Healthy eating? How about chocolate-filled wonton shells? - Eat! Vancouver 2006

By Michael Kwan, for THECOMMENTARY.CA

Wednesday, 07 June 2006

While I may be far from being a whiz in the kitchen, I make no qualms about being a great diner. I love to eat, and I never deny that. That's why events like Eat! Vancouver always catch my attention: I get to sample a variety of foods and drinks- much of which are free with admission - as well as meet and greet with local (and not so local) cooking celebrities. Eat! Vancouver: The Everything Food + Cooking Festival rolled into town last weekend and took up about half of the ground floor of BC Place Stadium. From the beer and wine pavilion for those of who can't pass up a drinky drinky, to cooking demonstrations for experimenting with new recipes, there was something for everyone there, because let's face, we all have to eat to live… so why not live to eat?

This was the third Eat! Vancouver - which, this year, took place from Friday, May 26 to Sunday, May 28 - and this event provided an opportunity for foodies to try out some rather interesting fare. One theme that seemed to run through a good portion of the exhibition was healthier eating. From the east, we were offered matcha, known as the "greenest of green teas." Being showcased through the Muzi booth (muzitea.com), matcha not only tastes great, but offers a wide range of health benefits, including boosted metabolism, stabilized blood sugar, and the maintenance of healthy cholesterol levels.

Although it sounds like something that would come out of a rental home in Vancouver, it was Manitoba Harvest that presented hemp foods and oils at the show. Hemp acts much like many of the grains that come out of the prairies, but I found it to have a somewhat sharper, harsher taste… nutty, even. Products include hemp seed nut butter (almost like cashew butter), hemp protein powder, and cold pressed hemp seed oil.

However, as Bob Blumer pointed out, this show isn't all geared toward healthy eating. In his own words, "I counteract that." For one of his cooking demonstrations, the man known as the Surreal Gourmet prepared deep fried wontons, but these weren't ordinary dumplings. Nope, there was no meat to be found, nor were they wrapped by an "80-year-old Chinese grandmother." Instead, he packed in chocolate, banana, caramel, and peanut butter. To further demonstrate the versatility of wonton skins, he also produced ahi tuna stuffed into cones made of deep fried wonton skins. The cauliflower popcorn he made also looked quite appetizing. Blumer proves that you don't need traditional training to be a "professional" cook: he was completely self-taught and only stumbled upon his "accidental career."

Vancouver's own Iron Chef, Rob Feenie, also made a repeat appearance with his ego in full tow. The owner of Lumiere and Feenie's created a tuna tartar, chicken potpie, and duck confit salad with lentils for the crowd, but along the way, he forgot to turn on the oven. Mistakes happen, even to the best of them, so don't feel so bad. Rob did mention that he has plans to expand the Feenie's brand with new locations in Burnaby and possibly at UBC in coming years. He also reaffirmed his belief that Vancouver is "the best city in North America for food." Yes, because Alsace (France), where he learned his trade, is far superior… right, Rob?

There were several other notable booths at the show, far too many to be all mentioned in the confines of this space, but here's a quick rundown of a small handful that caught my eye (and/or taste buds):

Izze Fruit Juice is 100% pure, with a splash of sparkling water for some bubbly. Available in Clementine, pear, apple, pomegranate, blueberry and range of other flavours, Izze can be found at select Starbucks locations.

John Spenger's Bistro Blends (spenger.com) presented a smattering of balsamic vinegars, including basil garlic, blackberry, sun dried tomato, and Thai sesame ginger. The last of these was particularly well received by those around me, though I, myself, am generally not a fan of ginger in any form.

Schneider's Quick Serve fully cooked grilled strips were surprisingly tasty and succulent, despite being "cooked" in a microwave. Chicken breast and steak were being sampled at the show, but the line of products - available at Wal-Mart, Save-On-Foods, IGA, and several other "fine retailers" - also includes chicken wings, chicken breasts, and chicken nuggets.

Speaking of chicken nuggets, Schneider's was also showcasing their Oh Naturel! Meatless line. I had a chance to nibble on a few of the soy-based chick'n nuggets, and they were difficult to distinguish from the real thing.

As the show was in this province, it comes as no surprise that there was a fairly significant salmon presence at Eat! Vancouver, both farmed and wild. The BC Salmon Farmers Association was there to convince us that, while so many will only eat the wild stuff, farmed fish can be "great tasting and good for you."

Hills Foods Ltd. of Coquitlam (hillsfoods.com) came back again, offering the same muskox they had last year. I grabbed one of their brochures and it turns out they have quite a bit of other exotic meats available for order, from alligator and rattlesnake to wild boar and caribou.

I fully expect Eat! Vancouver to return next year, and expect that I'll be there again, sampling all the great munchies this city, province, country and world have to offer.

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An archive of Joseph Planta's previous columns can be found by clicking HERE.