The Top 2016 Food Trends

When you’re eating like a bodybuilder, boneless chicken breast paired with a complex carb and veggie gets old. To liven your plate and palette up, jump on this year’s top trends. They’ll not only add more variety to your plate, but also important muscle-building and fat-burning components.

It’s the year of the pulses, and we mean that literally as this year was officially declared International Year of Pulses by the United Nations. Pulses are high-fiber plant foods like bean, lentils, and legumes. A fun way to get in your daily dose of pulses is through bean chips such as Beanitos. 

Often overlooked, seaweed’s nutrition profile shouldn’t be. The reason: it’s rich in fiber, iodine, vitamin C, iron, and B vitamins – all of which can help keep your hard-trained body in tact. Seaweed won’t just be a special ingredient in dishes. It’ll also be used as stand-alone products like chips, strips, and much more. According to the 2016 Trend Forecast from the Specialty Food Association, “seaweed is set to explode thanks to its sustainability angle and umami appeal.” For your seaweed fix, try Annie Chun’s Seaweed Crisps. 

Vegetables have been here for the long haul, but even more so this year according to The National Restaurant Association. Chefs will be highlighting more vegetables in dishes and animal protein will no longer take center stage on the plate. 

Krauts and kimchi are the latest trend, promoting an abundance of “good” gut bacteria while the acidic flavor hits your pallet. Cabbage has always been the typical fermented vegetable, but there’s room for beets, carrots, and Brussels sprouts. Other options if you aren’t in the mood for plain kraut or those vegetables are the juices in which they’re soaked in. Farmhouse Culture, a California-based company provides just that with their probiotic-heavy drink called “Gut Shot.”

Specialty jerkies are gaining traction in the dehydrated food category. You can now find jerkies made of turkey, bison, chicken, and bacon. To fuel your jerky needs, check out Epic Bar. The company prides itself for only having grass-fed animals and the bars are gluten-free, low glycemic, and Paleo diet-friendly. 

Sriracha has some competition: fermented gochujang, which is a fermented hot pepper paste. It’s a Korean condiment staple and will be seen in several spicy dishes this year. Bibigo’s Gochujang has a sweet and spicy spin that can be used in soups, sandwiches, and more. 

Extra shelf space is going to be needed for alternative flours. According to Whole Foods, “People are going nuts for gluten-free flours made from legumes, ancient grains, teff, amaranth, and, well nuts.” This creates a whole new landscape for flours, so long whole-wheat flour, “Chickpea flour is a quick riser, while other legume flours are showing up in bean-based pastas and other packaged goods.”