Zao Zao was a blind , elderly male Veknoid Jedi Master , and an accomplished chef , who served the Jedi Order during the final years of the Galactic Republic . He did not accept missions from the Jedi High Council , but followed the will of the Force as he traveled about the galaxy . Those who ate Zao ' s cooking often found that its taste , whether good or bad , reflected the degree to which their current mental state was in harmony with the Force . In spite of his blindness , he remained a formidable and lethal adversary , wielding his unique lightsaber cane with frightening accuracy . Biography . A wandering Jedi . A Force - sensitive Veknoid , Zao was educated in the ways of the Force by the Jedi Order , attaining the rank of Jedi Master , by which time he was blind . By the time the dark side of the Force began to grow more potent , Master Zao no longer took on formal missions for the Jedi High Council . Instead , the Veknoid Jedi traveled as he believed the Force directed him , moving from one world to another as the currents of the Force flowed . At some point , Zao constructed a blue - bladed lightsaber cane , using it as a walking stick , weapon , and cooking instrument . In 30 BBY , Zao was serving as a chef to the Aqualish crime lord Gorto Zaga on Kiffex . Through his cooking , Zao attempted to teach his philosophy to those who consumed it : whether the food tasted bad or good was determined by the balance within the consumer . Those who were not in balance with the Force would find the food foul or bitter ; those with good balance would enjoy the meal . As Zaga was an immoral criminal , he found Zao ' s cooking to be unpleasant . Departing the crime lord ' s company , Zao stumbled upon Jedi Knight , Quinlan Vos , who was in search for his missing Padawan , Aayla Secura . Believing the Force had brought them together for this very purpose , Zao aided Vos and Master Tholme in fighting off Zaga ' s guards . Soon however , the planet ' s feral population of Anzati stormed the Black Hole cantina . Discovering that Secura was leading the feral Anzati , Vos and Tholme set out to free her from the thrall of the dark side of the Force ; Zao took his leave of the other Jedi and departed the world . Clone Wars . When the Clone Wars erupted a decade later between the Republic and the Confederacy of Independent Systems , Zao invoked the Right of Denial and did not take up his lightsaber in the fight ; the Veknoid believed the war was in direct violation of the will of the Force . Instead , Zao continued wandering between the stars ; the High Council so seldom heard from Zao that many believed him dead . By the last year of the war , Zao had set up a food - selling hovel on the streets of Saleucami ' s capital city . During his stay on Saleucami , Master Tholme came across the aging Veknoid ' s food stand and took a meal with his old colleague . Investigating rumors that Dark Jedi Sora Bulq was amassing a large army of cloned Morgukai warriors , Tholme asked for Zao ' s assistance . Despite Zao believing that the Order was misguided in serving a corrupt Republic , the old Master agreed to point Tholme in the hidden entrance to Bulq ' s underground cloning facilities . Great Jedi Purge . Several weeks after his encounter with Tholme , the Republic and the Jedi Order were destroyed by the machinations of the Republic ' s Supreme Chancellor , who was in fact the Dark Lord of the Sith , Darth Sidious . Despite the lingering presence of members of the Grand Army of the Republic on Saleucami and their new standing orders to execute all members of the Jedi , Zao was able to avoid detection . Dressed as a beggar , Zao ' s anonymity ensured his safety during this time . Having survived the early stages of the Great Jedi Purge , Zao eluded detection until his meeting in a refugee camp on Arkinnea with Jedi Master K ' Kruhk , a Padawan named Chase Piru and nine younglings under the Whiphid ' s protection . After briefly mentoring the younglings , Zao confided in K ' Kruhk that he sensed great danger in the camp and suggested they leave immediately . The Jedi then escaped the encampment . K ' Kruhk then stole a wagon while Zao led the younglings to gather food from the farmlands . But as they made their way into the mountains , they discovered that the militia had massacred the refugees and dumped their bodies there . They were soon spotted by the militia . K ' Kruhk tried to draw them away while Zao escorted the younglings to safety , however the militia captain Relik sent a group to kill them . While fleeing , Zao and the others encountered the native Yunu , who were also subject to the militia ' s attacks . Zao defended them all by pulling a boulder out of the ground . He told the younglings to flee , but one of them , Sidirri , pushed the boulder onto the militia in anger , killing them . The Yunu brought the Jedi to an abandoned Jedi outpost , and soon K ' Kruhk also joined them . There the Jedi were able to hide from the Empire for several years . Sidirri eventually ran away , and Zao left to find her . Powers and abilities . Zao was a powerful yet mysterious Jedi who relied on the Force to control almost all natures of his life due to his blindness . He was skilled with his lightsaber staff , despite his blindness . He also created a soup , that according to him , was completely in harmony with the Force - those who tasted it experienced different flavors depending on their own balance within the Force . Tholme and T ' ra Saa , for example , thought it was delicious , while Quinlan Vos tasted nothing , and Vilmarh Grahrk found it disgusting . In combat Zao could deflect a blaster bolt from an Arkinnea Militia soldier , and telekinetically " squeeze " a rock formation out of the ground to act as a shield . He was also a skilled telepath , as he aided Tholme and T ' ra Saa in their efforts to help Quinlan Vos remain in the light . Behind the scenes . Zao ' s name was adapted from " Tao " — the name of the oriental philosophical system . The way of Tao is very similar to Zao ' s beliefs . Zao was originally going to die in " Darkness " , but according to artist Jan Duursema , " " Zao would have been toast in Darkness , but we were asked not to kill him . " "