Sauce Flavor Trends – Chicken & Burger Sandwiches

• We all have our favorite sauces and dips – from a creamy ranch and sweet & spicy BBQ to savory hummus and tangy vinaigrette. 
  • Sauces are like accessories of a meal…they’re meant to be swapped out and experimented with….the right sauce can turn your everyday chicken, burger, and fries into a culinary adventure!!!
• Growth in U.S. sauce market can be attributed to increasing popularity of ethnic cuisines
  • Younger population prefer experimenting with new flavors available in different cultural cuisines, such as Chinese, Mexican, Italian, Japanese, Greek, and Indian., further driving the demand for sauces in the country
• Salty, Sweet, and Savory flavors is fail-safe rule when it comes to saucing your meal…however the trend of late is to turn the spice up to 11
  • More consumers are demanding spices, like jalapeño and chipotle, tajin, hot mustard, smoked paprika, fermented chile, gochujang, harissa, schug, sambal, and chili crisp-oil (infused oil with crunchy pieces of Tien Tsin peppers, shallots, garlic, ginger…)
• Finding Natural Goodness
  • Consumers pay attention to the ingredient list, where & how ingredient’s origin and manufactured
• Premium Indulgences
  • Modern sauces need to feature quality ingredients that can be seen, that dial-up the flavor…that provide an immersive experience through a unique flavor explosion that thoroughly dominates the senses (see, smell, taste…and sometime hear)
• Emotional Discoveries
  • Sauce market has opened the door for ethnic sauces that transport tasters across the globe with a virtual magic carpet of culinary immersion
    • Ingredients gaining popularity include Middle Eastern spices, Thai, & Vietnamese
• 2024 is all about Bold and Spicy flavors…Sweet & Spicy flavor profile will be elevated this year with combinations like sweet and bitter, sour, and umami, and spicy and  sour, but bold flavor will the key focus for consumers.

Sweet & Spicy crossover

• • Sweet is the dominating flavor of sauces, but consumer interest for spiciness has risen since the start of Covid…making the pairing a huge success
    • Spicy Honey…15% growth in social discussion over the past year
    • Top performing recipe using spicy honey as a sauce/dressing for chicken dishes…show up over 2k recipes in the US alone, with some recipes having a 70% YoY growth and over 600k saves…serious consumer interest in spicy honey

Tropical mood

• • Citrus and tropical flavors are making a splash
  • Yuzu trend spotlight with 43% YoY growth for yuzu and 92% growth for yuzu paste

Botanicals

• • Products that originate from plants such as herbs, roots, flowers, fruits, leaves or seeds.
  • Valued for its medicinal or therapeutic properties, flavor, and/or scent
  • Food as medicine and medicine as food…to paraphrase Hippocrates

Niche Health

• • Condiments that allow for customization around functional health are attracting interest, particularly Aoili with claims in immunity, showing 79% YoY in social media
  • Clean eating experience through low-or-no preservatives, processed ingredients, additives, etc…showing 35% more popular thank last year

Global Flavors are sweeping the market

• • Thanks to Covid…”kitchen travel” has provided new routes for consumers to explore other cultures as people continue to use their kitchens or restaurants

SWEET & SPICY – SPICY HONEY TREND

 NASHVILLE HOT HONEY
Fried chicken’s best friend…made with honey, cayenne, smoked paprika and a smidgen of fried chicken skin

 HOT HONEY MUSTARD
A little sweet and a little heat with a touch of roasted bone marrow…perfect dippin’ for my chicken nugget

 SCHMALTZ HONEY MUSTARD
Sweet & Savory with a hint of fried chicken skin…ready for a dippin’ party

 HOT CHILE OIL & HONEY
Sweet Heat is all the rage…Ghost Pepper Chile oil tamed with Wildflower Honey on a backdrop of fried chicken skin and chicken fat pan drippins’

 SMOKEY HONEY BBQ
Smokey Texas BBQ, sweetened with Honey and a touch of Maple paired with Hickory Smoked bacon and Roasted Pork Pan Drippins’

  SPICY BACON BBQ
KC Style BBQ with its rich dark molasses, tomato sauce, and Hickory Smoked Bacon….made even more addicting with a kiss of Roasted Bone Marrow & Chipotle Bacon

