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January FOOD TREND
Food trends
for 2017
Along with fashion styles, restaurant and
food trends also change over the seasons.
What can we expect on the gastronomy
scene in 2017? Here is what three of Riga’s
best chefs have to say on the matter.
Text by ILZE VĪTOLA
Publicity photos
Vegetable products
Due to increasing concern about the darker aspects of the meat
packing industry and a growing emphasis on healthier lifestyles,
vegetables are gaining a more prominent place on lunch and
dinner tables. If previously you’d find a large hunk of meat on
your plate and a small portion of vegetables to accompany it,
then nowadays the proportions are being reversed.
However, burgers, hot dogs and kebabs are in no danger
of becoming obsolete, as their main ingredient – meat – is
being substituted by no less tasty alternatives, such as quinoa
patties, tofu sausages and falafel. The resurgence of vegetables
can also be seen in the appearance of new food products,
such as yoghurts in beet, carrot, sweet potato and other
vegetable flavours.
The demand for organically grown products, as well as wild
berries and mushrooms, will continue to increase. Kale will
remain popular as a superfood, as will black or fermented garlic,
which has been introduced to the West through Asian cuisine.
One new arrival to restaurant kitchens is oyster leaf – a hardy
northern plant with leaves that taste like oysters.
Chef’s menu and homemade products
Restaurant outings are becoming less formal and kids no longer
have to be left with their grandparents for the evening, but can
embark on gastronomic adventures together with their parents.
Brunches will be as popular as ever, while the demand for
chef’s menus will increase. We will also see more delivery-only
restaurants being created. Last year, for example, chef David
Chang – the recipient of two Michelin stars – launched this type
of virtual restaurant in New York City. Unmanned drones will also
be used more often for meal deliveries in some places.
OUR EXPERTS
Raimonds Zommers,
chef at Entresol
Ēriks Dreibants,
chef at Restorāns 3
Kaspars Jansons,
chef at MUUSU
Polynesian cuisine will come to the fore in 2017. Instead of
the usual Greek salad, you might choose to order a traditional
Hawaiian salad with fish marinated in lime juice. Refugees from the
Middle East and elsewhere, for their part, will provide exotic taste
contributions, combining their national gastronomic traditions with
European dishes to create new fusion recipes. Nevertheless, French
and Italian dishes will still be in high demand.
More diners will ask for gluten- and lactose-free dishes, while
giving preference to local and seasonal products, which will be
featured in separate menus. Restaurants will also make more
foods that they have previously sourced elsewhere as ready-made
products – such as jam and bread – in their own kitchens.
DIY
More people will host fine dining evenings in their own homes and
will go out to restaurants not only on special family occasions,
blurring the strict distinction between restaurant and homemade
meals. Dishes prepared at home will become visually more intricate
and look very similar to restaurant meals, with an increased
emphasis on their aesthetic appearance for the benefit of both
invited dinner guests and Instagram followers.
Looking from the health aspect, vegetables such as zucchini will
be used in place of flour to make spaghetti noodles and other foods.
Similarly to the case in restaurants, more people will make their own
jams and marinated foods in their home kitchens.
The latest technologies will continue to make their way into
private residences in the form of slow-cookers, multifunctional
kettles, remote-controlled ovens and other gadgets to make nonprofessional
home cooking even more convenient. Nevertheless,
the main kitchen tools – sharp knives, cast iron kettles and reliable
baking ovens – will not lose their value. BO
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