Wagamama launches vegan ‘tuna’ for Veganuary - and it’s made out of watermelon

Chain pan asian restaurant Wagamama is one of the foodie spots offering its customers vegan dishes, and has gone one step further by launching a new vegan ‘tuna’ substitute made from watermelon.

Innovative vegan ‘tuna’

Wagamama has become the first major UK restaurant brand to launch this innovative Vegan Suika Tuna dish, and the chain believes that it’s the perfect example of their kaizen philosophy - which is Japanese for ‘good change’.

This dish will be featured throughout Veganuary, adding to the restaurant's wide vegan offering, but if it proves successful it will be added to the main menu.

Last year, Wagamama launched the world’s first vegan egg and wanted to ensure that they followed up this successful dish with another iconic and innovative vegan creation.

What is this vegan ‘tuna’ made out of?

The vegan ‘tuna’ is made with dehydrated watermelon, which is then sliced, seared and served hot.

The look and texture of this vegan tuna is similar to tuna sashimi, but the flavour is reminiscent of watermelon.

This ‘tuna’ is then dressed with a miso sesame sauce and served on a bed of white rice, alongside pickled radish, kale, tender stem broccoli, and an avocado, edamame and tofu guacamole.

Steve Mangleshot, Group Executive Chef, said: “My team and I are always excited about creating new dishes, we love to innovate and make people think about the food they are eating.

“After the vegan egg we knew we had to step it up a notch to create a vegan dish that was fresh and full of flavour.

“The watermelon tuna dish is all about innovation and creating exceptional vegan food for our guests.

“The joy of being able to produce really cool food that is both vegan and tastes fantastic at the same time is what it’s all about.

“Putting this on the menu for Veganuary gives us the opportunity to show off a great vegan dish alongside our ever-expanding vegan offerings.”

Veganuary spokesperson, Zoe West, said: “Veganuary is creating a new wave of consumers with strong ethics and a big appetite! This a real opportunity for businesses to improve and expand their vegan offerings for the growing climate-conscious audience.

“We’re delighted that Wagamama has risen to this challenge - helping people to live more lightly on the earth while still eating food they love – we can’t wait to try their new Suika Tuna dish!”