 HONEY ORANGE
A take on the classic Orange Chicken made more craveable with Duck Fat and Chicken Fat Pan Drippins’

ON-TREND QUE-SO MASHUPS

 ROASTED HATCH CHILE QUESO
Creamy, Cheesey, Burnt Cheddar, Roasted Hatch Chile Que-so goodness

 ROASTED HATCH CHILE QUESO RANCH
Creamy, Cheesey, Burnt Cheddar, Roasted Hatch Chile Que-so goodness…even better paired along with Buttermilk Ranch

ELOTE SMOKEY QUESO RANCH
Mexican Street Food come to life…the flavors of smokey grilled sweet yellow corn rubbed with tangy mayo, queso, toasted red chile, blended perfectly with a Smokey Cheesey Ranch and hints of burnt cheese

 CHEESEY-SMOKEY BACON RANCH
All the goodness of Hickory Smoked Bacon paired with creamy, aged cheddar cheesiness, and savory Ranch

CHEESEBURGER TACOS
A mashup of familiar flavors, hitting all the flavors for cheesey meaty burger seasoned to perfection with flavors of yellow corn tortilla, melted cheese, crisp lettuce, tomatoes, and tangy pickle.  A culinary adventure in every bite

BURGER QUESADILA
A bold fusion of two beloved classics…juicy goodness of a charburger with irresistible goodness of a quesadilla, melted cheese, caramelized onion, and crispy smokey bacon

SWEET & SPICY CHILI CRISP
A flavor adventure for your tastebuds…flavors of crispy fried chiles, shallots, garlic, Szechuan peppercorn with a touch of Fried Chicken Skin

CREAMY AOILI & RANCH with an ETHNIC influence

 HOT HONEY DIJON MUSTARD
An ode to the Sizzler Classic…Malibu Chicken Sauce; Dijon Mustard, Honey, Mayonnaise,  it will make you tastebuds Sizzle.

  CHIC SAUCE
Creamy-Savory-Tangy Thousand Island dippin’ infused with craveable goodness of duck fat & beef fat and a hint of hickory smoked bacon

    CREAMY CHILI CRUNCH
A flavorful adventure of crispy fried chiles, fried shallots, garlic, Szechuan peppercorn with a touch of Fried Chicken Skin in creamy sesame wok’d aioli

 SPICY BAJA CREAM SAUCE
Mexican inspired sauce found in any respectable taqueria…jalapeno cream sauce emulsion blended expertly with a savory & tangy adobo sauce aoili

 YUM-YUM SAUCE
A Japanese inspired Creamy, Savory, & Tangy Thousand Island with a pinch of Smoked Paprika and Fermented Cayenne Pepper

PORTUGUESE RANCH
Peri Peri sauce, creamy, garlicky, spicy, lemony, tangy, dastardly and utterly addictive with chicken fat pan drippings

CHURRASCARIA CREAMY RANCH
Chimichurri sauce mash-up with creamy buttermilk ranch dressing paired with beef fat pan dripping…perfect for burger and chicken

CREAMY AOILI & RANCH with an ETHNIC influence

BURGER SAUCE
Savory-garlicky-tangy creamy mayonnaise filled with the craveable goodness of duck fat & beef tallow

SALT & PEPPER AOILI
A dim-sum inspired dipping sauce for your nugs to enjoy…Szechuan peppercorn & sea salt infused creamy garlicky aioli with a touch of chicken fat pan fat drippins’ and Fried Chicken Skin

LEBANESE RANCH
Garlic Lovers rejoice…Lemon-Garlic Cream Sauce with Creamy & Tangy buttermilk, sour cream, mustard, herby notes, and a long pull of allium and a shot of black pepper

SPICY BAJA CREAM SAUCE
Mexican inspired sauce found in any respectable taqueria…jalapeno cream sauce emulsion blended expertly with a savory & tangy adobo sauce aoili

QUESABIRRIA SAUCE
Mexican Street Food inspired…a creamy mayo base sauce packed with savory, smoky, and spicy notes with beef tallow delivering that blend of savory umami, subtle heat, and a hint of sweetness

AL PASTOR AOILI
Mexico’s iconic street food bursting with bold flavors of achiote paste, smokey chipotle and sweet pineapple…a perfect balance of savory & sweet with hints of lime juice and vinegar and a touch of spices infusing depth of warmth in every bite