future food

As foodie fest Taste Of Melbourne arrives in town, we grill the city’s master chefs on what we can expect to be served in 2018

The next big food trends, according to some of the nation’s top chefs.

PLANT-BASED MENUS GEORGE CALOMBARIS (THE PRESS CLUB, GAZI)

“Gone are the days where you season your steak up with three different vegetables. Instead, we’re seasoning vegetables with meat. In terms of how we’re eating, you’ll start to see ‘singular eating’. [Eg. if okra is in season, then okra will be the main dish, not a side or a combination.] In saying that, I hope the next fad is to stop talking about eating seasonally, because it’s just what we should be doing without question.”

CONSIDERED SOURCES MICHAEL SMITH (MAMASITA)

“I was in Mexico recently and it was inspiring to get hold of traditional products we don’t have over here, like old-school chillies and nopales (cactus paddles). A large proportion of our population still thinks Mexican food is what you get at Taco Bill, so this idea of sourcing from single-origin producers is about being able to get people excited about traditional produce, not the same old.”

TOP-TO-TAIL SEAFOOD FRANK CAMORRA (MOVIDA)

“Being Spanish, I grew up with my mum cooking fish tripe; it’s a technique that’s been used for a long time – using the livers, gills, roe, scales and not throwing away those elements. It works with the whole philosophy of sustainability. We’ve been doing it for a while but I think there’s going to be more interest from high-end restaurants to utilise all those bits and pieces, just like with beef.”

COOKING WITH FIRE SCOTT PICKETT (ESTELLE BISTRO)

“Fire, coal and cooking with Japanese binchotan is starting to catch on. The flavour you get from the binchotan is like nothing else, so it’s about looking for other flavour profiles, aside from just roasting or grilling, and how we can flavour it through a different method.” Taste Of Melbourne is on from November 30 to December 3; melbourne.tastefestivals.com