The food trends of 2018…. allegedly

With the start of a new year one thing is always sure – there will be a host of experts revealing what the ‘big’ thing of 2018 will be in their industry. From interior design to fashion (cowboy boots apparently), these lists – although sometimes a bit overdone – can prove useful for a bit of inspiration! After all, had someone told you 10 years ago that you’d be eating avocado smashed on everything, you’d probably have thought them crazy.

It’s easy to get stuck in a rut with food habits, sticking to the same four or five meals you know everyone likes, and which can be rustled up relatively quickly. Should I be embarrassed I’ve eaten exactly the same thing for breakfast every day this year? Perhaps… (although at least it’s porridge), but I hadn’t even really registered it was the case until I started writing!

So, some of these trends might be a bit ‘out there’, but you never know – it might just inspire you to try something new. Here at Hunters, we love finding new ingredients and ideas, so if there’s something you spot which we might not have in store, we’ll happily track it down for you.

2018….what do you have in store for us?

1.      Plant-based food – veganism continues to grow in popularity, and that means more innovation in the sector – leading to more choice! Gone are the days of the only dairy free alternative being a carton of soya milk. And with some of the Hunters team being dairy intolerant, we do like to find the best products out there to give everyone a choice. Even for those who aren’t going vegan, there’s definitely more of a trend towards flexitarianism – eating less meat – and looking at ways to add protein to the diet without it. We’re confident this will be a BIG trend for the year.

2.      Gut healthy foods – we’ve talked before about how popular kimchi, sauerkraut and other pickled vegetables are, and how healthy – along with how tasty they are! There is predicted to be an increase in people looking after the health of their digestive system by eating these types of foods, along with things like apple cider vinegar, miso and kefir. Onions and garlic also have good healthy-gut credentials!

3.      The next big cuisine will be…. - There seems to be some disagreement on whether this will be Middle Eastern and African flavours (like Harissa and za’atar), Indian street food, Japanese or Hawaiian (poke bowl anyone?). We think they all sound great, so let’s not worry about picking just one!

4.      Eating more or less often – again there seems to be some difference of opinion. Some people think we’ll all be eating four meals instead of three (maybe a snack before bedtime, or a light extra meal before exercise – although I’m not convinced people haven’t been doing those for decades, without labelling it). Others think fasting will increase in popularity. Do what works for you!

5.      Root to Stem and Nose to Tail – as the name suggests, this is eating everything from a plant or animal, in order to minimise food waste, which can only be a good thing.

6.      Eating local – this has always been important to us, and to many of our customers – but eating regional produce, grown, produced or reared locally, will hopefully continue to increase in importance. Seventy per cent of the items we sell (which, if you’ve been in the store, you’ll know is a lot), are produced in the Yorkshire region.

7.      No alcoholic drinks – whether you’re doing Dry January, or you just fancy cutting down on your alcohol consumption for whatever reason, non-alcoholic drinks are getting trendy. Long gone are the days of having a choice of lemonade or orange squash on a night out. Now there’s hangover free wine and even an alcohol-free spirit – Seedlip. Sip it with tonic, and you’ll forget you’re not drinking – although the clear head the following morning will remind you!

Our favourite kitchen gadgets…in the back of the cupboard

A recent story we spotted caught our eye. Apparently us Brits have a whopping £11 billion (yes, billion, that’s not a typo) worth of kitchen equipment that we never actually use.

A company called HelloFresh conducted the research which showed we each have approximately £415 worth of gear and gadgets and utensils in our kitchens which never, ever see the light of day. Probably after a disastrous or far too time consuming first outing, like our spiraliser.

For every one person who never uses their bamboo steamer, of course there’ll be another who uses it every other day. But as a rule, it is very easy to get caught in the moment with these things, and see yourself as a wannabe Nigella Lawson or James Martin, when in fact you’re more of a 20-minute supper-on-the-table kind of person.

Some of the gadgets which are buried deep in our kitchen cupboards include sushi mats, sous vides, tagines, pasta makers, potato ricers, pestle and mortars, tapas or souffle dishes, waffle makers and even professional chef knives (not sure why you wouldn’t use those – everyone needs a good set of knives!)

Of course, bread makers and ice cream makers also made the list – and there must be quite a few homes which have them taking up worktop space and gathering dust. It sometimes seems a bit of an effort knocking up your own granary, when you can buy so many wonderful, freshly made local loaves at reasonable prices.

Expensive barbecues and outdoor grills also got a mention fairly high up the list – so it’s not only our kitchens which are affected, our gardens are getting in on the act too!

Almost 60 per cent of those surveyed said they had no idea how to use the equipment – which seems odd if it’s just a tapas dish as that’s not exactly difficult. But we can understand if it’s more about not having the confidence to knock up a batch of fresh pasta, or the time to roll your own sushi.

But not only are we collecting gadgets and then having buyer’s remorse, we’re also stocking up on random foods when we go somewhere on holiday. More than half of the people surveyed said they had brought items home from a trip with the intention of cooking recipes they’d tried there – but many ended up throwing the likes of herbs, spices and cured meats in the bin. Those who did try it out said it was either a ‘disaster’ or nothing like the dish they’d had on holiday. We’ve all been there.

