2016's biggest food and drink trends
Just can't get enough
From sushi burgers to cauliflower with everything, the world latched onto some pretty interesting eating habits in 2016. But what have been the biggest trends? We round up some of the foods we couldn't get enough of.
Freakshakes
Heart attack in a jar they may be, but there’s nothing quite like a freakshake for a sugar fix. Layers of ice cream and ridiculously indulgent toppings make up these odd-looking concoctions, which have become somewhat of a global phenomenon this year. No surprise when they look this good, is it?
Rainbow food
Nutritionists claim we should have a number of different colors on our plate in order to add variety to our diet, so perhaps that's why we've become obsessed with rainbow-colored foods. From bagels to cupcakes, pretty much anything has been dipped and dyed this year, and we can't help but really love it.
Clean-eating
'Clean' eating has been on the rise of late and plant-based, raw-food restaurants are popping up all over the place in response to the trend. Cheese made from cashew nuts, courgette pizza bases and no-bake cakes are fast becoming the norm.
Spiralized veggies
Spiralized veggies are quite possibly the biggest healthy food craze of the year. From carrots to zucchini, anything we could spiralize and turn into spaghetti, we did (even if it did turn out to be much soggier than we were hoping).
Flavored popcorn
From madras curry to gin & tonic, popcorn has been popping out in all kinds of different flavors this year. Cottoning onto the fact popcorn can have less calories than potato chips, we all jumped at the chance to indulge in our favorite cinema snack under the illusion it's 'healthier' than we once thought.
Sushi reinterpreted
Everybody loves sushi. So much so, that sushi has become reinterpreted into pretty much anything this year. We've seen sushi burritos, sushi burgers, sushi cakes and so, so much more.
Donut walls
Wedding trends are a whole other beast, and the latest involves hanging rows of donuts on a wall, because flowers and wedding cakes are so last century. At least they make helping to clear up at the end of the party a lot more appealing.
Rolled ice cream
As the name might suggest, this is basically sheets of ice cream rolled up into dainty-looking swirls. Hailing from Thailand, it’s made by putting liquid ice cream on a cold metal plate so it instantly freezes. Food stall Snobby Whale brought the trend to London after discovering it on their travels, while over in Vegas a parlor dedicated to the stuff is set to open too. Prepare yourselves.
Cronuts
This croissant-donut pastry was invented by chef Dominique Ansel in New York City earlier this year and the world has gone nuts for it. The donut-shaped croissant is filled with flavored cream and then fried in oil. We didn't say it was going to be healthy...
Frosé
This summer, frozen rosé, or Frosé, became the world's coolest drink, allowing adults to indulge in their childhood memories of slushies at the same time as getting an alcoholic kick.
Ice cream sandwiches
Meanwhile, adults and children alike were gorging on these beautiful inventions. The ice cream sandwich became a street food sensation this summer, and you can totally see why. A scoop of your favorite flavour sandwiched between two cookies? Yes please.
Avocado everything
It's just not going anywhere. On toast, in salads, with eggs, you name it. Avocado is the gift that just keeps on giving.
Sweet potato toast
Sweet potato might be so 2015, but sweet potato toast was the latest fad to hit the foodie world in 2016. It probably doesn't also surprise you that the most popular topping was, of course, the much-beloved avocado.
Asian comfort food
Everybody loves comfort food, but there are only so many ways you can eat a burger. This year, street food stalls and restaurants put their patties into steamed buns and served up other Asian-inspired comfort food. And just look at how good it looks.
Cauliflower everything
Since low-carbs became a bit of a diet fad this year, people soon latched onto cauliflower, which has proved to be a pretty great carb replacement. Once people heard about it, cauliflower began popping up all over the shop and getting blended into dough, rice and cous-cous.
Anything but plates
Ever wanted to eat your dinner from a flat cap or risk your fingers for a burger in a mouse trap? Well now you can, because plates are slowly facing extinction. Many restaurants have ditched the traditional white plate and have instead been serving food on pretty much anything they can get their hands on.
Edible insects
Crickets, spiders, worms you name it. They've all been fried and eaten and people seem to love it. I guess you'll have to try a few crispy critters in order to find out why.
