Each November, The Innova Top 10 Trends for the coming year are published based on extensive research into global food and beverage markets.
Those for 2025 take clear note of climate concerns, sustainability issues, food safety and personal wellness, boxes all ticked by the production methods used to grow fresh mushrooms and by the highly nutritious composition of fresh fungi themselves.
One recent consumer trends survey by the Innova Market Insights group shows that consumers rank quality ingredients as hugely important. “Consumers are seeking ingredients with elevated features such as health benefits, nutrition, freshness and shelf life, and naturalness,” notes Food Stuff South Africa in its report on the trends list.
- That’s another tick for mushrooms, which are hugely nutritious, boasting robust amounts of antioxidants, selenium, riboflavin and vitamin D; with fresh mushrooms being the only significant source of plant-based vitamin-D! Fungi are also low in sodium and contain both fibre and plant-protein.
Another big check-mark for mushrooms is that while people love eating plant-based meals, Innova notes that consumers are no longer in love with processed versions and faux-meat. “[Consumers] want choices that are less processed, more natural, have better taste and texture, offer health benefits, and support the environment. Consumer sentiments along with concern about health risks from eating ultra-processed foods are forcing companies to reimagine their development of plant-based products,” reports Food Stuff South Africa.
Fresh mushroom varieties like big browns, which are readily available in every supermarket, are perfect meat substitutes – without having to really change your favourite recipes as the meaty texture and rich flavour of mushrooms make the swap seamless.
Food guru Martha Stewart’s website says that “trends tend to build on each other, and likely a lot of the popular phenomenon we’ve been seeing in 2024 will continue to proliferate through the next 365 days. That is, “swicy” is likely here to stay for a while, mushrooms will be everywhere, [and] ‘girl dinner’ will celebrate its second birthday
“Swicy” is sweet-heat, and your basic mushroom carries the combination extremely well. However supermarket fungi are really finding their whoa-Nelly moment in girl dinners – the TikTok trend that explores the more snacky, less formal eating experience that women tend to favour when eating alone and on days they don’t feel the need to produce a full meal for the family. Search ‘girl dinner’ online and a million easy options will stack your screen, from quick mushroom pastas to mushrooms on toast and easy egg dishes, like Double Mushroom Omelette .
Another trend we’re excited to have mushrooms lean into in the coming year is “crunch”, which the highly influential Whole Foods Market’s Trends Council has listed as the “texture of the moment” for 2025, saying “from crispy grains and granola to sprouted and fermented nuts to roasted chickpeas and mushroom chips – consumers are increasingly reaching for these items to enhance meals and add texture to breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
So dehydrators plugged in, or ovens set to low, mushrooms are moving into crispy, crunchy territory, and we’re onboard for the experience!
Alternatively, you can explore crunch in other, less time-consuming ways, like rustling up a batch of Mushroom Popcorn, for the purposes of both snacking and sprinkling over other foods to get that crisp finishing texture.
Whichever trends you embrace for 2025, you’ll find mushroom recipes at https://bit.ly/31Tza3V that will make your meals more interesting, delicious and healthy. Enjoy the journey!
Mushroom Popcorn Recipe
Ingredients:
- 300g baby button mushrooms
- ½ cup Panko breadcrumbs
- ½ cup biltong dust
- 1 cup plain popcorn
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- ½ lemon, zested
- 1 tbsp sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- Olive oil for frying
Method:
- Blitz the popcorn in a food processor until you’ve made chunky crumbs.
- Mix the panko, popcorn crumbs, biltong dust, chilli flakes, sesame seeds and lemon zest in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
- In a non-stick frying pan add a drizzle of olive oil and sauté the mushrooms until they release their water and begin to brown. Add the soy sauce and hoisin and roll them around to glaze each one. Allow the sauce to reduce and become sticky.
- Toss the glazed mushrooms in the popcorn mix making sure each one is well coated.
Serve as a snack in jars or cones at a party or while watching your favourite tv show.
