Chef Alan Wong, a founding chef and renowned master of Hawai’i Regional Cuisine, is releasing his second cookbook, The Blue Tomato: The Inspirations Behind the Cuisine of Chef Alan Wong. This chef does not confine himself to the kitchen. He can be found visiting various places throughout the islands as a part of educating the public.
Supporting local products has been and continues to be a very important issue in Hawaii and Chef Alan is a large supporter of local ingredients. The more sustainable we are as a community, the less we need to depend on shipping products in from the overseas. This benefits our local economy as well as limits the pollution created with the shipping. Educating the community about sustainability is an on-going project throughout the state.
In May 2010, Chef Alan paid a visit to James Campbell High School’s Agriculture Learning Center, under the guidance of teacher Mr. Derek Chow. Mr. Chow’s students are learning about the technology and science of farming as well as cultivate produce on the school campus farm. Chef Alan, Mr. Chow, and the students will share their thoughts on sustainability and the impact of locally-raised products on cuisine during a Blue Tomato “talk story”.
There will be book signings at Barnes & Noble:
Saturday, January 8 @ 1PM, Ala Moana Center
Saturday, January 15 @ 1PM, Kahala Mall
Please keep in mind that there is a fundraiser for Campbell High School. Barnes & Noble consumers in Hawaii, and nationwide, can present avoucher to have purchases credited to the school between January 8-15, 2011. The Blue Tomato as well as other books, CDs, DVDs, magazines, NOOK e-readers, and café items will earn funds for the school. For Campbell alumni and friends can purchase online at http://www.bn.com/bookfairs until January 20, 2011. Please see the voucher flyer for more information for how to apply online purchases, eligible items and dates.
On Saturday, January 22, there will be a third book signing at Borders in Ward Centre.
During the book signing events, Chef Alan Wong will host a “talk story” at the top of the hour discussing some of the thought processes that went into creating The Blue Tomato, what this book means to him and some of his philosophies on food and cooking. There will also be a “Side-by-Side Tasting” exercise featuring preparations from The Blue Tomato and highlighting the differences between dishes prepared using local versus imported ingredients.
Print the Barnes & Noble voucher: http://www.bookshawaii.net/docs/CampbellBookFair.pdf
More information about The Blue Tomato: http://www.thebluetomato.net/
Special thanks to Dawn T. Sakamoto (Director of Sales & Marketing for Watermark Publishing), Nicole Ng (Marketing Manager for Alan Wong’s Restaurants), and most importantly, Chef Alan Wong.
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