Raclette
Clips of people heating this Swiss cheese and scraping the melted part on top of dishes and into sandwiches went viral this year. If you haven't tried it, it's a semi-hard cow's milk cheese, which is usually fashioned into a wheel of about 6kg. Trust us, it will melt your heart.
Oats
At the slightly healthier end of the spectrum, overnight oats, and oats more generally, really picked up this year as people became more attracted to the world of healthy, clean eating.
One ingredient restaurants
Single item restaurants have become insanely popular over the past few years, but 2016 has seen a surge in the tiny menu hotspots that specialize in one thing and one thing only. London has welcomed Hipchips, a restaurant dedicated just to crisps, New York has opened Ancolie, which only serves salads in mason jars, and burger, pizza and steak joints are popping up quicker than you can say "mac 'n' cheese".
Sourdough
From pizzas to toasties, the world just couldn't get enough of the holey goodness of sourdough this year.
Pop-up cafes
As restaurateurs look for innovative ways of serving up food, pop-up cafes and restaurants have become the latest trend. Cities around the world have been introduced to limited-time eateries such as the Hello Kitty cafe, Nutella cafe, adults-only sweet shops and restaurants serving everything deep fried.
Waste-based cooking
Trash coooking has become more popular this year as people look to cut back on waste. Around the world, there have been numerous campaigns to end food waste and many chefs have taken this as an opportunity to turn to the bin for inspiration.
Sriracha hot sauce
First produced in Thailand, the hipster of the hot sauce variety became like ketchup for the cool kids this year. What started off as a basic condiment for most Asian restaurants has now become a fridge staple. Urban Outiftters even sells a Sriracha keyring for uber fans.
Matcha
Step aside green tea, matcha is everybody's new favorite green drink. The powdered drink, which can be mixed with milk to make a latte or with water to make a tea, became super popular when people realized the powdery substance is almost 10 times as good for you as green tea. Now people are putting it in whatever they can, even pasta and pancakes.
Deconstructed everything
Deconstructed foods have caused a bit of a riot this year. Taking meals apart has become quite the trend, but nobody's happy about it. This deconstructed Caesar 'salad' didn't go down too well with one Twitter user, and suddenly the rest of social media users jumped on the bandwagon to criticize the unloved trend. Hopefully it won't make a reappearance in 2017.
Street food
The year 2016 was when we all well and truly fell in love with street food. Around the world, we all craved boxes full of international delicacies and hot dogs with as many toppings as we can balance. We wanted the real deal.
Juicing
In search of quick health fixes and pre-wedding/post party detoxes, the health freaks among us took to juicing as a way of digesting all of our daily goodness in one quick, and easy drink. The Nutribullet was the first product on the scene to get the movement going, as it encouraged people to whizz up fruit and veggies in a matter of seconds before taking it on the go. It doesn't look like this trend is going anywhere, either.
Pulled meats
Pulled pork was the first on the scene, but that's old news. Chicken, beef and lamb are among the latest pulled meats to have joined in on the fun. There's just something about slow-cooked, melt-in-your-mouth meat that we all love, and it doesn't take a genius to work out why.
Article Source: http://www.msn.com/en-ph/foodanddrink/foodculture/2016s-biggest-food-and-drink-trends/ss-AAlKiX8?li=BBr8Mkn&ocid=iehp#image=1
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VOCABULARY WORDS:
1. Indulgent (adj.) ~ having or indicating a tendency to be overly generous to or lenient with someone
2. Gorge (v.) ~ eat a large amount greedily fill oneself with food
3. Fad (n.) ~ an intense and widely shared enthusiasm for something, especially one that is short-lived and without basis in the object's qualities a craze
4. Hipster (n./ informal) ~ a person who follows the latest trends and fashions, especially those regarded as being outside the cultural mainstream
5. Bandwagon (n.) ~ a particular activity or cause that has suddenly become fashionable or popular
6. Crave (v.) ~ feel a powerful desire for (something)
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION:
1. What is the most popular food trend in your ｃountry this year?
2. Among the trends mentioned above, which ones have occurred in your ｃountry in 2006?
3. What kinds of street food are popular in your ｃountry? Give some examples.
4. What kind of healthy fad that swept your ｃountry have you tried or would you like to try? Discuss your answer.
