While air fryers have become firm fixtures in British Kitchens, Waitrose has found that the microwave is top of the list of kitchen gadgets that adults said they couldn’t live without.
In the Cooking Report, Waitrose found that almost three times as many people said they couldn’t live without their microwave as feel the same about air fryers – 32% and 12% respectively.
Searches for microwave meals on waitrose.com are up 71% this year, and sales of microwaves are up 13% at John Lewis, compared to last year.
The top ten kitchen gadgets Brits couldn’t live without, are:
- Microwave
- Air fryer
- Slow cooker
- Coffee machine
- Food mixer
- Food processor
- Blender
- Electric whisk
- Hand blender
- Rice cooker
The report also found that over one third – 35% – rated themselves as very good or excellent cooks and one third said they are better cooks than their parents. Although one in four UK adults have never boiled an egg, fewer than a fifth have made a salad dressing and only 45% of those surveyed have baked a Victoria sponge cake.
The cost of living crisis has added an incentive to cook with one third of UK adults cooking because it ‘helps them stick to a budget and save money’. One in five said they’re entertaining more at home due to financial pressures. One in eight said they’re prepared to economise during the week so they can spend more on guests, while 7% are happy to ask friends to bring a dish.
Martyn Lee, executive chef for Waitrose, commented: Food is a daily joy and the cost of living crisis has hastened a change in how we cook. For too long we’ve been looking down on microwaves. You can do so much more in them than heat a cup of coffee. I make a great sponge in mine. I think it’s time to remember the enjoyment we get from the anticipation of them pinging.
“When you reheat a stew or a slice of lasagne in your microwave after the flavours have had time to develop, you enjoy what’s known as the sixth taste sensation ‘kokumi – which is lesser known that hte other five tastes – sweet, salty, sour, bitter and unami.”
