Take your stretchy pants and put them in your closet where they belong, because with these recipes for 2016, you won’t need them until winter comes. Healthy food is now cool and this is why all of the most popular recipes this year are quite safe to eat. From brand new recipes for tasty oatmeal to turmeric meals, these products and ingredients are setting trends for cooking healthy food in 2016.

Brand new oatmeal

Honey, brown sugar or maple syrup? Come on people, you can do much better than that. The day when oatmeal stopped being boring has finally come and people have started experimenting with various flavors to make their healthy meal a bit more interesting. Things like coconut milk and ancient grains or steel-cuts with added hazelnut granola, and roasted figs with local grains… This is how you get a tasty oatmeal.

Chickpea

If you sit down at a restaurant and see names on the menu like Cecina, Socca, Panisse or Panelle, you should order it. What all of these names have in common, you ask? All of these meals are made out of chickpea flour. This is a high-protein and gluten-free product that transforms dishes into exquisite meals. A lot of restaurant chefs like its mildly sweet, rich flavor, and its high stretch structure that makes this flour perfect for frying. Is it healthy if it’s fried? It depends on how your fry and what you fry.

Have you tired Turmeric?

Peppery and knobby turmeric is a trademark of Eastern medicine and it has found its way into both savory and sweet dishes. You’ve probably heard of powdered turmeric or even had some when you ate curries in the past. This magical root is filled with antioxidants and since the beginning of 2016 it started making huge waves with its punchy taste. A lot of people avoided it because of how it looks, but you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.

The raise of steamers

People thought that steamers could only be used to cook boring vegetables. But, is this true? The whole brand new line of steamers now allow you to experiment with various ingredients and prepare your food in the healthiest way – with water steam. There are a lot of interesting steamer recipes you can try out to get the sense of what it’s all about.

Koji

Koji is quickly growing in popularity and taking over the entire United States. This type of rice originated in Japan and it is combined with Koji mold. The Japanese traditionally use it to make soy sauce and miso, stirring up the formation structure of the whole umami flavor.

Professional chefs are starting to whisk some fermented and fragrant Koji and combine it with vinaigrettes, add some vegetables to it before they start roasting, and treat the whole mixture as a marinade. People love it because it has a fatty, funky taste that doesn’t require adding any oil, sugar or salt. A truly unique taste to begin with, and it’s very healthy.

Seaweed

Seaweed has pushed kale out of the picture. After so many years of kale’s reign over all leafy vegetable ingredients, many have switched to seaweed and it has become their go to green food. Besides the fact that it’s plentiful and environmentally friendly, it also packs a lot of antioxidants, fiber, good fats and iodine. This is why seaweed is slowly becoming the favorite sweetheart of the healthy food world in 2016.

Ubo

You’ve probably never heard of this and never tasted it before, but soon enough this will change. One of the hottest brand new cuisines at the moment is Filipino, and probably the most recognizable ingredient it has is its purple, vibrant jam that you will be able to find almost everywhere in 2016. Not only does it look fun, but it’s tasty as well and it is fairly healthy for a sugary vegetable.

Keep an eye out for these things when you are at the market, grocery store or a restaurant. Try them out and I guarantee that you won’t regret listening to me.