Southeastern Mills   

Offering Customers Globally-Inspired Dishes

For years, three ethnic styles have ruled in the industry: Italian, Mexican and Chinese. As consumers have warmed up to new ethnic cuisines in the past few years, they've expanded their palates to include exotic cuisines from virtually everywhere around the world. Menus have included boldly flavored dishes such as African Peri-Peri chicken, Peruvian-style empanadas and traditional Vietnamese clear pork dumplings. While a greater range of ethnic cuisines has taken off in recent years, combining traditions to create fusion foods has also become popular.

It isn't uncommon to see Pan-Asian restaurants, for instance, that serve Japanese dishes, like Sushi, alongside a Chinese dish, like Shechuan-style peanut chicken. Certain cultures have developed their cuisines from many collective cultures, Thai food or even Creole foods, to name a few examples.

Aside from restaurants serving foods that are based in fusion, or foods that have relatively similar flavor profiles, chefs are also dabbling in mixing and matching some unexpected flavors and formats. Just as Korean tacos have become popular and familiar with the everyday consumer, chefs and industry professionals can also expect to see new combinations. Don't be surprised to see items like an Indian-Italian food combo, like curry pizza with ground lamb topping, or maybe a Middle Eastern twist on an American classic, like a pomegranate-walnut chicken burger.

And fusion and ethnic foods aren't just gracing the menus of ethnic restaurants anymore. Global flavors are popping up everywhere, from fine dining to chain restaurants and quick service. "Authentic" or "bold" are a few words a consumer might be looking for on a menu, and Southeastern Mills proudly offers Better Than Bouillon® food bases, which add rich flavors to traditional ethnic dishes as well as fun and trendy fusion foods.

Better Than Bouillon® food bases give a flavor boost to any type of dish because they are made with real meat, seafood or vegetables, and chefs can achieve authentic flavor with this high-quality ingredient.

Here we've featured a recipe for Thai Red Curry Beef Salad that uses tasty Red Curry Base and highlights the global and fusion food trend!

Thai Red Curry Beef Salad                                                                                   (Serves 4)

Ingredients & Shopping List

Beef and Marinade

• 1 pound sirloin steak
• ½ tablespoon Better Than Bouillon® Red Curry Base
• 2 tablespoons sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

Cabbage and Dressing

• 1 cup shredded green cabbage
• 1 cup shredded Napa cabbage
• 1 cup shredded red cabbage
• ½ cup shredded carrot
• 2 tablespoons oyster sauce
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• ½ tablespoon Better Than Bouillon® Red Curry Base
• ½ cup olive oil
• ½ cup rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• zest from 1 lime
• ½ cup cashews (garnish)
• 5 large basil leaves (garnish)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, add Red Curry Base, sesame oil, soy sauce and lime juice, whisk to combine. Place steak in a shallow dish, pour marinade over steak, cover and refrigerate for 8 to 12 hours.
2. Place prepared cabbages and shredded carrot into a large bowl; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together oyster sauce, soy sauce, Red Curry Base, oil, vinegar, sugar and lime zest; set aside. Before serving, pour dressing over cabbage mixture and toss to coat.
4. Grill or pan sear steak to preferred level of doneness and thinly slice at an angle.
5. Serve steak over cabbage salad, top with cashews and torn basil leaves.

Schwan's Food Service

Composting makes short work of food waste

You may already be sourcing locally grown produce, dairy, meat, and poultry at your operation. It's what customers want - and it's a great way to have a positive impact on the environment.

But did you know there's another way for you to contribute to the green movement that's simple and smart? It's composting - recycling your kitchen scraps and putting them right back into the earth as rich, fertile soil.

Currently, food waste from foodservice operations is 76% recyclable. A single restaurant disposes of, on average, 50 tons of organic waste a year. When recycled into compost, this waste is kept out of landfills, reducing the impact on the environment. And it's really as simple as training your staff to place recyclable food scraps into "Food Waste Only" bins, keeping other garbage and recyclables separate.

Most large cities offer compost-hauling services that work just like regular trash pickup. Some local farms, agricultural schools, or other organizations will collect compostable food waste to make compost for their own gardens. And some restaurants are even creating and tending compost heaps right on the premises, using the compost to fertilize their own on-site gardens where they grow produce and herbs that end up on the menu and on diners' plates.

Consider these benefits:

• Save money by better managing your overall waste-disposal costs. Since you'll be reducing the volume of your non-compostable trash, the cost of compost hauling will likely be offset
• Use less water because you're not putting scraps down the garbage disposal
• Generate extra revenue by selling your compost
• Attract customers who want to support environmentally aware businesses

To find out more about composting food waste at your operation, contact your trash disposal or recycling company, or talk to your local university extension service. In addition, there is abundant how-to information about composting in books and online.

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