Trendologist Shares 10 Flavors to Watch

Fermented honey, next-level produce, and kheer are 10 flavors to watch, said Mike Kostyo, resident trendologist and senior managing editor at Datassential, during the Specialty Food Live! session Foodservice Updates: The Mega Trends, Wednesday.

“These are really early-stage flavors," he said. "These are not necessarily the things we’re going to see at McDonalds in the next year, but in three or four years’ time, you can say ‘yes, I heard it here first,’” he said. They include, in no particular order:

Fermented honey. “Honey is now consumers' number one most favorite sweetener and consumers also love fermented products and anything that speaks to gut health, so this is a great combination of the two,” Kostyo said. “We see this in foodservice and will soon maybe see it in retail. Butcher and Bee in Charleston offers a whipped feta appetizer with a drizzle of fermented honey over the top with just a little bit of black black pepper and they serve it with pita chips.”

Next-Level Produce. “You’ve probably been seeing some of these options already. There is the Del Monte Pinkglow Pineapple (pictured above) which is specifically bred to have an eye-catching pink color, and the grapes that taste like cotton candy," he said. "Just the drive for social media and plant-based options has created this market for next-level produce offerings. One you may have seen come up a lot on social media is the Blue Java banana which has a striking blue color and tastes like vanilla ice cream.”

Kheer. “This is basically an Indian rice pudding often made with spices like cardamom and nuts like cashews," said Kostyo. "Kheer is up 10 percent on menus and Indian flavors overall are increasing on U.S. menus. We saw it at Rooh in Palo Alto, California, which serves California wild rice kheer with dates and cashews.”

Carob. “In the '80s and '90s this was often on trends lists and it was to be a healthier option to replace chocolate, but now we’re starting to see it come back into its own ago because it has its own qualities and flavors and those in foodservice and retail are rediscovering it," he said. "At Byblos in Miami they do lamb ribs with dukkah, buttermilk sauce, carob molasses, and red chili schug.”

Next-Level Curry. “Consumers are really savvy about curry," Kostyo noted. "They want to know, 'is it a Thai curry or is it an Indian curry and if so, from what region.' So you almost can’t get away with just putting the word curry on the menu, you need to drill down." He offered as example packaged goods such as Saffron Road Thai Red Curry Simmer Sauce, Gardein Skillet Meals Porkless Thai Curry, and Something South African Cape Malay Curry.

Sudachi Citrus. “If you’ve seen yuzu on menus, this is a type of option to take it to the next level," said Kostyo. "It’s a Japanese citrus fruit. It does have a pronounced acidic taste but it has floral notes as well so it makes for a great finishing option for a dish.” Drunken Dragon in Miami serves brussel sprouts with sweet soy sauce, sudachi, and pork floss.

Honeysuckle. “We’ve been seeing floral flavors overall growing on menus, particulary in cocktails," Kostyo said. Products such as Martine Honeysuckle Liqueur, for instance, can be used to make drinks that usually contain elderflower liqueur, he added.

Carne Guisada. “It’s up 22 percent on menus and it actually means meat stew and usually contains beef but we see a number of operators including other protein options like lamb or chicken," he said. "This is great for winter menus and it’s really comforting. Bar AMA in LA offers  do-it-yourself carne guisada tacos."

Nigella seeds. “We've seen interest in any seeds that add texture. They have a great oniony flavor and we see them on menus like Dusek’s in Chicago where they braise it in asparagus juices and add a guajillo-braised oxtail," he said.

Chickory Root “This is up 38 percent on menus because of coffee. So we’ve seen it grow in that application and now in desserts and other non alcoholic drinks and not just coffee. Olipop actually includes Chickory Root in their soda and they say it helps with digestion," he said.

Related: Datassential Maps Innovations in Culinary Trends; Pandemic Trends Carry Into 2021.

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