April / May 2024
Blog – Trends Digested – April / May 2024
Welcome to Trends Digested, our bi-monthly look at the flavours and styles making waves in the diverse and exciting world of foodservice and hospitality. As we move further into 2024, we’re examining the very latest insight from our friends at Lumina Intelligence and The Food People to give operators a tangible understanding of how to translate these hot button trends into working life.
This month, we’ve partnered with bonafide BBQ enthusiast, @ArtustBBQ who has translated the top quarterly trends into a flavoursome, customisable dish, with Cholula - the hot sauce of choice this summer - at its heart.
Read on for more inspiration.
According to Lumina Intelligence’s ‘trends-to-watch’, pub and bar operators are currently finding favour with the trend for customisation*, and offering add-ons for mains, giving customers the ability to personalise their meals. The options are endless with a variety of sauces and seasonings on offer, allowing diners to upgrade sides and add extra toppings to dishes like salads. Consumers are also looking to pair customisable meals with healthier options, with the top food-to-go trends pinpointing vegan, healthier eating, and high protein dishes. This trend reflects the growing consumer demand for meals that cater to individual tastes or dietary needs whilst allowing for a unique dining experience every time.
Look out for more from McCormick on this emerging trend in 2024 and take a moment to examine the products in our range that allow for flavour and heat customisation at www.mccormickforchefs.co.uk.
Convenience continues to be a major driver in the foodservice industry. With the food-to-go market looking to accelerate annual growth over the next few years**, operators are focusing on dishes that are easy to prepare and perfect for grab-and-go customers. Research shows that 73% of consumers are willing to pay more for higher quality**, giving operators the option to use brand loyalty to increase price points. QSR and fast casual dining restaurants are leading the charge, with QSR holding the top share for dinner occasions at 48.7%**. The demand for convenience and affordability is boosting the popularity of these channels where tasty and filling dishes offer an affordable way to eat out.
Steak dishes and kebabs have also seen a notable rise in consumer preference at dinner time. This surge ties into the trend of ‘cheap and cheerful’ dining, where consumers are looking to eat out without breaking the bank. These dishes are perfect for those looking for flavourful options, that are both convenient and customisable.
With this in mind, we challenged BBQ buff @ArtustBBQ to bring these trends to life, hitting the brief head on with his Cholula Peri-Peri chicken & and Montreal steak skewers – an easily customisable dish by swapping out and mixing up the seasonings and sauces.
He uses a range of our Schwartz Seasonings to flavour chicken and beef, before glazing with a mix of Cholula Hot Sauce and Cattlemen’s BBQ Sauce to create a perfect balance of heat and flavour to an on-trend dish. Accompanying the dish is a portion of crinkle cut chips with Schwartz Chip Seasoning and grilled corn.
On the dish, he said: “When it comes to customisable dishes, skewers are the perfect way to go! Great as a small starter or scaled up for the main event, you can get creative with seasonings and sauces to create something different every time. They are a brilliant addition to menus as they’re quick to cook, cost effective and versatile. I've shown a few examples of how Cholula Hot Sauce can be used to add different layers of flavour to your skewers offering, whether it’s for a Mexican style flavour hit, to create a beef glaze when combined with Cattlemen's BBQ sauce or by mixing a dash into sour cream for added spice!"
Check out @ArtustBBQ’s recipe and accompanying how to video here. Enjoy!
*Lumina, Trends-to-watch, December 2023
**Lumina, Food-to-go: A future focus, March 2024
^ The Food People, Food-to-go trends, 2024