
FourFourtwo’s Nick Wigmore dishes up a dish of ingredients that would have been considered normal for a vegan in 2014.
Furious, a dish that combines a range of foods, was the winner of the Australian Restaurant Association’s Food of the Year award.
Its creator, chef Andrew Pugh, says the idea for the dish originated when he went to a vegetarian lunch, but he had no idea there was a vegan option in town.
“I was sitting at a cafe with some friends and it just dawned on me,” he said.
“And we went and sat down with a bowl of salad, and we had no veg and no meat.
So I started messing around with different things and I thought, ‘What if I made this?'”
Furious combines the taste of salad and salad dressing with the crunch of veg chips and the meatiness of meatballs, then adds a layer of cheese.
“It’s not the first thing I’ve ever cooked with, but I think it’s a good start,” he says.
“The only thing that I would change would be the tomato and garlic, because it’s not a good substitute for meat.”
Pugh’s recipe has now been made into a salad and has been enjoyed by many vegan customers.
It’s a tasty and simple dish, but the vegan community has been keen to find out more about how it came about.
“We’ve had people tell us they’ve seen it on a menu at a local restaurant and thought it was a good idea,” Mr Pugh said.
He says he’s looking forward to hearing more from the public about the success of his dish.
“Vomiting can be really distressing, but if you make it and people love it, that’s all that matters,” he joked.
“So I’m going to be really busy getting all the word out and trying to find people who might enjoy it.”
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