As we enter into the new year, a few topics are at the top of our minds. A new year comes with resolutions and new opportunities, and a list of new food trends.
We spoke to Paul Thinus Prinsloo who is Chef de Partie at The Restaurant at Waterkloof in Cape Town - and who is also last year’s S.Pellegrino Young Chef Africa and Middle East - about what to look out when it comes to food.
Cannabis is cooking
As you’ll have noticed by now, everyone is going on about CBD products these days and it won’t be long before it becomes a full-on food trend. As many countries have now started legalising marijuana in small quantities, CBD products will start making their way into the restaurant industry soon.
Sustainability
Global warming has become a massive thing and many people are trying to help with awareness. A lot of chefs have taken spreading that awareness to their food and the plate by going green, using sustainable products and creating less waste by reusing and recycling.
Health is wealth
Healthy, green and plant based: the food we are eating this year. PICTURE: Pexels
More and more restaurants have started adding carb-free or gluten-free or lactose-free or plant-based options to their menus, and some even have nutritional charts so people can see what their intake will be. It’s a food trend that’s growing and will make its mark in 2020.
Catering for dietaries
A lot of people these days have dietaries (restricted diets) that need to be taken into account when it comes to designing a menu or catering for them. Food producers are trying to make it less difficult for the industry by going organic, using less of certain items or completely removing certain things to accommodate those needs.
Plant-based menus
A lot of research has been put in behind plant-based menus, which makes being vegetarian or vegan much easier.
Adding to what Prinsloo has said, there are other food trends we should look forward to this year:
Ice cubes in cereal
More people are going to put ice cubes in their cereal, Gene Simmons being one of the most famous to do so. PICTURE: Pexels
This surfaced on Twitter eight-years-ago, and has resurfaced this year. Judging from social media platforms posts and responses, many people are or will be doing it. People who used to hide this act are now coming forward and announcing to the world that putting ice cubes in their cereal is what they do. They do this because they want the milk in their cereal to be cold.
Biodynamic wine
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Biodynamic wine will be on the rise this year. According to Insider, a biodynamic wine is one where the grapes are grown according to the phases of the moon. They contend that people will be willing to spend more money on a glass if they think it is more beneficial or unusual, or makes them come over to others as different and interesting.
Blue foods
Pantone's Classic Blue, which is the colour of the year for 2020, will see a burst of blue in food and drinks. PICTURE: Pexels
According to Kim Severson of The New York Times, blue will be the colour of the year. She said the hue started catching the eye of tastemakers a few years ago, but this year blue and its moody sibling, indigo, are expected to colour more food.
“Butterfly pea powder tea (the new matcha!) is showing up in moon milk, a sleep remedy that is the latest adaptation of ayurvedic tradition. Ube, a purple yam, is the new “It” root vegetable; orach, also called mountain spinach, could be the new kale. Pop culture seems to be driving this one.