Is it a ritual for you to take pictures of your food before actually eating it? Have you eaten at almost all food establishments in your locality? Do you opt for healthier ingredients and cooking styles when preparing food for family?
Are you someone who enjoys a plate of gol gappas from a roadside kiosk as much as you enjoy a sushi platter at a 5 star restaurant? Or even if you just look forward to that wholesome meal of homemade chappatis and humble potato bhaji with as much enthusiasm everyday.. then you ought to know about the Food Trends that are prevailing in the country.
Godrej has come up with an interesting report covering the Food Trends of 2018 predicted by the who’s who of the Indian Food Industry. Namely, Chefs, Food Writers, Food Bloggers, Food Critics and Food Enthusiasts have shared their views and opinions on the current food scenario in the country.
The top 10 trends suggested by them in the Godrej Food Trends Report 2018 are as below:
Back to Roots
Personalised Experiences
Regional Flavours
Environmental Accountability
Mindful Eating
Indian Millets
Buddha Bowls
Local Sourcing
Indian Street Food
Concept Pop-ups
1) Back to Roots
Ancient ingredients that have been ignored or forgotten will make a comeback with a bang. Their goodness, benefits and usability will dominate the Indian food scene in 2018.
2) Personalised Experiences
Personalization will not only be limited to choosing your own pizza topping, but an overall customised dining experience is what you can expect this year. Food establishments are making an attempt to go out of their way to make your dining experience with them as enjoyable and memorable as possible.
3) Regional Flavours
Indian Cuisine as a whole has already acquired its fame worldwide. It’s the lesser known regional cuisines of Kerala, Garhwal, NorthEast are what going to attract the limelight this year.
4) Environmental Accountability
In the quest to know what you are eating comes from where and how will lead to improved transparency of procedures from food suppliers and producers.
5) Mindful Eating
Eating is not just for the body but for the soul. Food does many things to us than just filling our stomach. It’s time to realise what we eat and why. What is best for us, our body as well as our souls? Choosing ingredients, diets and cooking styles that complement our lifestyle is mindful eating and needs to be adopted by everyone.
6) Indian Millets
Millets of all kinds will now find place not only in restaurant menus but also in home cooked meals. The fad to learn more about them and adopt them as a part of everyday life is on the rise.
7) Buddha Bowls
Buddha bowls are your one dish meals packed with wholesomeness. With varied textures, colours and flavours these are going to be the ultimate look and feel good food trend of the year.
8) Local Sourcing
Restaurants will concentrate on serving local and seasonal ingredients to their patrons. That means you will see more of the mango, seafood, etc kind of specially curated menus this year.
9) Indian Street Food
If you love your street food, then it’s time to rejoice. Chances are it may inspire many restaurant dishes and you may be served same or similar kind of food in restaurants.
10) Concept Pop-ups
Pop-ups have been on the rise since some time and they are here to stay. If you are bored of eating at restaurants with fixed menus then pop-ups are your thing for a refreshed dining experience. Experimental, rustic and totally home-grown, pop-ups are hottest trend this year.
Indian Millets – The Trend that makes me Happy
I am so thrilled to know that the highly ignored Indian Millets are finally getting the recognition they deserve. Indians love their wheat and rice but once upon a time they also loved their millets. Over the years their importance was lost but now it’s regaining, thankfully.
What are millets you ask?
Millets are distinct cereal crops and many types of millets can be found. They are round in shape and found in various sizes and colours.
Millets have been used and are still used in smaller towns and villages of the country. They are high in fibre and are a good source of protein in general. Their nutrition worth is much more than rice or wheat. They have low-glycemic index and are gluten free making them the ideal choice of diabetics and people with wheat allergy.
Besides, they bring about a variety in our wheat and rice dominated diet.
Moreover, most millets are organic because they are grown in rich soil which doesn’t need fertilizers and millet crop doesn’t attract pests making it pesticide free too.
Millets are majorly used in South India and replace rice in many dishes like pongal, dosa, pulao, etc.
Types of millets found in the Indian market
1) Pearl Millet – Popularly known as Bajra. The millet is mostly ground and used to make flat breads (rotis / bhakris). There are some preparations like porridges where the millet is used as a whole. This millet is known to provide warmth to the body and thus is highly sought after in winters.
2) Sorghum – Also known as Jowar, is a common staple ingredient of the Indian farmer. This is also commonly ground to make bhakris which is eaten with pickles.
3) Foxtail Millet – Known as Kang / Thinai in many regional languages this is popular millet after bajra and jowar. This millet is small in size similar to semolina (rawa) granules making it a good option to make upma and dosas.
4) Finger Millet – Also known as Ragi or Nachani is the most popular millets these days. It is known for its calcium content. Ragi flour is used to make a variety of dishes namely doasa, laddoos, porridge, etc. This particular millet is the one with which maximum variety of dishes can be made.
5) Little Millet – Also known as Kutki or Saamai, this millet commonly replaces rice. It is boiled and prepared in a similar manner as rice.
6) Proso Millet – Also known as Chena in Hindi this millet is large in size compared to others. It looks very similar to corn and is golden in colour. This millet can replace rice in dishes like idli, pulaos, pongal, biryanis, etc.
7) Barnyard Millet – Also known as samavat. This again is a small sized millet and can be used as whole to make upmas, wadas, dosas, etc.
Choose Millets
As you can see millets are a powerhouse of nutrients and extremely beneficial to the body. Due to their variety they can be used to prepare no. of dishes.
I am consciously making an effort to include millet in the family’s diet. It brings about assortment in the menu and adds a lot to the food’s nutritional content.
Hope you found the article helpful, look out for the many millet recipes I will put up on my blog shortly.
#GodrejFoodTrends2018Contest #GFTR2018
This post is a part of the Godrej Food Trends Blogging Contest hosted by FashionableFoodz in association with Vikhroli Cucina and should not be repurposed, republished or used otherwise. The content herein is owned by the blogger. Godrej Food Trends Blogging Contest, FashionableFoodz or Godrej is not responsible for any infringement caused.
*All images taken from Godrej Food Trends 2018 Report
Being a Mommy 
Kudos for the wonderful compilation !
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