Vegetable yoghurt, perfume-infused cocktails and watermelon water could be next year’s big food and drink trends, according to Waitrose.
The supermarket has revealed its annual Food And Drink Report, which highlights the popular dishes and beverages of 2016, as well as its big trend predictions for the year ahead.
Without further ado, here’s what we’ll probably be consuming next year...
Vegetable Yoghurt
It estimated that vegetable yoghurt - which sees carrot, beetroot, sweet potato and tomato flavours infused with yoghurt “for a savoury (with a hint of sweet) accompaniment to all kinds of food” - is going to become increasingly popular in 2017.
Not so sure? Think of it as the next (slightly bolder) step up from cucumber and mint raita or chive dip.
Hawaiian Poke
Meanwhile poke, a raw fish salad marinated with lime, soy and sesame is also set to become a fast favourite. It’s basically a pimped-up version of sushi.
The Polynesian favourite is usually served with rice and restaurants devoted to the dish are already sprouting up around the capital. Check out Ahi Poke London if you don’t believe us.
Watermelon Water
Forget coconut water and cactus water, next year’s major water trend comes from the humble watermelon.
This is fuelled by Beyoncé’s investment in watermelon water brand ‘WTRMLN WTR’, which has understandably peaked interest.
Watermelon water is essentially just cold-pressed watermelon juice used for “natural rehydration” (although tap water should probably do the trick and will save you the £££s).
Perfume-Infused Cocktails
After the folks at the Café Royal teamed up with Givenchy to create 10 fragrance-led cocktails over the summer, experts now believe this could be a trend that continues on into 2017.
The idea is that you pick your favourite scent from behind the bar and then get to sip the corresponding cocktail.
It’s pretty gimmicky, but will probably taste divine.
Aubergine As Carbs
In a separate area of Waitrose’s report, the supermarket highlighted that aubergine is fast replacing traditional carbs such as bread and pasta.
This year, the store reported an 18% increase in sales of the purple vegetable, with more and more people opting to replace burger buns, chips and pasta for aubergine substitutes.