Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Nom’s dim sum rolls by on a different set of wheels

Steamed buns, dumplings, chili oil, and no animal products whatsoever

A vegan gua bao made with turmeric sprouted tofu
A vegan gua bao made with turmeric sprouted tofu

Most of us have eaten dim sum off a pushcart, so how much different could it be eating it off a food truck? Depends on the food truck.

When I spotted the Nom food truck rolling across town, there was just enough time for the words “plant based” to pique my interest before a light changed and we sped off in different directions. There may be a few veggie options among the many, many small dishes that comprise dim sum, but it’s a decidedly shrimp- and pork-driven genre. I’d never seen a vegan take.

Nom, the vegan dim sum food truck spotted rolling throughout the county

When I tracked Nom down, it happened to be parked outside La Mesa Wine Works, a joint tasting room (and patio) highlighting a pair of local wineries. But there seems no shortage of places to find it — Nom’s robust schedule sees it booking several appearances a week, whether as part of a vegan pop-up, on a corporate campus during lunch time, or outside a brewery during happy hour. The mobile kitchen makes use of the whole county, too. I’d have been just as likely to see it driving around Vista as North Park.

Sponsored
Sponsored

I can’t be sure a conventional dim sum food truck would find this much demand, but what surprises me more is that Nom thrives on the strength of only three dishes: steamed buns, pan-seared dumplings, and gua bao. You may order each by the pair for $11, $12, and $17, respectively, but the truck makes it easy to try all three by offering the $17 “Nom Nom Nom” combo.

The steamed buns would normally be called char siu, or BBQ pork buns. But, of course, there’s no pork to be found here. Instead, the big, fluffy buns are filled with a mix of the common, wheat-gluten meat alternative, seitan, and a less usual substitute: date. Minced within a soy reduction, these buns may ultimately please or displease you based on how you feel about the subtle, sweet presence of the dates.

That said, I kept coming back for more due to the stronger presence of black garlic and chili oil. Turns out, I don’t miss meat for one second when there’s a rich mixture of umami and heat to behold.

Aegan takes on a BBQ pork steamed bun (front) and pan-seared soup dumpling (back)

Next up, the smaller, pan-seared dumplings, which more closely resemble shengjian bao, or pan-fried soup dumplings. Here again we see seitan, but minced with shitake mushrooms this time, and steeped in a kombu seaweed broth, a.k.a. dashi. Though nothing could burst with fatty flavor quite like pork soup dumplings, this proved my favorite item on the Nom menu. The dashi and shitake blend with seamless depth, and credit must once again be given to the mobile kitchen’s house chili oil, swimming flakes and seeds, and lingering pleasantly on the palate with every bite.

If I needed proof Nom could succeed without adding this spice, I found it with the gua bao. These are the sort of steamed bun sandwiches that somewhat resemble tacos with fluffy tortillas. We’d normally expect a slab of pork belly down the middle of this bun, instead we get some of the best-cooked tofu I’ve ever encountered. Made with sprouted tofu — which basically means it’s more nutritious — its crispy on the outside, meaty and tender inside, and given a boost in natural flavor courtesy of turmeric.

This meat replacement doesn’t remind you of pork belly, and it doesn’t need to. It’s its own thing, dressed with pickled vegetables, vegan mayo, sriracha, and black sesame seeds. It would be a little weird, maybe even disconcerting, to find this gua bao on a pushcart in a traditional dim sum restaurant, even if it’s exactly what one might expect in a vegan context. But from this omnivore’s perspective, it’s better than I ever would have hoped for in a tofu bao, so kudos to Nom, a food truck worth following down that road.

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Temperature inversions bring smoggy weather, "ankle biters" still biting

Near-new moon will lead to a dark Halloween
A vegan gua bao made with turmeric sprouted tofu
A vegan gua bao made with turmeric sprouted tofu

Most of us have eaten dim sum off a pushcart, so how much different could it be eating it off a food truck? Depends on the food truck.

When I spotted the Nom food truck rolling across town, there was just enough time for the words “plant based” to pique my interest before a light changed and we sped off in different directions. There may be a few veggie options among the many, many small dishes that comprise dim sum, but it’s a decidedly shrimp- and pork-driven genre. I’d never seen a vegan take.

Nom, the vegan dim sum food truck spotted rolling throughout the county

When I tracked Nom down, it happened to be parked outside La Mesa Wine Works, a joint tasting room (and patio) highlighting a pair of local wineries. But there seems no shortage of places to find it — Nom’s robust schedule sees it booking several appearances a week, whether as part of a vegan pop-up, on a corporate campus during lunch time, or outside a brewery during happy hour. The mobile kitchen makes use of the whole county, too. I’d have been just as likely to see it driving around Vista as North Park.

Sponsored
Sponsored

I can’t be sure a conventional dim sum food truck would find this much demand, but what surprises me more is that Nom thrives on the strength of only three dishes: steamed buns, pan-seared dumplings, and gua bao. You may order each by the pair for $11, $12, and $17, respectively, but the truck makes it easy to try all three by offering the $17 “Nom Nom Nom” combo.

The steamed buns would normally be called char siu, or BBQ pork buns. But, of course, there’s no pork to be found here. Instead, the big, fluffy buns are filled with a mix of the common, wheat-gluten meat alternative, seitan, and a less usual substitute: date. Minced within a soy reduction, these buns may ultimately please or displease you based on how you feel about the subtle, sweet presence of the dates.

That said, I kept coming back for more due to the stronger presence of black garlic and chili oil. Turns out, I don’t miss meat for one second when there’s a rich mixture of umami and heat to behold.

Aegan takes on a BBQ pork steamed bun (front) and pan-seared soup dumpling (back)

Next up, the smaller, pan-seared dumplings, which more closely resemble shengjian bao, or pan-fried soup dumplings. Here again we see seitan, but minced with shitake mushrooms this time, and steeped in a kombu seaweed broth, a.k.a. dashi. Though nothing could burst with fatty flavor quite like pork soup dumplings, this proved my favorite item on the Nom menu. The dashi and shitake blend with seamless depth, and credit must once again be given to the mobile kitchen’s house chili oil, swimming flakes and seeds, and lingering pleasantly on the palate with every bite.

If I needed proof Nom could succeed without adding this spice, I found it with the gua bao. These are the sort of steamed bun sandwiches that somewhat resemble tacos with fluffy tortillas. We’d normally expect a slab of pork belly down the middle of this bun, instead we get some of the best-cooked tofu I’ve ever encountered. Made with sprouted tofu — which basically means it’s more nutritious — its crispy on the outside, meaty and tender inside, and given a boost in natural flavor courtesy of turmeric.

This meat replacement doesn’t remind you of pork belly, and it doesn’t need to. It’s its own thing, dressed with pickled vegetables, vegan mayo, sriracha, and black sesame seeds. It would be a little weird, maybe even disconcerting, to find this gua bao on a pushcart in a traditional dim sum restaurant, even if it’s exactly what one might expect in a vegan context. But from this omnivore’s perspective, it’s better than I ever would have hoped for in a tofu bao, so kudos to Nom, a food truck worth following down that road.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

The Fellini of Clairemont High

When gang showers were standard for gym class
Next Article

Everything You’ve Ever Wanted To Know About doTERRA

Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader