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Beizer Daniel Sahli preparing a vegan cordon bleus.
Dana LiechtiEditor Sunday view
Nobody eats that,” the people in the village would have told him at the beginning. And laughed. But when Daniel Sahli (59) has something in mind, he will do it. So it was that the Beizer in the Bernese Seeland served a vegan cordon bleu for the first time 13 years ago – long before oat milk and pea-based chicken substitutes found their way onto the supermarket shelves.
The restaurant offers 74 different meat-based cordons bleus
Thursday afternoon, Restaurant Bahnhof in Kallnach BE: In the dining room – wood-panelled walls, solid tables, red tablecloths – a few men are sitting over a beer, discussing everything and everything. Sahli knows them all by their first names. He’s like something out of a picture book: easy, direct, hands-on. He has been the host in the village of 2,281 for two decades, and the Bahnhöfli is now known far beyond the region. Especially for one thing: cordons bleus. Sahli offers 74 different meaty varieties alone, with porcini mushrooms, mustard or sambal oelek, in three sizes, for the hungriest he roasts pieces that weigh 600 grams. He processes more than a tonne of pork every year – which he gets from the butcher and from the region. “That’s important to me,” says Sahli, who describes himself as a meat tiger.
It is surprising that he of all people has been offering a vegan alternative to cordon bleu for so long and still in a traditional village pub – i.e. to the dish that probably combines most animal products.
A colleague gave him the idea, says Sahli. “An animal rights activist. She asked me if I could also prepare a vegan cordon bleu.» At first he shook his head: “I didn’t even know what vegan means.” But then he just tried it.
Guests can choose from 25 purely vegan cordons bleus.
Today the preparation is the most normal thing in the world for him. “I use seitan cookies from a local supplier, almond-based cheese substitute and vegan ham – I call it pseudo ham,” says Sahli and laughs.
With practiced hand movements, he places vegan cheese and ham on a seitan biscuit, seasons it, and places a second biscuit on top. He turns the whole thing in a mixture of egg replacer powder and water, then tosses it in a large bowl with breadcrumbs. Shortly thereafter, the cordon bleu sizzles in vegetable fat on the grill. Later, Sahli garnishes the dish with fresh herbs and a wedge of lemon.
The largest cordon bleu on offer weighs 600 grams.
Today, every tenth cordon bleu that he serves in the Bahnhof restaurant is made from plant-based ingredients. Nevertheless, Daniel Sahli has not become an advocate of vegan cuisine: “I don’t understand these do-gooders who say that everyone should eat vegan. That’s nonsense to me!” His vision is different: “I want vegans, vegetarians and meat eaters all to be able to sit together at one table, order what is right for them and be satisfied – without blaming each other.” Sahli, the mediator.
Worlds collide here and there in the Bahnhöfli. But when you enjoy crispy breading and melted cheese – regardless of whether it is of animal or vegetable origin – many a ditch is likely to close.