Meat+Poultry - July 2018 - 48

INGREDIENT ISSUES

experience the heat. These peppers contribute
no flavor to food applications.

ETHNIC FLAVOR TRENDS

Fusion heat
flavors are
also an
easy way to
differentiate
in the
competitive
meat and
poultry
category.

48

MEAT+ POULTRY | 07.18 | www.meatpoultry.com

HEAT AND MEAT MAKE SENSE
Meat and poultry, in general, function as a
clean canvas for applying all types of flavors,
hot and spicy included. Flavors and seasonings
can be added via marinades - injected and
tumbled - as well as through rubs, breadings
and batters.
Pereg, Clifton, New Jersey, is growing its
spicy seasoned bread crumb collection with
Thai sweet chili panko crumbs. It joins other
crumbs with kick such as Mexican fine bread
crumbs and Japanese spicy panko.
Hot and spicy ingredients make sense with
many better-for-you prepared foods. The bold
kick helps improve the taste and palatability
that gets lost when fat and sodium are reduced
in meat and poultry products.
Fusion heat flavors are also an easy way
to differentiate in the competitive meat and
poultry category. This includes fresh, fully
cooked and snack items.
Rosina Food Products Inc., Buffalo,
New York, is rolling out frozen, fully cooked
chef-inspired artisan meatballs, which feature
bold flavors such as pineapple chorizo. These
pork meatballs combine sweet with heat using
serrano chili peppers and pineapple.
Montreal, Canada-based Expresco
Foods offers ProSticks, a chicken-on-a-stick
refrigerated snack intended for
on-the-go consumption.

©Popova Olga - stock.adobe.com

The piri piri pepper, which
originated in Portugal,
measures 175,000 on the
Scoville Heat Units scale.

Chili peppers are integral to many trending
ethnic flavors. Pepper usage can vary, allowing
for signature heat and flavor profiles.
Chamoy is a mash of flavors that combines
the smoky heat of ancho chilies with apricot
preserves, lime juice, salt and sugar. It often
functions as a glaze on grilled pork chops
where it caramelizes and delivers sweet heat.
Gochujang is gaining traction in meat and
poultry. It is a combination of chili peppers
and fermented soybeans and starts out sweet
to the palate. Depending on the peppers, the
degree of lingering heat varies, but should
always be there.
Harissa possesses notes of chili, coriander
and cumin. It typically has low levels of heat, but
does not need to. It is used in a variety of Middle
Eastern dishes, namely goat and lamb entrees.
Piri Piri (also known as peri peri)
seasoning is based on the piri piri pepper. Piri
translates as hot, which makes sense, as this
chili pepper measures at about 175,000 SHU.
With its origins in Portugal, piri piri sauce
contains the namesake peppers along with
citrus peel, onion, pepper, salt, lemon juice,
bay leaves, paprika, pimiento, basil, oregano
and tarragon.
Szechwan as a cooking style has been
around for a long time, with many Chinese
restaurants marketed as Szechwan-style to
convey a spicier type of menu. Szechwan
seasoning is known for intense spiciness
and bold flavor, and tends to be heavily
pronounced in garlic. It works well with beef,
chicken and pork.
An up-and-coming chili is urfa, also
known as Turkish chili. It has a rich raisin and
chocolate taste with notes of tobacco and wine
and about 50,000 SHU of heat. Lamb and beef
kebobs are a common application, as well as
venison chops and other game meats.
Depending on the chili pepper, as
well as the application, heat may linger
on the palate. Because capsaicin is nearly
insoluble in water, drinking a glass of
water after consuming chili peppers
does not reduce that feeling of the
mouth being on fire. On the other
hand, capsaicin is soluble in fat and

alcohol, which is why a cold beer and some
blue cheese dressing often accompanies a
plate of hot wings.
Further, when you pair sweetness with
peppers, even the hottest peppers often
become palatable. This is why the combination
of habanero mango has become so popular.
The habanero pepper is quite flavorful, if you
can get over the heat. Adding a dimension of
sweetness helps accentuate the citrus notes
of the pepper while the sulfurous notes of the
mango play out.
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Meat+Poultry - July 2018

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