trendy ingredient or spice?

[mayuchico]

What is "in" spice or ingredient nowadays, such as grains of paradise or smoked paprika years ago?

[fmed]

I'm starting to see a sumac resurgence.

[monavano]

Any guesses to what the spice du jour will be on the next season of Top Chef? Two years ago with was ras al hanout, last year Jamie used vauduvan when she wasn't cooking scallops!

[madgreek]

Cardamom seems to be building steam. I don't get it. It is just ginger to me. Musty ginger.

[Nestra]

I love cardamom! If it tastes like ginger to you, we need to get you some better cardimom! :)

It is definitely something that people love or hate though.

[ElsieB]

I got some dehydrated tomato powder about a year ago, great for lots of things and it's still flavorful.

[alkapal]

elsie, i've been meaning to try that tomato powder, after reading a thread about it (?) last year. i think it's be good to add flavor & depth to a dish without having to add tomato paste. do you also use it in dressings for salad?

[Nestra]

For spices and sauces, I am hearing a lot about peri-peri hot spice from Africa as well as Chinchurri Sauce from Argentina. Also apparently Masala is trending this year.

I also hear that Persimmon is going to replace things like Pomegranate and Acai as the hot new fruit. Dragon-fruit is also on the rise.

Locally grown and seasonal ingredients and sustainable seafood will continue to be touted on menus nationwide, or so the buzz says.

[alkapal]

i read that the peri-peri spice is veeeeery hot -- like habaneros. >>>>" Peri peri is a very hot spice from South Africa, made from the African bird's eye chili. (It is rated as one of the hottest chillies in the world, on a par with the habanero pepper, so use sparingly). It was used extensively by the Portuguese settlers in Southern Africa."<<<< http://www.ingoodtastestore.com/Recip...

and i think persimmons are a little less "accessible" in flavor terms than pomegranate (which had its own "barrier to entry" as mainstream due to its odd physical qualities), but i have a brother in law who will be thrilled if persimmons get their day in the culinary sun.

acai had the "health" claims to boost it.

i hope that chimichurri is the new (now-ubiquitous) pesto.

[Karl S]

Just waiting for old-fashioned vegetable shortening to become trendy. Just you wait.

[tlegray]

Marcona almonds; at least these are my lastest and newest trend. I'm seeing them in restaurants and stores where I never noticed them before.

[Chew on That]

Totally reading about fennel pollen everywhere. I used to think saffron was in but now that the economy sucks, it's too hard to afford.

[chefschickie]

Farro, been seeing it more & more lately....

[Olallieberry]

Yes, and couscous and quinoa. Alternative grains in general, although that might have more to do with the price of wheat and corn than any 'trendy' movement.

Been seeing gyoza everywhere. In NYC the dumpling craze has been happening for a few years but it seems like now they are trying to extend it by using the Japanese name.

Crepes.

[paulj]

Couscous is a pasta, made from wheat. Quinoa is quite a bit more expensive than wheat, as much as $8/lb - though TJ has it for less.

[alkapal]

pomegranate

[RGC1982]

Pomegranate is SOOO last year :)

[Ruth Lafler]

LOL. It seems to have been replaced by acai and/or goji. At least I know what a pomegranate is!

Add also: green tea. All you have to do is identify something as being "high in anti-oxidents" and voila, instant trend.

[alkapal]

you're right, now the hoi polloi have pom products. so the trendy avant-garde has indeed moved on. now acai is the new darling of the food and health cognoscenti. but not for long..... item X is on the way, and trendsetters are foraging for it now. but i can't reveal who, what, when, or where! ( or "why" -- except it will also have anti-oxidant, anti-aging, anti-cancer or anti-antimatter properties.)

[heWho]

salt, including Hawaiian sea salt, viking smoked sea salt, fleur de sel, etc have been popular for a while now.

[Karl S]

It's spice blends from Africa, the Middle East and Latin America that seem most likely to feature as trendy. I see za'atar popping up here and there, for example.

The general trend in the US appears to favor bold spicing - it makes up for the blandness of the meat (especially poultry favored by so many diners) and also registers on palates coarsened by prolonged exposure to processed foods. It also masks mediocre cuts of meat and mediocre cooking thereof.

It takes a LOT more skill to season things very subtly, and anytime I see the promotion of bold spicing for its own sake, I wonder if it's being used as a crutch to mask mediocre materials and/or preparation.

