We've had nouvelle cuisine, international fusion, and more fad-diets than the average Scot can stomach.
We've had nouvelle cuisine, international fusion, and more fad-diets than the average Scot can stomach.
But 2009 will see a return to local produce and hearty homecooking, top chefs have predicted, with benefits for society, health and the environment.
Michelin-starred restaurateur Raymond Blanc has called for diners to embrace family meals and seasonal items, saying that this will create a "more caring" society and help mend broken families.
By cutting their reliance on imported foodstuffs and microwave ready meals, Mr Blanc said, Scots can teach good habits to their children while also saving money and minimising damage to the environment. "It's incredibly easy to buy food, shove it into the microwave, eat not with friends but in front of the TV - and lose the humanity of food," he said.
Mr Blanc acknowledged that many decades of "carelessness and ignorance" in which consumers were led to think of food in terms of convenience rather than taste or sustainability will take time to heal, but the chef maintained that in the longer term it would be worth it.
"Nobody wants to eat for nutrition, but by eating well you are becoming healthy, creating a more cohesive family and cohesive society and improving biodiversity," he said.
Owner of double Michelin-starred restaurant Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons in Oxfordshire, Mr Blanc poured scorn on diet books, which he accused of "using our ignorance to sell their remedies" so that "instead of enjoying food we fear it, we feel guilty about it". Diners must see beyond calorie-counting and "reconnect" with seasonal, local products, he added.
The culinary icon's words were welcomed by leading figures across the restaurant and food production industries.
Jacqueline O'Donnell, patron and head chef at Glasgow restaurants The Sisters, echoed Mr Blanc's comments about the virtue of family mealtimes and Scottish produce.
She said: "Family meals really bring everyone together. We had 14 people round at Christmas, all family, with four generations - the youngest was 21 months, and the two eldest were the 94-year-old great grandmothers."
Growing produce in gardens at home, or sourcing it from nearby suppliers, can be an effective way of getting a family enthusiastic about dining together - particularly where young children are concerned, Mrs O'Donnell said.
"I'm a firm believer in the idea that if you want children to eat something they you should get them to help you prepare it. We pick herbs, like rosemary, thyme and basil from our garden, and my in-laws have a huge crop, with apples and potatoes as well.
"It's really good stuff if you're getting it from your garden, and there's a lot less wastage because you can just take what you need and leave the rest in the ground. I actually have a problem getting the kids to the kitchen with food, because if it's something like tomatoes from the greenhouse they tend to eat most of them while they're picking them," she added.
Even as the credit crunch bites into household expenditure, prompting fears earlier this year that organic brands and farmers markets could become economic casualties in the near future, industry figures yesterday told Scots that local produce could work out as better value than pre-packaged supermarket buys.
Audrey Fenton, who organises farmers' markets in Glasgow each week, acknowledged that the price could seem high in weekly markets, but added: "There's a huge difference in quality. The cheaper stuff at discount supermarkets just isn't the same. There's less packaging as well, and the food doesn't travel as far. You can come in and get carrots that are still dirty, which actually helps preserve them a bit longer too."
For those considering diets in the new year to help shed Christmas pounds, dietician Nathalie Jones, a web-based practitioner operating from Great Western Road in Glasgow, extolled the virtue of a balanced, varied, local diet.
She said: "The sooner you eat something after it's picked, the more value it has. Local food that hasn't travelled far will be better for you than something flown round the world. It's worth remembering though that frozen food, if it's frozen quickly after it's been produced, will still have all the nutrients in it.
"Also, a glass of orange juice should have all the vitamin C somebody needs for a day, so there's no real benefit from taking supplements or anything alongside your diet," she added.
Eating has to be round the table as a family'
By Jacqueline O'Donnell
As told to Chris Watt
I was taught to cook by my grandmother, and even though my daughter Jemma has just turned four she's already really keen on cooking. She sees me in the kitchen all the time, and it's something we can do together.
I'm a firm believer in the idea that if you want children to eat something you should get them to help you prepare it.
We pick herbs, like rosemary, thyme and basil from our garden, and my in-laws' have a huge crop, with apples and potatoes as well.
We don't do eating in front of the television or in the living room. It always has to be round the table as a family.
Family meals really bring everyone together. We had 14 round at Christmas.
I wouldn't want this time of year ever to get too commercial - it's about family.
People say they're too busy to make family meals, but I don't think that's a valid excuse. At my cookery classes, people say they have to make four different meals every time for their families, but they're not really making them, they're just putting them in the microwave. I don't tolerate that. I'm not going to be the mum that makes three different meals just because my kids are fussy.
If you cook with local, seasonal produce it's no more expensive. In fact, it's probably cheaper than filling your trolley with ready meals. Farmers' markets are expensive, to be fair, but if you go to your local butchers, or fruit shop or fishmonger, you'll get great deals on whatever is on offer this season.
Everyone's tightening their belts, but even if it seems expensive for a massive piece of beef - maybe about £8 - you've got to remember that it will feed between six and eight people. If you cook it really slowly, it's much better than a more expensive fillet.
I just put my slow cooker on in the morning, with a stew, cullen skink, or fish, and it's ready when you get home so you can have a family meal with no fuss. That's all you need to do.
