Flavor Trends, Strategies and Solutions for Menu Development
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Perilla leaves take well to pickling and fermenting, teeing them up nicely to become an intriguing acidic component of meaty dishes as they offer a tart counterpoint to rich flavors—from bowl builds, charcuterie plates and entrées to toppings on roast beef sandwiches or carnitas tacos. Perilla leaves can be pickled in a few traditional styles: soy-sauce-based jangajji or gochugaru-seasoned kimchi. Either way, the minty, anise-y flavor shines through, balanced by a savory, sweet, garlicky profile. Kochi, a fine-dining Korean restaurant in New York, pairs a perilla leaf kimchi with slow-cooked pork tenderloin and cashew-nut ssamjang, demonstrating perilla’s versatility as a flavorful side.

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Flavors on the Edge is an ongoing series that explores emerging ingredients poised to become high-impact flavor builders.

About The Author

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Katie Ayoub serves as managing editor of Flavor & The Menu and content strategist for the Flavor Experience, an annual conference geared toward chain operators. She is president of Katie Ayoub & Associates, serving up menu trends expertise, content creation and food & beverage consultancy. Based in Chicago, Katie has been working in foodservice publishing for more than 20 years and part of the Flavor team since 2006. [email protected]