Get Back in The Kitchen
Britain is facing a kitchen confidence crisis
Once considered the heart of the home, the British kitchen is now at risk of demotion due to unconfident cooks.
AEG is calling on the nation to reclaim the kitchen
We’re calling for people to step out of their comfort zone and back into the kitchen to rediscover the joy of cooking, reigniting our love for the kitchen and restoring its place at the centre of our homes.
Kitchen Clueless
It’s been revealed that just 15% of Brits feel confident in the kitchen, with many stuck in a culinary rut. While the nation’s love for food is undeniable, nearly a third (32%) admit to cooking the same 5 to 10 meals on repeat. For many, cooking has become more of a necessity than a joy - 24% see it as a chore, while 29% treat it as simply a practical task.
Meals on Repeat
Brits stick to what they know, especially when it comes to cooking, with countless households falling into predictable cooking patterns. Spaghetti Bolognese emerged as the nation’s most overplayed dish, with over one in six (16%) admitting it’s their go-to fallback.
Which meals do we repeat the most?
- Spaghetti Bolognese 16%
- Curry 12%
- Pasta and sauce 11%
- Roast Dinner 10%
- Chicken and rice 9%
- Chilli con carne 6%
- Pasta Bake 6%
Fear of the Unknown
It seems we’ve become a nation of cautious cooks. Ingredient aversions are widespread, with 61% of Brits admitting to actively avoiding certain foods, and 1 in 5 steering clear of anything unfamiliar altogether.
But it’s not all doom and gloom – as 76% of Brits agree that the kitchen contributes to a positive mindset. Change is on the horizon, and we're setting our sights on a more confident, adventurous future in the kitchen.
Which of the below would we like to be able to do in the kitchen
- Cook confidently from scratch 44%
- Cook more without recipes 28%
- Cook for a dinner party 18%
- Host a themed evening or kitchen date night 11%
- Replicate a restaurant-level dish 21%
- Cook a full three-course meal solo 12%
Craving Creativity, But Needing a Nudge
So, we do want to be creative in the kitchen — we just might need a little encouragement. In fact, 44% of us want to be able to confidently cook from scratch, with 21% wanting to be able to replicate a restaurant-level dish
It’s clear: the desire is there, and the potential is huge. Now it’s time to inspire a nation to cook with confidence, curiosity, and creativity.
QUOTE FROM AEG SPOKESPERSON
Jeroen van der Laan, Head of Product Line Taste UK at AEG explained, “Our research found that over half (57%) of us would feel more confident experimenting in the kitchen if our appliances offered real-time feedback, and that’s precisely what our latest range is designed to deliver. From precision food probes that monitor exact cooking temperatures, to AI-powered TasteAssist technology that recommends optimal oven settings and functions based on your chosen recipe, our award-winning appliances are designed to do more than assist, they empower. At AEG, we’re not just making cooking easier, we’re inspiring creativity, encouraging exploration, and helping our customers feel confident, even beyond their comfort zones.”
Discover the new range here
We’ve teamed up with best-selling cookbook author and sustainability champion, Melissa Hemsley, to help reignite the nation’s relationship with its kitchens, highlighting how even small changes can bring creativity, confidence, and calm back into the cooking space.
Melissa says: “The kitchen has long been revered and romanticised as the emotional centre of the home - and for good reason. Cooking is one of the few activities that engages all five senses and invites both creativity and connection. Yet, many people have lost that sense of purpose and presence in the kitchen. The good news is it doesn’t take much to get it back and that’s exactly what we aim to help people do!”
Only 15% of Brits feel confident when in the kitchen, and only 7% feel purposeful, with people turning to music (55%), gardening (24%) and reading (23%) as a creative outlet.
It’s a huge shame that just 15% of Brits feel confident in the kitchen, but it comes as no surprise because multiple generations of Brits (including mine!) have missed out on learning how to cook both at school and at home. Many have missed out on practising and honing our skills as we start work earlier, rushing out the door and missing out on breakfast. Or working late so calling on takeaways and ready meals over cooking themselves.
Understanding how to maximise your oven settings means that you can really lean on your appliances when cooking, giving me confidence whilst I enjoy half an hour of reading or wind down after work with music on in the kitchen (and bonus, there’s only one tray to wash up/ put in the dishwasher afterwards).
AEG’s new kitchen range is designed with that exact goal in mind: to make everyday cooking easier, smarter, and more enjoyable. The SteamPro Oven with its Steam Function helps you retain up to 90% of food vitamins by creating the perfect humidity to lock in nutrients, flavour and colour. And thanks to its A++ energy rating, you’re not just cooking healthily – you’re cooking efficiently.
