FABULOUS FINGER FOODS
EATING IS CHANGING
One of the more interesting offshoots of how societies have adapted to the enforced changes to our Lifestyles has been in the way we eat. While the demand for snack foods has increased, the demand for quick meals has increased as well and this is a category that we are calling “finger foods”.
Finger foods bridge the gap between a snack food and a full-fledged entrée. They are usually cooked and are smaller than a standard portion, but are required to be delicious, interesting and quick to prepare and consume. It has often been called “grazing’. They can be used as a quick lunch, a nutritious snack between meals, an appetizer or part of a small meal prepared for one person.
The creative minds of our Hela Spice Canada food product development team have looked at products that presently fit this category. They have come up with delicious and attractive product concepts that should interest a company when pursuing sales in this growing market.
FULLY COOKED SLIDERS
Sliders are a perfect example of this category. They are used in restaurants singly as an appetizer or in groups of 3, as a meal. At Hela Spice Canada, we have taken the next step and have conceived a line of fully cooked frozen or refrigerated patties with a wide range of protein sources and exciting Flavours.
The need for taste as well as nutrition, balanced with the need for excellent product quality after reheating, is paramount for success in this type of product offering. Hela Spice Canada has extensive knowledge in clean label texture building and moisture retaining systems and can meet the needs of a demanding consumer. How about these interesting ideas!
- Turning the standard beef slider on its head with a generous amount of porcini mushroom pieces added to it, combined with a characterizing seasoned prime rib flavour.
- A vegan slider based on sweet potato and chickpea, jam packed with vegetable pieces like carrot, corn and red pepper with more than a hint of New Orleans BBQ seasoning.
- Creating a delicious pork slider targeting a quick morning breakfast sandwich – filled with apple, bacon pieces and tied together with natural maple syrup.
- A pizza flavoured pork patty filled with pieces of salami, pepperoni, sun dried tomato pieces, green peppers and of course, mozzarella cheese pieces.
- A chicken taco slider, enhanced with a great and robust taco seasoning and stuffed with cheddar cheese, tomato, black bean and jalapeno pieces.
We have a library of ready-to-go concepts. Let us help you.
FULLY COOKED MINI SAUSAGES
Small hand-helds in a bun has been the domain of the hot dog. Hela Spice Canada has been producing great sausage product concepts for well over 100 years and we now think it is time for a competitor to the traditional hot dog. We have conceptualized a line of great fully cooked premium sausages, but in the size and caliber of a hot dog. The smaller size would broaden the appeal and make them easy to reheat and more flexible in the way they are consumed.
The products could be manufactured in natural, collagen or strippable casings and to attract more attention to the concept, we want to propose not only great traditional flavours, but a line of deli meat flavoured sausages to increase their possible uses as salad toppings or hot sandwich fillings:
- kielbasa style
- pepperoni style
- rotisserie chicken
- Hungarian salami style
- spicy ‘nduja style
- black forest ham
- pancetta style
- prosciutto cotto style
BALLS, STICKS AND NUGGETS
No, we are not talking about kids’ games, but another category of quick finger foods. These types of products make great appetizers, but also make great small meals or full entrees depending on the quantity served. They also lend themselves wonderfully to the addition of dips, sauces and gravies – spicing up the eating occasion even more. Fortunately, Hela Spice Canada has broad experience in not only the protein portions, but also in the bases for the dips, sauces and gravies.
There are a number of ways to make products that will fit in this category and our great R&D team can help you find a way to produce these options with equipment that presently exists in your facility. The only limitation is your imagination.
- blended chicken trim and cauliflower bite, flavoured with a hot wing sauce and enrobed in a blue cheese flavoured gluten free breading
- mini chicken kiev, co-extruded and breaded, ready to reheat and eat
- stuffed or co-extruded meatballs like the following:
- pork meatball with pepperoni and tomato pizza flavoured filling
- beef meatball with mozzarella cheese, sun dried tomatoes and onion fillings
- breaded beef and pork meatball stuffed with provolone, green onions and broccoli
- prime rib beef meatball with old cheddar, onions and porter beer filling
- chicken meatball with a buffalo style sauce, blue cheese and breadcrumb filling
- beef and pork meatball with a delicious old world filling made up of tomato sauce, green peppers, parmesan cheese and porcini mushroom
- breaded high protein mozzarella stick, but with the spicy tomato sauce dip right inside
Let Hela Spice Canada help you bring your ideas to life.
WHY SHOULD YOU WORK WITH HELA SPICE CANADA?
- R&D Team experienced in many different product categories
- Ability to create products based on customers’ ideas
- Ability to bring new product ideas and fully developed concepts for review
- Real plant production experience that enables Hela Spice Canada to create an easy to produce system of blends and raw materials including processing instructions, to make processing simple for companies
- We can adapt procedures to best utilize available plant processing equipment
Have a product idea? Tell us all about it and your search for the perfect ingredients. Find it all at Hela Spice. Let’s talk about your next best-seller.
