New4You inspired by Real American

 

Americana is a trend that is not going away, it’s no fad. Burgers are booming, BBQ is hotting up and Mexican food is getting bigger. According to Horizons’ latest Ones to Watch report, US themed outlets were among some of the fastest growing brands of the last three years in the UK*.

 

Looking further into this trend, the demand for regional cuisine is increasing with UK consumers as they want to know where in the world their food has taken inspiration from.

 

Offering regional American cuisine and incorporating the flavours and personalities of the different states and countries of South, Central and North America not only gives you the opportunity to differentiate your menu, it allows you to add a little of that all-important authenticity that is essential to today’s foodies.

 

*Horizons: Ones to Watch (2016)

California

Californian cuisine takes a lot of inspiration from its neighbour Mexico, incorporating tostadas, re-fried beans and nachos to their food. More recently ‘baja-style’ Mexican food has become popular which places emphasis on fresh ingredients and seafood

New York

The New York deli bar is a deli bar like no other. It offers incredible slow-cooked meats ready to fill it’s sandwiches for the lunchtime trade along with an array of cakes, muffins and cookies to accompany the all-important lunchtime coffee

South Carolina

Along with the freshest shrimp from the Atlantic and grits (see a recipe on page 63 of the e-zine), a signature food of this southern state is the mustard-based BBQ sauce created by German settlers, known as Carolina gold. South Carolina’s BBQ is all about fried foods, fried chicken in particular

Mexico

Mexican food traditionally includes dishes such as burritos, fajitas, tacos, enchiladas and tostadas. Popular ingredients include fresh vegetables, lots of different meats and fish, salsas, chipotle, guacamole, coriander, rice and tortillas. What is great about Mexican is it’s often quite easy to grab and eat on-the-go and can be made to be large or small depending on if you want to create a menu of light bites or main meals

Louisiana

Evoke the leisurely, slow-paced lifestyle of this humid state where French, African and American cultures have shaped the vibrant and spicy cuisine. Cajun and Creole are two of Louisiana’s signature flavours and lots of their dishes have a Cajun and a Creole version. The main difference between the two is that Creole cooking uses tomatoes whereas Cajun does not. A signature Louisiana dish is Jamalaya. Check out our recipe on page 62 of the e-zine we’ve created a Creole version

We’ve got you covered!

Keep scrolling down to take a look at our full selection of real American cuisine covering everything from breakfast straight through to main courses, those all important sides, and of course….our decadent desserts!

 

Large cities in the States like New York, Chicago, Portland are the kings of the lunchtime deli bar. In particular Katz’s deli has been a greatly successful deli since 1888, adapting and changing to the consumer’s needs for over 100 years. But one thing that hasn’t changed about the deli, they care about their food – curing their meats for 30 days to make their pastrami.

 

If you have a lunchtime food offering, adding New York-inspired touches to your Friday menus could help you take advantage of that time of the week where consumers are looking for more indulgent options to celebrate the end of the working or school week.

 

You could even take inspiration directly from Katz’s and cook up larger joints and slice them right there on the counter for a bit of theatre. After all, the smell of cooking meats, sweet cakes and freshly brewed coffee should help to tempt customers to pay more for that #FridayTreat.

Sandwiches

Take inspiration from the our American friends to create the ultimate lunchtime feast. Slow-cook your meats, carve in front of your customers to add some theatre and toast the sandwiches through to create the ultimate American-inspired warm, comforting sloppy sandwich

Bakery

Take your pick of our range of bakery products including a selection of wraps, tortillas, rustic breads and croissants

Meats

We've got you covered when it comes to your meat offering with our selection of carve & serve and sliced meats, and Farmstead bacon. Chef tip: Beef Brisket is the perfect cut of meat to create a New York-inspired pastrami. It’s ideal displayed in the hot counter and used as a sandwich filling

Fish

Don't miss out on our perfect fish options including Young's Scottish Smokehouse D-Cut Scottish Smoked Salmon - ideal as a bagel filling

Ready-made sandwich fillings

Make life easier with our delicious ready-made sandwich filling options including chicken, beef and pork

Cheese & salad

Don't forget to also serve up a selection of cheese and salad options to compliment your deli offering

Sweet bakery

Round off your menu with our moreish bakery delights including brownies, loaf cakes, muffins and cookies

Coffee & syrups

What deli offering would be complete without a range of coffee and syrups? Wake up and smell the coffee with our Black + White Coffee Co. range plus Monin syrups including vanilla, hazelnut and on-trend salted caramel

 

American-inspired breakfasts often incorporate the sweet and salty taste profile that has become popular with our consumers. Originally the thought of adding savoury bacon on top of a sweet pancake or waffle was madness, now it’s the norm and seen as a delicious indulgent breakfast option. We’ve got the mixes and the ingredients you need to add these types of pancakes and waffles onto your breakfast menus.

 

Take a look at our breakfast recipes for even more ideas and inspiration!

Buttermilk pancakes 24 x 5pk (36008)

Everyday Favourites squeezy clear blossom honey 6 x 680g (04388)

Farmstead Smoked Rindless Streaky Bacon 6 x 1.36kg (22728)

Stack it!

Waffles are more than a breakfast or dessert item these days thanks to the American trend coming to life in the UK foodservice market. They are used in breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner and dessert now, the opportunities are endless. You could even create a ‘brinner’ menu option on your specials – who doesn’t like breakfast for dinner?

