Food trends: celebrate the miracle of microgreens in 2021

2021 Food Trends: Celebrate the Miracle of Microgreens

When looking at food trends for 2021, we were thrilled to see microgreens appearing so prominently in lists. We’ve celebrated the miracle of microgreens for a long time, and many of the chefs who buy from our farm use them creatively in their dishes.

What are Microgreens?  

These tiny vegetables, herbs, and greens are perfect representations of their full-sized counterparts, providing intense flavor in delicate bite-sized deliciousness. Even better, they’re packed with nutrition. At Farmer Jones Farm, we harvest a certain percentage of our crops at this level of growth to provide families with delicious and nutritious options that look great on the plate. 

Microgreens Nutrition

A study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry and cited in Medical News Today says the following: “microgreens do contain a higher concentration of many nutrients when compared with the mature, fully grown vegetables or herbs.” Because of this, microgreens are “considered a functional food, a food that promotes health or prevents disease.” Another conclusion is as follows: microgreens “can boost color, enhance flavor, and add texture to any dish, while delivering a nutritional boost, as well.”

If the term of “nutritional boost” seems a bit mild, a WebMD.com’s discussion of a study of microgreens and nutrition expands upon that concept. When microgreens were compared to their “mature counterparts,” they have nutrients that were “four- to 40-fold more concentrated . . . When we first got the results, we had to rush to double and triple check them.”

The article shares a theory about why this happens—because microgreens are harvested so soon after they germinate, they already contain all the nutrients necessary for growth.

Microgreens in the News

“Adding a little whimsy to your meal is as simple as tossing a handful of microgreens on top! . . . They pack a lot of flavor and nutrition, too . . . Perhaps people think of them more as a novelty—let’s change that!” (The Southern Illinoisan, August 2020)

We’ve long been fans of the microgreen, and so we’re happy to share what news outlets and experts are saying about them. Today.com, for example, is calling microgreen use one of the “biggest healthy food trends in 2021,” recommending them “atop egg dishes and sandwiches,” something that “can be added to salads and smoothies to boost flavor and nutrition.”

PhillyVoice.com is also spotlighting microgreens as one of the top healthy food trends for 2021, with Kerry Group providing insights into why microgreens just make sense for the “experimental home chef” in 2021. They say that “micro sensory ingredients that go beyond taste will be a draw. Consumers want foods that have visual, aromatic and textural appeal, and they may desire ingredients that can double up as colour enhancers, new garnishing, or aroma builders or that can add texture to enhance mouthfeel.” In this category, they include both microgreens and edible flowers.

Where to Buy Microgreens

Here, you can see all of the microgreens being grown by The Chef’s Garden, which is the parent company of Farmer Jones Farm. If you’ve never used microgreens in your cooking before, now is the perfect time to give them a try, to experience the magical moment of your first microgreen.

Plus, Farmer Jones Farm sells unique blends and combinations of herbs, edible flowers and more in smaller sizes that are bursting with flavor and packing a real nutritional punch. They include our:

• Powerhouse Superfood Blend
• Fall Signature Blend
• Mediterranean Signature Blend
• Latin Signature Blend
• Italian Signature Blend
• French Signature Blend
• Asian Signature Blend

We hope you enjoy them!