HYDERABAD : Over the past few years, fast food, Indo-Chinese, Italian and Arabic have carved a niche in the market and are more of a norm than an exception now. But the gastronomic landscape is fast-changing. With travel and the influx of food channels on TV, we are now eager to enjoy cuisines from all corners of the world. Mexican, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, Israeli, Jamaican, South African… food from all these countries is being relished by us.
Since the Coronavirus pandemic, many people now prefer cooking at home and a wide range of ready sauces help whip up restaurant-grade international food at home. “Indian consumers are well-travelled and have a discerning taste for global cuisine. They’re looking for bold, spicy and adventurous characteristics in ingredients. Hyderabad is the hub for IT companies, and the cosmopolitan crowd is looking to bring the restaurant experience home,” says Griffith David, founder of Habanero.
Griffith set up a Mexican restaurant ‘Habanero’ in Bengalore in 2012 before venturing into retail in 2018 with ‘Habanero foods’. They manufacture a wide range of ready-to-cook sauces, salsa, pasta, and tortilla wraps. Griffith holds an MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management, Arizona, USA says, “We help people ‘Cook like a chef’ at home.” Their products can be used in different ways, as marinades, as dips with snacks or as the flavour in main courses.
“They are full-flavoured, vegan and gluten-free, helping consumers make a healthy yet flavoursome choice,” says he adding that their Peri Peri Sauce, Spicy BBQ Sauce, Hot Sauce and wraps are bestsellers in Hyderabad. The sauces are tweaked to cater to the local palate. “For example, the spicy pasta sauce – there is the spice aspect we added to it that makes it different.
Even the hot sauce, peri-peri, spicy barbecue, has a distinctive flavour that the consumer is seeking. The new additions – the Sriracha Chilli Sauce, the Olive Pasta Sauce and the Jalapeno Pasta Sauce are flavours unique to our range,” says Griffith.