The sixth edition of The Godrej Foods Trends Report 2023, titled India – An Atlas of Flavours, was released in Mumbai last week. The report was compiled with inputs from over 350 industry experts including chefs, restaurateurs, nutritionist, sommeliers and food writers, among others. Their findings highlighted hyper regional food, cuisine-agnostic cooking and artisanal products will drive forward India’s food story.
One of the most significant trends of 2023 will be the exploration of micro-cuisines with 64% of the panel predicting that diners would want to discover dishes that are different from their own.
There will be a large focus on locally produced products. A whopping 76% of the panel said that people will buy from local farmers and food producers.
There is no denying the immense popularity of pop-ups, residencies and bar takeovers. 71% of the panel predicted that traveling chefs, mixologists, and restaurants will visit India and Indian chefs and bartenders will travel abroad for this purpose. Collaboration is the name of the game.
As for chefs, cuisine-agnostic menus will continue to shine and 65% of experts feel that chefs are increasingly creating a niche for themselves ‘as creators and artists patronized by a loyal following of diners looking for new adventures’ in food.
Culinary tourism will continue to be popular, and 75% of the panel believes that people will flock to the North-east states, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, among others. Goa, Tamil Nadu, and Uttarakhand are also predicted to be popular food destinations. Globally, the panel predicts that people will flock to food destinations such as South Korea, Vietnam, and Spain.
In beverages, 72% of the panel says that 2023 will witness an increase in gourmet Indian-origin, artisanal coffee and tea. Additionally, 75% of the panel feels that fermented drinks, such as tepache, kombucha, and kvass, will be the top non-alcoholic choice this year.
There are a few noticeable trends in the dessert category too, as 75% of the panel sees a rise in interest in hyper-regional sweet offerings, ‘such as Chena Poda of Orissa and Pootharekulu of Andhra Pradesh’. An equal number of experts predict a growing interest in gourmet and artisanal ice creams, and a greater demand for ice cream labelled as clean which translates to transparency in nutritional information as well as ingredient sources.