Finnish-Kurdish chef Kozeen Shiwan X TEST KITCHEN (Vegetarian Pop-up)
TEST KITCHEN presents first ever Vegetarian Pop-up with Finnish-Kurdish chef Kozeen Shiwan
Date: 17-19 October, 2018
Time: 7:00pm & 8:15pm Seating
Ticket Price: $880 (9 course Vegetarian Menu) | $380 (Wine Pairing)
Location: 158A Connaught Road West, Shop 3, Sai Ying Pun
Tickets: www.testkitchen.com.hk/finnishvegetarian
Finnish-Kurdish Chef Kozeen Shiwan is set to deliver one of the most memorable Test Kitchen dinners with his artistic and delicious vegetarian plates that tell stories of his multi-cultural upbringing. This pop-up represents Test Kitchen’s first ever wholly vegetarian menu.
Kozeen was born in the Kurdish city of Suleimania in Iraq, before moving with his family to Finland in 1989. He has worked in Michelin-starred kitchens including Helsinki’s Luomo and Ask as well as in de wulf in the Netherlands.
Food is a critical part of Kurdish culture and identity, being influenced by flavours including from the Middle-East and Turkey that have had a big impact on his work.
Kozeen’s plates are some of the most beautiful we can recall here, in tune with his artistic training and approach. Pushing the boundaries of a pure vegetarian menu that celebrate his experience in some of Finland’s finest restaurants.
Kozeen’s Vegetarian Tasting Menu
FORRESTFLY
Salty cracker shaped like butterfly that tastes like finnish forrest. Forrestfly is served with cep emulsion as snack.
BLACKRADISH AND HERBS
Blackradish slices served with herbs and goat yoghurt
DOLMA
Cooked rice with yoghurt whey and dill wrapped in greens, served with sour yoghurt sauce and dill oil
CUCUMBER
Baby cucumber slices as raw, pickled on skewer with borage flowers, fermented gooseberry and cucumber juice
*KING POTATO
Potato baked in salt crust and served with roasted yeast emulsion and smoked butter sauce.
GREENS
Bouquet of broccolini with chard and mustard leaf grilled with seaweed and miso
CITRUCE ICE
Citrus granites made from four different citruces
JERSUMALEM ARTICHOKE
Jerusalem artichoke filled with salty caramel, coated in white chocolate and cep powder
FLOWEFLY
Butterfly made from celeriac and elderflower with sweet flowers
About our chef:
Chef Kozeen Shiwan is chef from Helsinki, a Creative mind with his unique approach to gastronomy, has helped revolutionize Finnish food culture despite his relatively young age. He is a new-wave chef who actively pursues a renewal of the hospitality industry. Having gained extensive experience working in top European restaurants such as In de Wulfissa (Belgium), Maaemo (Norway) and Ask (Helsinki), Kozeen is known for his artistic style, beautiful visuals and unique flavour combinations that grace pop-ups around Europe.
Chef Kozeen, “My cooking is provocative, visual, loud, storytelling, for all of your senses. I want to give my guests more than just food. My cooking is based a lot on the ingredients and seasons, but I am very inspired by nature, arts, fashion, music and ingredients in my cooking.”
One of his signature dishes is the simple sounding but brilliantly-executed ‘King Potato’. As he explains, “The potato is baked in a salt crust and served with roasted yeast emulsion and smoked butter sauce. The roasted yeast mayo is very rich in umami, the butter is cold smoked with hay and made into an amazing buttery creamy sauce, then mixed with smoked ash oil.”
Other dishes on Kozeen’s menu include his take on the Middle Eastern classic dish of dolma, or wrapped vine leaves, although he takes a different approach:
“Cooked rice is mixed with cucumber, tomato, onion, dill, mint, lemon zest, parlsey and ginger then wrapped in spinach greens, served with sour yoghurt sauce and dill oil. The rice rolls are steamed aromatically before they are garnished with flowers and herbs.”
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