How Soups Can Keep Menus on Trend With Global Flavors

Global flavors and international culinary inspirations open up a world of plate-worthy possibilities for chefs and restaurant operators. 

That’s a good thing, given the growing consumer appetite for bold and adventurous flavor profiles. Sixty-one percent of global consumers are willing to try new items offered in foodservice, compared to 54% last year, according to Innova Market Insights.¹

Global flavor cravings are especially prevalent with younger generations. “Younger consumers are strongly driving consumer trends such as exposure to new global flavor experiences,” Innova reports.¹ “Innova’s consumer trend research shows that Millennials and Gen Z are more likely to express interest in more adventurous and exotic flavors.”

While today’s menus must feed the need for new global options and flavor adventures, it’s important to balance novelty with authenticity. “If you’re going to call out a specific region, you need to make sure it’s authentic to that region,” explained Gerald Drummond, executive chef for Campbell’s Foodservice. “When it comes to regionality of foods and flavors, people are very passionate, and [they’ll give feedback] if it doesn’t fit the expectation of that regional style.”

Introducing global influences to the menu may seem daunting, but here are three ways to minimize costs and labor while maximizing flavor.

1. Keep the Menu Deliciously Simple

Depending on the restaurant’s existing menu, you’ll want to introduce globally inspired options carefully to avoid brand confusion. 

Take classic comfort foods (like mac and cheese) and add global flavors to give them a twist that combines novelty and familiarity. This way, you can appeal to both younger consumers who favor flavor adventures and boomers who incline toward traditional, familiar, and comforting flavors.¹

Consider adding elevated touches to beloved staples like soups and stews, such as the new Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve Italian-Style Wedding Soup, or try a spiced curry to give customers a taste of international flavors and unique ingredients. 

Crafted with Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve Roasted Poblano and White Cheddar Soup With Tomatillos, Chicken & Poblano Mac & Cheese is a classic with a twist that packs Latin heat and spice.

Or create a globally inspired bowl and offer it for lunch or as a grab-and-go option. The Mexican Street Corn Carnitas Bowl made with the newly reformulated Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve Mexican Street Corn is another easy speed-scratch recipe that brings the taste of far-away travels to any table. 

2. Make It Flavor Packed and Margin Friendly

Keeping up with trends is easy when you integrate simple, affordable ingredients that streamline prep in the kitchen. Fortunately, global spices tend to be economical and easy to find. A base such as rice or beans is a cost-effective option for any new dish you’d like to add.

By simply adding a global spice or sauce to an existing burger, sandwich, or pizza—or a spicy dip as an accompaniment to appetizers or fries—you can cost-effectively satisfy demand for variety without veering too far from established menu items.

Soup also offers low-cost versatility, making it ideal for limited-time-offer experimentation with global flavors. As the Food Institute forecasts for 2024, “cooks, chefs, grocers, retailers, and others will be likely to use soup as the perfect medium to experience other global flavors (such as tamarind and guajillo).”²

3.  Amp Up International Influence With Soups

Expect menus to continue to go global. The top three trends on the National Restaurant Association’s 2024 “What’s Hot” trend report include the descriptors “world stage,” “global,” and “international.” First on its list of the top 10 trends overall is “World Stage Soups & Stews,”³ like birria and upscale ramen.

As the report states, soups are popular platforms for integrating international inspirations into the menu, with recipes trending on social media.

“They’re a safe way for customers to experience new ingredients and unique flavors; they present an economical way to diversify the menu, especially as menus are being streamlined; recipes are super sharable and even viral, as #SoupTok attests; and they travel well.”³

Explore adding your favorite global herbs and spices to existing soups, or using global soups as gravies, dips, and sauces. The new Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve Spicy Harissa White Bean Soup brings together popular flavors from Africa and the Middle East in an easy-to-make format. For a Latin influence, the new Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve Cuban-Style Black Bean Soup is the ideal complement to slow-roasted pork, carnitas, or ropa vieja.

Explore a World of Flavor With Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve

With one in three global consumers intrigued by new, unique, and different flavors, and one in four gravitating to interesting and exotic international flavor combinations,¹ now is the time to be a part of the global flavor trend with Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve. Our diverse portfolio of brands, including our four new global soup offerings, provide labor-saving products and on-trend flavors.

Learn more about how the chef-inspired Campbell’s^® Culinary Reserve soups can boost guest satisfaction.

1 Consumer Food Trends for Global Flavor Adventure, Innova Market Insights, February 29, 2024

2 Wiklud, Jordan, 2024 Trends to Watch: Bold Soups, Spices, and Global Flavors, Food Institute, January 5, 2024

3 What’s Hot 2024 Culinary Forecast, National Restaurant Association, 2023