Having spent most of last year practicing social distancing and ordering take-out, many people have been eager for the full dine-in experience again. With the pandemic curbing most avenues of entertainment, we have also seen people turning to food as a source of comfort. These aspects have shaped multiple food trends in 2023. Let’s quickly review what popular food trends have taken over in 2022.
1. Exciting Vegan Desserts Take Center Stage
With more and more people being drawn to the vegan lifestyle, we have seen several vegan desserts enter mainstream food culture in 2021. Most prominently, the raindrop cake gained a lot of attention after its debut at a food fair in New York. Made using black sugar, soy flour (or kinako), and spring water, this cake is one of a kind and offers a novel dessert experience to food lovers. The dessert resembles a raindrop and first originated in Japan. It has a nutty flavor that comes from the soy flour and syrup used and feels airy and cool in the mouth, as opposed to being rich and sweet. As the name suggests, this one will dissolve in your mouth like a raindrop. Give it a try!
2. Cooking for Mental and Physical Health
2020 was a stressful year for everyone. With people stuck at home and potentially unemployed, cooking has proven to be therapeutic for a large number of people. It may have started with banana bread, but it has taken a life of its own ever since.
The pandemic has also shown us how our unhealthy lifestyle choices compromise immunity and make us more vulnerable to infections and illnesses. Skipping meals, eating processed foods, and remaining ignorant to the nutritional value of the food we consume has had a significant impact on health. People are cognizant of these aspects and are focusing on organic and nutritional food choices that allow them to maintain a balanced diet.
Besides this, people that are looking to tap into the therapeutic effects of cooking are also more open to trying out new recipes. They are searching for superfoods and ingredients that help with depression and anxiety and improve mental health.
3. Food Experiments Are Welcome
Comfort food will always occupy a special place in our lives. However, food enthusiasts are also open to trying out new items that can tantalize their tastebuds and offer a glimpse of something wonderful. Speaking of which, some of the most popular new foods that have come to the fore this year include Wowfulls and Eggloos, rainbow bagels, pizza on pizza, and more. Wowfulls and Eggloos are egg waffles with a cone-like shape that are filled with cookies, sauces, ice cream, fruit, and other items. These authentic Hong Kong waffles are all the rage now for their unique flavors.
Rainbow bagels aren’t exactly new. They have been around for more than 20 years. Thanks to Instagram, they have become highly popular in food circles recently. This colorful treat is infused with a number of flavors such as funfetti, cookies and cream, and more. As far as appearances go, this one definitely doesn’t deceive.
Pizza on pizza is perfect for cheese lovers who can’t get enough of their favorite comfort food. It is basically 3 or 4 mini pizza slices placed on top of your traditional slice to offer a richer flavor.
4. Flexitarian Eating is Becoming Common
While vegan and vegetarianism have become popular lifestyle choices, not everyone is cut out for them. That’s where flexitarian eating comes in. The idea is fairly simple. Instead of eating meat on a daily basis, you can limit yourself to having it as a weekend-only treat. A majority of your meals consist of plant-based foods, but you can still indulge your meat cravings once in a while.
Such diets help you make more responsible food choices. They can also allow you to minimize or avoid the health concerns associated with eating red meat. Following this diet can help you lose weight and lower the risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. It is also very easy to follow and helps you save money.
5. Increased Focus on Eco-Friendly Packaging and Repurposing Food Scraps
Flexitarian eating is not the only food trend of 2022 that focuses on helping save the planet. People are also being driven to purchase foods that minimize the production of waste in any manner possible.
For starters, people now prefer to purchase foods that don’t have a lot of fancy packaging. This is a pretty fundamental shift, given how the packaging was always a core part of food products. It’s still there, but without the usual bells and whistles that eventually end up in the garbage. Doing away with packaging that involves the use of plastic has become very important for consumers too.
Besides this, people are learning how to repurpose food they may have discarded in the past. This mostly includes scraps such as bones, potato peels, apple peels, melon rinds, broccoli stems, carrot tops, and more. You can roast scraps like apple and potato peels. Citrus peels are also great for infusing more flavor into an old recipe and creating something new. Besides this, you can convert melon rinds into pickles. You can also use bones from meat to make stock.
6. Fusion Cuisine on the Rise
As far as popular food trends for 2021 go, fusion cuisine has proven to be another winner. There’s plenty of innovation and creativity in fusion dining lately, and food lovers can enjoy Mexican-Korean cuisine, Chinese-Peruvian cuisine, Japanese-Peruvian cuisine, and Indian-British cuisine. These cuisines introduce you to a whole new world of flavors and textures that will leave food enthusiasts wanting more!
Wrapping It Up
We have seen numerous popular food trends in 2022 that are shaping the way we eat and experiment with food. From therapeutic cooking and trying out new food items to making more eco-friendly food choices, there are plenty of exciting things happening in the food world that will pique your interest.
Interested in learning more about popular food trends? Reach out to Victor Jung today!
