Every year, new food trends emerge, and we see new food & drink options at supermarkets and restaurants. Some become a permanent fixture in the culinary world while others fizzle and fade away. You might be wondering what’s next to grace your table or fridge in the coming months.
Here are the top 10 emerging food and drink trends:
1. Regular Milk is Out, Alternatives are In
Drinking regular milk is almost a fad at this point. New alternatives are in, including oat, coconut, hemp, and rice milk. Soy and almond milk continue to be strong alternatives as well. I personally am old school and continue to drink regular milk. I sometimes drink coconut milk, but I am super picky about it. If someone can teach me how to order a special coffee with special milk, I would forever be grateful.
2. Wellness Menus
We have seen more and more restaurants get on the trend of gluten-free, meatless, and ketogenic options to accommodate guest wishes. Menus continue to get more diverse with menus catering to the dairy-free, vegan, low-carb, and keto dieters with meals that go beyond basic salads.
3. Boozy Kombucha
Those that take wellness seriously, but love a good cocktail should take notice of boozier, and hard versions of kombucha. The probiotic-based beverage aims to give you a buzz while helping you stay healthy which might mean the original fad of kombucha finally gets more recognition. I tried regular kombucha and wasn’t a fan, but the boozy kind wasn’t so bad.
4. Fusion Doesn’t Just Go with Asian
Several years ago, Korean tacos basically broke the internet. From there, it seemed that chefs really took on the challenge to creatively blend different cuisines into new combinations. We continue to see unique combinations that will create new niche tasting experiences. My all-time favorite continues to be French Vietnamese.
5. Cauliflower Rice and Sweet Potato Spaghetti
You want to feel like you are having rice or spaghetti, but without the calories? You can now find rice made of cauliflower and spaghetti made out of sweet potatoes! I love both of these options!
6. Do you love gnocchi? How about kale or chocolate gnocchi?
These are my favorites! And they both taste amazing. I make the chocolate gnocchi with a delicious white chocolate sauce! It’s insanity. Not sure how healthy these end up being, but they taste pretty good!
7. Plant-Based Meat Blend Combos
Veganism has grown popular over the years, although not everyone that wants meatless options wants to give up meat completely. Since many choose to have more meatless meals for health reasons, a new hybrid has been born that takes meat and mixes it with about ¼ fresh mushrooms to make a blend which is cheaper and healthier, not to mention delicious.
8. CBD CBD CBD
Cannabidiol (CBD) is not only used as oil anymore! It is in everything, everything including water, food, alcoholic drinks, snacks, etc. CBD has created a whole new line of food and drinks. They don’t seem to be going away soon either.
9. Ube is the new acai
Tired of acai? Try ube, a purple yam that has been a staple in Filipino dishes. You’re about to see it pop up in everything, even ice cream. My favorites are ube potato chips and ice cream from Trader Joe’s.
10. Souffle Pancakes and any other Dessert Popular on Instagram
Have you seen those super puffy fluffy Japanese pancakes on Instagram? Well, those are in, and maybe taking the place of cronuts!
These 2020 food & drink trends blending with the ones from last year give us plenty to chew over. Which ones are you most excited to try?