 

In the states when you have a starter, you go big! Sharing platters are popular in the Southern states and you can see why. Offering different options of sharing platters allows people to try lots of your food at once. Serve them on trays with greaseproof paper to give that truly American feel. Go to pages 56 and 57 of the e-zine to see our Catering Equipment options.

 

Take a look at some of our American-inspired sharing platter options and give them a go, or make up your own. You could even simply do a sharing platter of just a big pile of wings. The perfect way to encourage your customers to ‘go big or go bigger’.

Bites

Take your pick from our finger lickin' bites selection including ribs, jalapeño bites, shrimp and skewers

Wings & drumsticks

Cater to every type of customer with our variety of wings & drumsticks products including wings of fire, barbecue, and sticky toffee bourbon chicken wings

Nachos

What American feast would be complete without nachos? We've got you covered with our crowd-pleasing selection of essentials including tortilla chips, salsa, guacamole, jalapeños and sour cream

 

What’s great about American cuisine is the diversity you find from region to region. Mexico brings the freshness of salsa and guacamole in big eats like tacos and burritos, while the southern states all provide their own twists on BBQ as we’ve seen from the flavour map on pages 4 and 5 of the e-zine.

 

You’ve then got the burgers that are all across America and just get bigger and bigger. Burgers are a great way to add regional American twists on your menus by adapting the toppers and fillers. Lastly we’ve looked into the Italian American food that is popular in many large cities across northern America. Think sloppy meatball subs, cheesy mac’n’cheese and delicious chilli.

Burgers

What American menu would be complete without a selection of burger options? Make your menu sing with our selection of beef, chicken, vegetarian and wild boar options, not forgetting our baps & buns. Chef tip: Burger of the day, week or month is an easy way to keep your menu fresh and experiment with current trends. Take a look at page 37 of the e-zine for a few ideas from the regional American trend to get you started

Burritos & tacos

Russel up a selection of burritos and tacos for your menu with our wide selection of tortilla wraps and authentic fillings including BBQ pulled pork, spicy chicken and smoky bean & roasted vegetable chilli

BBQ

Indulge your customers' tastebuds with our rich, sweet and spicy selection of BBQ meats and sauces including pork ribs in BBQ sauce, spicy pulled beef chilli and BBQ pulled pork. Don't forget to also pair up your BBQ offering with a selection of sauces including Carolina BBQ sauce, maple & bourbon and buttermilk. Chef tip: Rub your brisket with cajun spice (70389) and leave overnight – seal in a very hot pan or over coals and then slow-cook in the oven for 6-8 hours. Use for pulling, burgers or just sliced and served with grits (see recipe on page 63 of the e-zine) and gravy

Italian American

Chef tip: Italian American cuisine is largely associated with cities such as New York, Chicago and Philadelphia where lots of Italians have emigrated and settled over the years and brought over the traditions of their families. You could incorporate this regional American cuisine into your menu by offering a small selection of traditional American Italian dishes like the ones you see on page 43 of the e-zine or create your own classic meatball dish with these two simple steps: 1. Brown your homemade meatballs in a hot pan then simmer with some red wine, roasted garlic and a fresh tomato sauce. 2. Serve with spaghetti (70483), shaven provolone (40529) and fresh basil

 

Side options can be more than just fries. Loading your fries with lots of toppings is a great way to add extra margin onto your side menu. We’ve provided a few ideas for you on the next page but the sky is the limit. We’ve also looked at alternative potato sides as well as some exciting vegetable options. Our personal favourite, the jalapeño spice mix tempura vegetables.

Potatoes

We've got a range of sides to suit every budget and customer including Everyday Favourites sweet potato fries, thick & chunky salsa, cooked chicken slices and provolone dolce cheese. For our full selection of sides take a look at page 46 of the e-zine

Vegetables

Don't forget to also offer up a variety of veggie sides like our Everyday Favourites jalapeño spice mix tempura vegetables, beer battered onion rings and green beans with cajun spices. Find out more on page 47 of the e-zine

 

Desserts are big in the USA. They’re big, they’re bold and they’re tasty. We’ve recently launched a range of desserts from Sweet Street who specialise is American desserts including the favourite pecan pie. We’ve also got classics like the Mississippi mud pie from Sidoli and some more innovative creations such as a peanut butter stack. But don’t forget the Mexican classic churros. Delicious served with a chocolate sauce on the side and perfect with a Black + White coffee.

Cakes

Premium Selection 24 carrot cake cheesecake 1 x 16ptn (18791) Layers of creamy white chocolate cheesecake sandwiching a layer of spiced carrot cake all sat on a crisp ginger biscuit crumb. Decorated with gold coloured chocolate coated honeycomb and white chocolate shavings

Cheesecakes

Vittles peanut butter toffee cheesecake 1 x 12ptn (83151)

Churros

Spanish caramel filled churros 4 x 1.8kg (32451)

 

Whether you are considering revamping your street food menu or sit-down menu we’ve got some great options to help you serve your real American feasts. Our new festival style packaging-to-go range offers an interesting design with a retro American feel and a great choice of formats for your takeaway options.

 

From Catering Equipment we have a wide range of table top options perfect for setting an all American scene in your restaurant. On-trend mess tins and enamel cups are available along with more cost effective options such as the plastic oval baskets that are synonymous with American BBQ joints. The choice is yours.

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