According to the research ethnic food, and Chinese in particular, has deep-rooted popularity with the British consumer and that, after eating in pubs, it is the leading choice for dining out.

 

But what does this mean for restaurant and catering outlets? Quite simply, even if you don't specialise in oriental offerings, you could be missing out on a huge profit opportunity if you don't capitalise on the nation's enduring love affair with the Far East.

 

In order to make money, it is absolutely vital you offer the right balance of popular dishes on your menu, or you run the risk of alienating or confusing the consumer.

 

Further Mintel research shows the British population now has a comfortable relationship with oriental cuisine – with over one in four consumers now buying vegetable mixed selection packs such as ready-to-cook stir fry mixes, two out of three homes own a wok and half regularly eating Chinese food.

 

Despite our increasingly cosmopolitan tastes in other areas, we can be quite tame in our choices of Chinese dishes, as research by leading oriental brand Amoy^* shows.

 

The meals topping the table for most popular Chinese are Sweet & Sour Chicken, Chicken Chow Mein, Sweet & Sour Pork, Chicken with Cashews and Crispy Peking Duck.

 

This is good news for restaurateurs and caterers looking to offer oriental options, as the message is that keeping it simple, but offering authenticity, gives you a recipe for consumer satisfaction.

 

But we all know that getting ethnic cuisines of any sort absolutely authentic can be quite daunting. However, if you use the right ingredients it could be easier than you think, as Emily Frank, brand manager for Amoy at Heinz Foodservice points out: "We're not all experts in Chinese cooking – but with Amoy you can create authentic, tasty dishes so you can tailor your menu to make the most of opportunities such as Chinese New Year, the pending Beijing Olympics and the growing demand for global cuisine."

 

And it's not just the company that believes this to be true, it has some very satisfied customers who agree, like Imperial College London.

 

Amoy's relationship with the college started when head of catering operations Lindy Jamieson noticed, during a menu evaluation exercise, that there was a glaring gap in multi-cultural cuisine, in particular oriental options, which she admits was nonsensical in a business with a 50% international customer base.

 

So the college decided on a Chinese noodle bar in the centre of the main dining hall and staunch Amoy advocate Lindy was pleased to see the brand had brought out a branded version which was installed in as the centrepiece of the most frequented eating zone on campus.

 

"For our dishes, we use a wide selection of Amoy sauces," says Lindy. "The brand is by far the best because its sauces are quite concentrated and go further, as well as bringing an authentic oriental taste to dishes.

 

"As part of the noodle bar installation, an Amoy development chef came in and showed us how to get the best out of each dish.

 

"Our chefs gained real knowledge of how to cook with the sauces and the order in which prep should be done, for instance, adding sesame oil at the beginning, not the end. Everyone was genuinely inspired."

 

Imperial College launched the noodle bar via a promotion during Fresher's Week through which students could pick up free samples and now the Amoy noodle bar sells around 1,750 300g boxes at £2.50 a piece a month.

 

Amoy's new products include Black Bean, Yellow Bean and Yellow Pepper, Sweet and Sour, Mushroom and Oyster, Hoi Sin and Plum, Szechuan Kung Po and Asian BBQ in 2.25kg bottles and new Straight to Wok noodles, available in Rice (gluten free, perfect for those with food intolerances), Thread, Medium and Udon Noodle formats. Perfect as an ingredient or healthy side order, the noodles are available in bulk cases of 60 individual 150g portions to reduce wastage and offer huge profit potential for caterers.

 

For further information about installing a noodle counter or Amoy's new quick and easy sauces log onto www.heinzfoodservice.co.uk or call 0800 575755.