The chosen trends are intrinsically woven into the multicultural fabric of Malaysia
by AUFA MARDHIAH
UNILEVER Food Solutions Malaysia (UFS Malaysia) has taken a momentous step with the unveiling of their inaugural report, the Future Menu Trends Report 2023. This groundbreaking culinary revelation has been crafted in collaboration with an impressive cohort of over 1,600 innovative chefs spanning over 21 nations.
This report from UFS Malaysia represents a meticulous distillation of the culinary landscape’s forthcoming trends in 2023. Drawing inspiration from the pioneering spirit of innovation, it has crystallised into three pivotal trends that promise to reshape the Malaysian food and beverage industry. Within these trends — Feel-Good Food, The New Sharing and Flavour Contrasts — one can discern the dynamic pulse of culinary evolution, setting the stage for an exuberant gastronomic future.
The spotlight casted by the Future Menu Trends Report 2023 is not solely on its insightful forecasts, but also on the ingenious recipes, inventive ingredients, and avant-garde techniques tailored for the Malaysian culinary scene.
Enriched by the insights of over 1,600 accomplished chefs, bolstered by the scrutiny of 69,000,000 social media searches, and refined through the wisdom of culinary pioneers, this report emanates practical and visionary advice.
As UFS Malaysia channels its focus towards local adaptation, these three trends have emerged as the linchpins from a treasure trove of eight identified by the global team. The chosen trends are intrinsically woven into the communal and multicultural fabric of Malaysia, a testament to an approach that resonates vibrantly throughout the nation.
Otto presents his Pandan Lily, which is a mouse-like dessert containing peanut, black glutinous rice and pandan
However, UFS Malaysia’s commitment extends beyond mere trend revelation. It underscores the imperative of disseminating these future trends across the Malaysian catering landscape, bridging the chasm between burgeoning food trends and evolving diner consumption habits.
Concurrently, UFS Malaysia embraces the responsibility not only to apprehend these trends but also to transmute them into tangible experiences that seamlessly integrate into daily culinary practice. This endeavour aims to instil a sense of exhilaration into consumption habits, effectively paving the way for heightened industry sustainability.
Among the trio of trends poised to make waves in Malaysia, “Flavour Contrast” emerges as a captivating technique designed to captivate public attention. By skilfully amalgamating unexpected medleys of flavours, hues and textures, it orchestrates a symphony of culinary astonishment. On the other hand, “Feel-Good Food” is an ode to nourishment, both for the body and the soul, epitomising dishes that uplift and invigorate. This trend resonates particularly well with individuals who prioritise wellness and mindful living. Meanwhile, the “New Sharing” accentuates the cultural practice of bonding over-generous communal dishes reflecting the heartwarming custom embraced by many Malaysians.
Mihira Kulatunga, the country marketing manager for UFS Malaysia, expounds that the Future Menu isn’t just a forecast, but rather an endeavour to proffer holistic solutions to the realm of gastronomy.
UFS Malaysia has ingeniously transposed a global repertoire of trends into three illustrative examples, offering a tantalising glimpse into how food enthusiasts can seamlessly integrate them into their future menus.
“A trend in general is a change in behaviour in the community and it is crucial to comprehend it. It is important for us to bring the vast amount of focused knowledge that we have assembled to Malaysia so that we can see the quality of your delivery,” he said during the inaugural event in Kuala Lumpur recently.
Sharing on the challenges in bringing healthy food to the Malaysian market, head of marketing at La Juiceria Group Summer Ng said that the challenge that the group faced in the early days are localisation as the westernised healthy food concept introduced does not really fit into the local market as Malaysians opt more for its staple food, rice, which makes the group redesign the whole menu to what it is today.
“When you have a look at our menu, we have all the mixtures of different Malaysian local ingredients and we make it into a healthier version of menu — you still get your nasi lemak and char kuey teow as your daily meal, but we make it a healthier version with less calories,” said Ng.
Furthermore, she added that data collection helps them in determining consumers’ behaviour and ordering methods — where they found out that their customers value plant-based dishes more.
“During the pandemic, we found out that our customers opted for more vegetarian selections. From here, we can see that people want to eat healthy during the pandemic as they start to value their health. So, taking all that into consideration, we changed a lot of our menu back in November last year to make it more plant-based,” Ng further added.
