US Foods Holding Corp, one of America’s leading food service distributors, has officially announced the launch of its Fall 2024 Scoop™. According to certain reports, the stated scoop happens to bear a theme of Bar and Grill and Beyond. In essence, it highlights 24 new on-trend products designed by US Foods product development experts who leverage a wealth of culinary expertise, industry experience, and data-driven insights to bring new product innovation to US Foods Exclusive Brands. More on the same would reveal that, as operators remain concerned about rising labor and food costs and attracting new customers, the new Fall Scoop arrives on the scene with an ability to help them differentiate their menu with items which minimize inventory, labor, and time management costs. Another detail aiding these items’ case is rooted in the promise of versatility, considering the all-new Scoop caters to variety of restaurant types, ranging from bar and grill to other casual dining concepts and more. Beyond the given products, though, US Foods is also set to launch 10 other products as a part of its “Serve You” product portfolio. In case you weren’t aware, this particular portfolio is made up with more than 3,300 US Foods Exclusive Brands products that offer plant-forward, gluten-free certified, and clean ingredient labels.
Anyway, talk about the new Fall Scoop lineup on a slightly deeper level; we begin from Chef’s Line® All-Natural 2 Cuban-Inspired Ropa Vieja. Created by US Foods Product Developer and Chef Amy Bracco, with consultative support from Center of the Plate Specialist and Chef Frankie Ruiz, a Cuban cuisine aficionado, this one is an authentic yet approachable product, as cost and back-of-house labor savings are given substantial thought during its conception. To get to this point, the team started with a cost-efficient cut of beef which delivers on the texture and authentic “rope-like” strands expected from ropa vieja. Then, it added red peppers, onions, diced tomatoes, green olives, garlic, salt and pepper, bay leaf, and cumin. Later, the dish was sous-vide-cooked for nine hours to help the operator realize more than an hour of labor savings per case versus making from scratch. The particular cooking process also ensures that the flavors of each ingredient are fully infused into the beef.
Next up, we have Chef’s Line® All Natural 2 Smoked Pork Butt. US Foods would develop here a hickory hardwood smoked product which makes it possible for operators serve a savory barbeque product without a smoker. Seasoned with sea salt, spices, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika and brown sugar, the product is also smoked for more than 14 hours and packed in a boil-in-bag for easy prep that will save the operator at least 40 minutes of labor per case.
“Our product development team takes great pride in creating innovative, high-quality Exclusive Brands products that appeal to today’s diners and can address a variety of operator challenges, which is at the heart of our Scoop product innovation mission,” said Stacey Kinkaid, vice president of product development and innovation for US Foods. “Collectively, our team brings more than 400 years of product development, institutional knowledge and first-hand experience within the restaurant industry to our product development process. They understand the ins and outs of a busy food service kitchen and the evolving trends.”
Joining that are Chef’s Line® Battered Ricotta and Mascarpone Filled Zucchini Blossoms. These zucchini blossoms are a classic Italian dish sourced directly from its country of origin. Once procured, they are then hand-filled with an all-cheese blend of Italian ricotta and mascarpone cheeses and then hand-battered. All in all, this item is expected to save the operator 60 minutes of labor savings per case. Beyond that, there would be del Pasado® Shredded Mexican-Style Three Cheese Blend, which is a combination of three Mexican-style cheeses – Asadero, Menonita and Oaxaca. This product can be markedly used across various Mexican dishes.
