2024 has emerged as a year of groundbreaking innovation, cultural fusion, and heightened sustainability consciousness.
From global kitchen influences making their mark on local menus to ecocentric food practices gaining traction, this year has set a smorgasbord of tantalising trends on our plates.
As we savour the flavours and explore the new gastronomic frontiers, we cannot help but highlight the yuzu fruit.
Yuzu is the fragrant and sour citrus fruit that is currently taking the culinary world by storm. It is making a name for itself popping up on restaurant menus and in a growing number of product launches.
Yuzu’s profile was raised considerably in the early 2000s when Ferran Adrià, renowned head chef of the Michelin three-star restaurant El Bulli in northern Spain, began championing the fruit.
In recent years, it has been gaining ever-increasing attention among chefs worldwide.
Yuzu, which originates from East Asia, offers a refreshing and unique aroma that tastes like a blend of lemon, grapefruit, and mandarin. The fruit is celebrated for its enticing aroma and tangy profile and has found its way into a variety of culinary creations.
This versatility makes it a popular ingredient in cocktails, mocktails and high-end cuisine. The juice is the most frequently used part of the fruit, appearing in sauces, dressings, marinades, and a meat tenderizer for fish, pork or chicken.
The zest and peel are also used.
Health experts reveal that yuzu has a range of health benefits, having more Vitamin C than a lemon, flavonoids that are powerful antioxidants, and collagen that can help rejuvenate maturing skin.
The various parts of the fruit, from the seeds to the essential oils in the peel, have been used for thousands of years, and have added value in the form of medicine, cosmetics and, of course, food.
According to the “Food & Beverage Insider”, yuzu has seen substantial growth in Google searches since 2021, and this has been evident in some notable beverage launches like seltzers, ready-to-drink teas, ready-to-drink cocktails, and energy drinks.
While yuzu is a popular fruit in Asia it is not quite as common here in South Africa, which means it can be difficult to locate fresh yuzu fruit at the supermarket.
But you can find it fresh as a fruit and as juice at online stores like Flavour World South Africa, Setamono Japanese Homeware and WAZA Japan Store.