodles. I’m thrilled we now have a more sustainable alternative that does not compromise on the original diversity, deliciousness, and depth of everyone’s favourite recipes.”
Availability
Starting Oct. 4, Impossible Pork will be served at more than 100 restaurants in Hong Kong, across a variety of cuisines, from dim sum and classic Chinese to Japanese and Thai.
Globally acclaimed dim sum chain Tim Ho Wan, known as the “world’s cheapest Michelin-star restaurant,” will be offering four new signature dim sum and rice dishes at all of its Hong Kong restaurants. Other local favorites to debut Impossible Pork in Hong Kong including Dumpling Yuan, known for its authentic Northern Chinese style dumplings; Bloom by Wong Jia Sha, a modern Shanghainese restaurant; and Kyoto Katsugyu, a Japanese katsu favorite.
Chinese fast food chain MX of Maxim’s Group in Hong Kong will launch its Eggplant & Impossible™ Pork Casserole dish at 45 locations across the city, becoming the first quick-service restaurant in Hong Kong to serve an Impossible product.
The Tong Chong Street Market in Taikoo Place will feature numerous Impossible Pork dishes throughout October, with 15 participating restaurants giving away Impossible™ Pork Bento Boxes to celebrate the launch.
In Singapore, Impossible Pork will land in November on the menus of a number of new and returning customers, including Prive, PS Cafe, Da Paolo and Moonbow Dempsey, a well-known fusion restaurant from Ironman Chef Heman, who will serve a Crispy Cheesy Impossible™ Pork Ball.
About Impossible Foods:
Based in California’s Silicon Valley, Impossible Foods makes delicious, nutritious meat and dairy products from plants — with a much smaller environmental footprint than meat from animals. The privately held company was founded in 2011 by Patrick O. Brown, M.D., Ph.D., professor emeritus of biochemistry at Stanford University and a former Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. Investors include Khosla Ventures, Bill Gates, Google Ventures, Horizons Ventures, UBS, Viking Global Investors, Temasek, Sailing Capital and Open Philanthropy Project.
