Two Japanese flavours set to take the UK by storm

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japanese food prawn chopsticks

All eyes will be on Osaka when it hosts Expo 2025 next spring. It will provide an opportunity to spotlight Japanese cuisine to an expected 28 million in-person and billions of virtual delegates.

But it won’t just be the Expo visitors enjoying the cuisine. Two of the flavours Mintel expects to trend in global food and drink categories in 2025 are Japanese-inspired, providing potentially exciting new product development opportunities.

Japanese cuisine is growing in popularity, particularly among younger consumers. While not yet mainstream, it’s on a trajectory similar to other once-niche cuisines. Mintel research shows 18% of all UK consumers have eaten at Japanese restaurants or ordered Japanese takeaway. That figure rises to 36% among Gen Z consumers – indicating significant interest among younger diners.

Our first flavour prediction is the Japanese seasoning yuzu kosho, a fermented paste made from chilli peppers, yuzu peel and salt. The complex and vibrant flavour profile strikes a delicate balance between tangy, spicy and salty notes. It can be used as a seasoning for soups, marinades, dressings and sauces.

This versatile seasoning can also work as a rub for grilled meat and to elevate the flavour profiles of noodle and rice dishes. For salads, vegetables and sushi, yuzu kosho can offer a punch of flavour with zesty and spicy elements. Consumer interest in unique and exotic flavours, combined with authentic and diverse culinary experiences, suggests potential for yuzu kosho to gain popularity.

Mintel’s second flavour prediction is miso caramel. This concoction blends the umami richness of miso with buttery caramel sweetness, creating a harmonious mix of savoury and sweet notes for unique products with intriguing contrasts.

Caramel is a recognisable flavour across food categories. The savoury umami taste of miso is still a relatively novel flavour component, but it’s making inroads into food categories, providing depth, richness and ‘meatiness’ to various dishes. The miso-caramel fusion is well placed to cater to the demand for flavour complexity, world cuisine exploration and artisanal craftsmanship, especially as 53% of UK consumers believe it’s fun to try sweets with unusual flavours.

The contrasting savoury and sweet flavour combination can create a multidimensional taste experience that satisfies adventurous palates. Cox & Co, for example, released a miso caramel dark chocolate Easter egg in the UK in 2024, which was described as having a unique balance of saltiness and sweetness.

East to west cultural exchange has been inspiring the development of new flavours, textures and concepts for many years. But now more than ever, food and drink brands can utilise innovative flavours to provide diverse sensory experiences, and use effective communication and strategic flavour pairings to enhance consumer engagement and broaden market appeal.