How East Asian flavours are making a splash in sauces

Forget China and Thailand. The UK’s cooking sauces and meal kit suppliers are taking inspiration from other East Asian countries.

Flavours from the likes Japan, Korea and Vietnam have been rolling out at the speed of a bullet train.

One notable launch came in November: Kraft Heinz’s Sosu, a “pan-Asian” brand based on Korean and Japanese dishes.

It comprises four meal kits – such as Yakisoba Noodle and Bibimbap Rice – and 14 ingredients, including Furikake Seasoning and Gochujang Cooking Paste (made from sun-dried red chillies).

Korean and Japanese are “two of the fastest-growing global cuisines in the UK out-of-home market but underdeveloped in mainstream grocery”, says Gabriel Tresmontant, head of growth platform at Kraft Heinz’s New Ventures arm.

Other suppliers have also moved to fill that gap in the market. Unilever, for instance, last year grew its Colman’s Big Night In range of seasoning sachets with Korean Barbecue.

It followed Surya’s launch of a Korean range in summer 2021, featuring the likes of doenjang (soybean paste) and kimchi.

Others have looked elsewhere for a taste of East Asia. Take distributor Empire Bespoke Foods. It recently revamped the Nem Viet brand to make its Vietnamese meals kits plant-based.

The business has “also seen success with our Malaysian-inspired brand Malay Taste”, says brand manager for world food, Upuli Ambawatta. “We have improved our existing recipes for nasi goreng and laksa curry, and also introduced a rendang curry meal kit.”

These are the sort of grocery products that can give shoppers a taste of what they’re missing as they enjoy fewer meals out.

And they’ll likely be enjoying fewer far-flung holidays too: travel association ABTA anticipates a rise in cheaper overseas holidays closer to the UK this year.

This only seems to have increased appetite for far-flung fare. A 2022 survey commissioned by speciality oil brand U:Me found 70% of respondents had in the past 12 months tried cuisine from the likes of Lebanon, Ethiopia and Peru. One in 10 had even tried Nepalese food, while 7% had enjoyed Filipino fare.

These are the sort of findings, says U:Me head of commercial Ria Joyce, that show “a real appetite for trying something new”.