by Buck Reed
Food Trends – 2018 Update
So, here we find ourselves in May 2018. A full third of the year gone. Let’s take a moment to see how we are doing so far. Food enthusiasts made several predictions as to how we would be cooking today, what new ingredients we would be embracing and how we would be using them. So, let’s take a moment to see how we are doing.
One of the big trends of last year was avocados and, as an ingredient it has carried over into this year as well. I have one online friend who is looking into using them as a healthy fat in his homemade sausage. I do not want to discourage him, and I hope he finds his key to fame and fortune with this or any other ideas he may come up with. Joining the avocado this year was supposed to be the jackfruit as well as an expansion of coconut products. I have yet to see a jackfruit in the stores, but coconut products are trendy and are gluten free and could be used as both sugar and flour in baked goods.
One service that is drifting up is the prepackaged meal kits. Everything for your recipe is delivered to your front door. All the ingredients are premeasured and ready to be mixed and cooked by you. Many are marketed as getting you and your family back together and cooking together. There are more than a few companies offering this service and many want you to enter into a subscription service.
Another popular idea was to get you out of the grocery stores and get you into growing your own food. With the promise of fresher and more nutritious food at a better price, people are going out of their way to make growing their own food a reality. Be prepared for the condescending stories of these wannabe farmers as they tell you how hard they worked to save $10 on those tomatoes on their salad.
Along with the gardening trend is the buy local movement that everyone is embracing. Many restaurants and stores are advertising local produce. It feeds into the idea that local ingredients are fresher and since they didn’t travel by teamster from far away lands, they have a lower impact on the environment.
One product hitting the shelves soon is geared toward the consumer who is not concerned about their health or general wellbeing. Cookie butter is now found in many specialty stores and is bound to bring some joy to your culinary life. If it catches on half as well as I think, it will probably lead to Senate hearings, which seems to be another trend in 2018. Hopefully 2019 will be more palatable.
