Pizza Express x JUST Egg: World’s First Vegan Egg Carbonara & Vegan Egg Breakfast Pizza
Another world first for Hong Kong in the plant-based dining realm: innovation-forward pizza chain unveiled two brand new menu offerings at their just opened Lee Tung Avenue location: the JUST Pizza (HK$138), dressed with tomato sauce then topped with crumbled JUST Egg, crumbled vegan sausage, button mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, vegan mozzarella and fresh rosemary and the JUST Spaghetti (HK$128), mixed with a signature JUST Egg and mushroom puree and tossed with chopped peppadew, parsley and garlic.
Sep 4 2018 Update: the JUST Pizza is now available throughout Hong Kong at all Pizza Express locations.
The dishes are totally vegan and ideal for those looking to reduce their meat consumption as well as folks who follow a dairy-free and/or egg-free diet due to health concerns or allergies. “We are constantly exploring thoughtful ideas to create innovative yet sumptuous alternatives for our customers”, said Liam Collette, Managing Director International of Pizza Express.
Watch Green Queen’s VIDEO of Pizza Express Chef’s JUST Spaghetti Demo
No surprise then that they teamed up with JUST Egg (previously JUST Scramble), a company defined by its innovative nature. Their eggless egg product is made from mung bean protein isolate and contains the same amount of protein as a chicken egg with zero cholesterol, not to mention that it requires 77% less water and 40% fewer greenhouse gases to create. The Silicon Valley food tech company counts Horizon Ventures as one of its investors aka Li Ka-Shing’s VC fund and is very bullish on Asia. Not only did the company debut in Hong Kong in partnership with Green Common in January 2018, its first market outside of the US, founder Josh Tetrick has said he wishes he’d launched in Asia first period. JUST is also working on clean meat products including chicken breasts made from unmodified animal cells that do not require any animals to give up their lives.
Pizza Express made waves earlier this year when it unveiled three vegan cheese pizzas made with Daiya Cheese at their Sai Ying Pun store. They were Asia’s first pizza chain to offer dairy-free cheese pies. The vegan pizzas have been a runaway success with customers waiting avidly for a rollout across all Hong Kong location. Dairy-free product sales are booming globally. According to the Plant Based Foods Association, ” ‘other’ plant-based dairy alternatives, which excludes milks, are experiencing explosive growth, up 50%. Other plant-based dairy alternatives include plant-based cheeses, creamers, butter, yogurts and ice creams.”
Photos courtesy of Green Queen (lead) and Pizza Express HK.