[Avalondaughter]

Watch some of the current shows on the Food Network and you'll see clear evidence of that. Think of Rachael Ray's love of smoked paprika, grill seasoning and hot sauce, or Sandra Lee and her seasoning packets, bottled dressings, and bottled juices (sometimes all used in teh same dish).

[RGC1982]

I was thinking smoked paprika BECAUSE of Rachael Ray, who goes on and on about it. Actually, smoked paprika is authentic Spanish paprika and it is not new at all. It is just different from the bland red powder we used to find in the supermarket.

I vote for seasoning blends. Pensey's now has so many that they seem to blur into the same thing. Italian, Tuscan, Sicilian, lots of BBQ seasonings. Victoria's does too. I think the blends are designed for people who have little experience using the individual spices, and they appear to eliminate the guesswork for a lot of cooks. I can't otherwise understand the appeal.

However, it can backfire. For example, oregano is a somewhat strong spice, and not all Italian sauces have oregano in them. Think pizza versus carbonara. Yet, many "Italian" blends have basil, oregano and garlic powder. You could easily ruin a great dish by using the wrong blend.

[Karl S]

While smoked paprika is an old product, it's relatively new to regular US usage and the way it tends to be used in the US is not subtle, and contributes to the general trend I described earlier.

Americans like BIG! BOLD! FLAVORS! It's not necessarily a sign of a broadened palate but of a coarsened one.

[The Professor]

<<Americans like BIG! BOLD! FLAVORS! It's not necessarily a sign of a broadened palate but of a coarsened one.>>

Boy, is that ever the truth. It seems that everything our "culture" latches onto gets supersized and intensified with the "more must be better" attitude. In almost every instance, I find the "original" or authentic version of most things far superior to the American makeovers. One of the main reasons I've gotten into making as many things home maid as possible.

[jacquelyncoffey]

I agree, I have ruined a couple of dishes by using "Italian Seasoning" that had way too much oregano for my taste. The blend that I used to buy was much more balanced. I now just add what I know that I like, in my proportions.

[beachmouse]

If you don't do high volume cooking or use some spices very infrequently, the spice mixes are nice because you'll finish the bottle or bag before it gets so old that it starts to lose flavor.

[BobB]

Smoked paprika is really two levels removed from the old-style bland red powder. First came our introduction to good Hungarian paprika, which is not smoked but has a distinctive flavor and comes in both mild and hot versions. You can find Szeged brand (at least the mild variety) in most supermarkets today, while you still generally need to go to a specialty store for smoked paprika.

[queencru]

In restaurants it seems like everything either has something to do with chipotle or a balsamic glaze. Can't say I will be sad to see either of them go. Miso also seems to be gaining in popularity.

[Ruth Lafler]

You're right about miso, and I won't be sorry to see it go, although I know I'm in the minority in thinking that miso soup tastes like salty dishwater. As another poster said, specialty salts, especially on sweet dishes are very trendy, as are things like vanilla and mango on otherwise savory dishes (I won't be sorry to see mango go, either). Pork belly has become insanely trendy.

In the SF Bay area, artisan/housemade charcuterie/salumi are very, very trendy. Now that's a trend I hope sticks around, along with cheese plates, which seem to be de rigeur these days.

[mateo21]

Really? I don't think I would ever eat house cured salami... Plus, I've never had house cured meats that really stack up to what a good salumi/salami master can do.

[Vexorg]

Chipotle seems to be everywhere you look these days, and seems to be the most popular way to ruin a perfectly good dish. Might as well dump in a bottle of liquid smoke and some cayenne pepper and call it good.

[alkapal]

vexorg, i agree completely that chipotle ruins almost everything. the only exception is one tiny bit of the chipotle pepper in my chili. one tiny bit.

[BobB]

Old hat around here - chipotle was trendy 20 years ago, now it's about as exotic as ketchup. And I put a LOT in my chili, but I temper it with fresh jalapeños and home-grown cayenne.

[laliz]

ditto with the chipotle.
Enough already

[nicholeati]

I keep seeing a lot of recipes calling for fennel pollen and botarga nowadays... I've really been enjoying using fennel pollen with pork and in desserts. It adds such a nice delicate flavor but definitely holds its own.

[mayuchico]

wow, fennel pollen seems really interesting. I will check it out. Thank you!