Frelon (left) and Abang Brian prepares Pomme de Terre Fondantes, which he substituted red wine with crushed red grape to extract the juice for the dish
Exploring the impact and influence of the three trends, notable figures from Malaysia’s culinary scene namely Chef Datuk Fazley Yaakob, who is also Future Menu’s ambassador; Debic ambassadors and co-owner of Voila Patisserie Chef Otto Tay; as well as Le Cordon Bleu’s technical director Chef Stéphane Frelon alongside celebrity chef, Abang Brian had the opportunity to churned out the trends to reshape Malaysia’s culinary scene and foster sustainable growth.
Expressing his view on how the Future Menus impacts the community, Otto with forte in French Patisserie applies techniques learned from France with local ingredients from Malaysia. Furthermore, he emphasises the similarity in flavour between original and local products, as well as the need of choosing premium ingredients to ensure the highest nutrition and quality of the delicacy.
“Instead of employing French components such as pistachio, we can substitute peanuts, which can have a wow effect if done right. As chefs, we must know how many calories are in the ingredients, whether to replace or reduce the ingredients to ensure that the taste is identical,” he said.
Presenting his unexpected combinations of sweet treats for the Flavour Contrast during the chef engagement session, Otto presented his Pandan Lily, which is a mouse-like dessert containing peanut, black glutinous rice and pandan.
On the other hand, Brian who also works together with international NGO, the Chef ’s Manifesto, highlighted the need for a change in the food system, saying, “Our food system is in some ways dysfunctional and if nothing is done, we will run out of food. As a result, we empower young cooks to come up with new solutions to food problems.”
Furthermore, he also advocates for alternatives in cooking and substituting ingredients to more sustainable ingredients for the health benefit of future generations. Even at Le Cordon Bleu Malaysia, he said that the ingredients used are sustainable and freshly produced from Sunway XFarms and that the institution does not use pork for any of its dishes to adapt with the halal standard in Malaysia.
Some of the mouthwatering offerings at the event
The dish for The New Sharing trend, the Bœuf Bourguignon, Petits onions, champignons et Lardon de Canard fumé, Pomme de Terre Fondantes was prepared and presented by Frelon — which he substituted red wine with crushed red grape to extract the juice for the dish.
Last but not least, Fazley who is famously known for his lemak cili api dish presented his Smoked vege- table, Lemak Cili Api sauce, Basmati pandan kukus, telur masin sponge, belinjau crumble, pink bergedel for the Feel-Good Food session.
Inspired from his own lifestyle, he believes in eating healthier with flavour. Fazley, who has been working with IHH Healthcare Bhd to produce healthy menus for numerous private hospitals in Malaysia, took a year to identify the menu and client requirements — albeit the menu he created is suited for normal patients rather than patients requiring a special diet.
“My inspiration for this comes from my own lifestyle — no matter what age you are, you need to work out, eat healthier food and not just healthy food. It is not easy to constantly eat healthier food, it is not easy to maintain your weight, but it is easy to lose weight while you eat food with less salt, less sugar, less fat and more protein,” he said.
Adding his opinion to what the Feel-Good Food trend is all about, UFS Malaysia’s Senior Sous Chef, Chef Hadzrin Mohd Din highlighted the need to understand what it is about — which is to give diners a good positive impact, mood, energy level and overall good well- being through preparing dish with a complete nutrition and balanced food which are rich in vitamins.
“The dish must contain these kinds of elements in a plate to make the Feel-Good Food do justice to the trend,” he said.
Furthermore, he also emphasised the importance of playing with the ratio of ingredients and calorie count to ensure the authenticity of the dish.
“Even though we are serving lemak cili api which contains coconut milk, we reduced the sodium used as well as the fat content in the coconut milk and still able to retain the authentic taste of the dish (the spiciness, the right colour and tick texture of the gravy) — authentic yet still healthy,” he added.
In short, Future Menus inspire and support Malaysian restaurant and cafe operators with food trends that can be translated into practical, easily actionable and locally relevant menu solutions to trigger Malaysians taste palette. While indulging in the local authentic dishes is marvellous, the eat healthy trend is there to stay for the greater good of the future generations.
- This article first appeared in The Malaysian Reserve weekly print edition