But have no fear. Hunters are here to help. Got a kitchen gadget that’s filling you with fear? Hanging on to a random ingredient you’re not sure what to do with? Trying to recreate a holiday recipe that just isn’t working? We all love our food here at Hunters, and if we can help by recommending ingredients, alternatives, help or advice, we’re happy to do so. And if you want to just discuss pointless kitchen gadgets we’re also happy to oblige. Now, where’s those escargot forks?

We heart coffee

We love a good cuppa here at Hunters – whether it’s a cup of refreshing English tea or a pick-me-up coffee, there’s nothing quite like a warming drink to get you feeling like all is ok in the world.

And apparently we’re not alone. We’re a nation addicted to caffeine!

Perhaps more surprisingly though, earlier this year a poll showed that 61 percent of us prefer drinking coffee to tea – does the Queen know??

New research has now shown Brit consume 1,460 cups of coffee a year on average – which sounds a lot, but is only really 4 cups a day. Although when you think that’s 93,440 cups in an adult lifetime, it does sound a little more of an addiction!

The research, from syrup makers Monin, shows that the country’s favourite coffee is by far the Latte, with 41 per cent choosing that, followed by a cappuccino at 38 per cent. In fact, the top 10 went:
1. Latte
2. Cappuccino
3. Americano
4. Mocha
5. Espresso
6. Flat White
7. Iced Coffee
8. Frappe
9. Ground
10. Double Espresso

We spend an average of £13 a week in coffee shops (2.3bn coffees a year are bought and consumed outside of home). That equates to more than £50 a month, and you could buy yourself an awful lot of quality coffee, milk and even some fancy flavourings (if they float your boat) with that!

More than half of us now own our own coffee machine at home, and apparently we’re getting more adventurous with the different styles and flavours of coffee we’re willing to try. Still – come to my house and order a skinny, mocha, frappe, caramel, no foam cappuccino with an extra shot, and I think I might struggle.

When it comes to added extras, 18 per cent of us like caramel syrup in our coffee, while 14 per cent opt for vanilla and 10 per cent hazelnut. 

In store, we stock lots of flavoured coffees,  some of the most popular being Hazelnut and Irish Cream. We’re partial to a bit of Grumpy Mule and Taylors of Harrogate  – with a variety of strengths and origins available, you can even buy by weight here at Hunters – like a traditional sweet shop!

So, next time you’re after a caffeine boost – drop by and we’ll hook you up with your perfect blend!

Are Britain’s Forgotten Foods to be consigned to history books?

When was the last time you enjoyed liver and bacon or a nice Lancashire hot pot?

According to new research, it was probably quite some time ago as these dishes, along with things like kedgeree and faggots, are the British meals which could soon be consigned to the history books.

Some might say it’s about time – devilled kidneys aren’t everyone’s cup of tea – but in some ways it’s always a shame when traditions and things we grew up with (some of us of a certain age anyway!) go out of fashion – perhaps for good.

The research, conducted by Deliveroo, revealed that a pretty convincing 91 per cent of the nation now say they prefer “world food” to traditional British meals. Three quarters said they felt the days of us sitting down to a dinner of meat and two veg are pretty much over – I’m not sure that’s strictly true, as most families I know still enjoy a good Sunday roast. Although maybe not if the meat on offer was faggots.

In fact a lot of Brits had never even tried some of the more traditional dishes. And whereas I can understand how 70 per cent have never tasted Devilled Kidneys I was surprised one in three had never sampled a steak and kidney pudding. They don’t know what they’re missing! Even more surprisingly 20 per cent of Brits have never eaten Shepherd’s Pie, and one in four have never had fish pie!

In fact, the Deliveroo list of the top 15 British foods to be consigned to history were:
1. Devilled kidneys (70 per cent have never tried it)
2. Kedgeree (65 per cent)
3. Potted shrimps (59 per cent)
4. Suet pudding (55 per cent)
5. Liver and bacon (54 per cent)
6. Faggots (53 per cent)
7. Steak and kidney pudding (36 per cent)
8. Lancashire hot pot (34 per cent)
9. Bubble and Squeak (34 per cent)
10. Gammon and pineapple (29 per cent)
11. Fish pie (24 per cent)
12. Toad in the Hole (23 per cent)
13. Ham, egg and chips (21 per cent)
14. Mince and potatoes (19 per cent)
15. Shepherd’s Pie (15 per cent)

Of course it’s all down to individual preference, but surely there’s not much controversial in toad in the hole or ham, egg and chips?

So, if we’re all clearly not eating those things, what are we eating? According to the poll, the nation’s favourite food is Italian, followed by Chinese, Indian and Mexican. The favourite dishes were pizza, curries, spaghetti bolognaise and Asian inspired stir fries. All of which we’re a bit partial to as well, so perhaps you win some and you lose some!

Whatever kinds of food you’re in to, we’ll definitely have something to tickle your tastebuds in store. Except maybe faggots….