Nearly a quarter of Brits (24%) perceive the act of preparing and cooking a meal as a chore, with 29% saying they see it as a practical task and nothing more, with nearly half (49%) of Brits turning to a takeaway when they don’t want to cook
Often, when we lack confidence or lack inspiration, cooking can feel like a chore or a bore rather than a joy. In my experience, after a busy day, it’s not just the task of cooking, it’s the shopping and washing up too. It’s about not wanting to go to the shops or not having time or energy to do so. Sometimes, people look in the cupboards and fridge and don't see a complete meal, or they might have a recipe in mind but, if they don’t have every single ingredient, they might give up on giving the recipe a go. I’m grateful to my Mum, who didn’t just teach me how to cook but instead taught me how to pull ingredients together using the fridge, cupboard and freezer, and make a meal up or feel confident freestyling a recipe. Swapping, say, a courgette if a recipe calls a pepper, or a leek for an onion, or keeping frozen spinach and peas or a jar of chickpeas and a tin of tomatoes to hand, so you’ve always got options.
While supporting our local high street restaurants with takeaways is great for a treat, it’s expensive and often means we don’t always get a lot of the healthy, feel-good ingredients we want in our overall diet. Your average takeaway, though delicious, isn’t always particularly rich in fibre, plant diversity, or variety of vegetables.
61% of Brits avoid using certain ingredients when cooking - especially unfamiliar ingredients (21%), and 32% of us rotate through the same set of 5 – 10 meals.
Lots of us get a bit more adventurous later in the week as we approach the weekend. Mondays and Tuesdays tend to be for the more faithful dishes, and we like our traditional comforts and familiars. I know lots of us are conscious of food waste and, of course cost of ingredients, and don't want to buy a brand new ingredient for one recipe that might otherwise go to waste. While it’s important to be authentic in many respects, when it comes to homecooking, as someone in the food industry who shares recipes myself, I think it’s important to not scare homecooks into having to follow a recipe to the letter. As we know, perfectionism isn’t reality, and we don’t want to put people off cooking.
Having said that, I also think that there’s a notion sometimes that ‘to be a great cook’ you need to be able to cook an arbitrary number of different meals, which is nonsense really. If you happen to be someone who happily likes to cook the same 5 meals on rotation, go for it. And if you love to whip up something different every time you cook, that’s great too. What matters most is confidence and comfort in the kitchen. And sometimes, it’s not about changing the dish, it’s about using your appliances more effectively to enhance what you already love to cook.
Whether you’re sticking with your favourites or branching out, cooking should feel like a pleasure, not a performance.
Brits try an average of 3.8 new recipes per week - while this sort of contradicts the thing about Brits not being confident – it does show appetite for people to be inspired
With a plethora of traditional cooking shows, cookbooks and up-and-coming food stars on social media to choose from, there are recipes and food hacks everywhere we turn. It’s our way of connecting with other cultures, recreating dishes we’ve loved from restaurants, making healthy fakeaways, having friends over and reminiscing about childhoods and holidays.
This stat also shows that we’re wanting inspiration! But when you’re faced with a new dish, the challenge can often lie in translating that into something that works with what’s in your kitchen. AEG’s AI TasteAssist is like having a sous chef in your pocket – just pop in a recipe URL, and the app reads it, understands your oven’s capabilities, and recommends the perfect settings. You’re not just cooking – you’re cooking smart.
37% agree that the kitchen does contribute to a positive mindset
Although more people connect feeling well both physically and mentally to what we eat more than ever, we are actually cooking less. If we’re lucky enough, we get to eat three meals a day, three opportunities to try something new and that’s three great chances to make positive health choices. We all want to feel good every day, and our kitchen can play such a big part in powering our positive mindsets. From that first morning glass of water while you get your coffee on (hydrate before you caffeinate) and make a quick spinach, avocado berry, probiotic yoghurt breakfast smoothie (keep the avo, spinach and berries together in the freezer to make it easy to throw them in the blender), to coming home for a glass of wine or kombucha while we let a veg packed dinner simmer away on the hob for our loved ones - of course making a little extra to take to work the next day.
See how AEG can be the perfect match for your cooking ambitions. Discover the range.
AEG's Kitchen Cure
Using new research and expert insights, AEG has created a set of simple, playful challenges designed to shake people out of autopilot and encourage more intuitive, inspired cooking. From ditching the 180-degree setting for a week to breaking free from the usual meal rotation, these tips are small nudges toward a more joyful kitchen experience.
1. Ban Bolognese for a Month
Say goodbye (for now) to your fallback favourite. Banning your most repeated meal forces you to explore new ingredients, recipes, and flavours.
2. Ditch your Default
Challenge yourself to roast low and slow, bake hot and fast, or try steam for a change.
3. Plate It Like a Chef (Just Once)
Take a midweek dinner and plate it like you're on a cooking show. Use the good plates. Add herbs. Let it feel indulgent, just because.
4. One Ingredient, Five Ways
Choose a neglected item in your cupboard and commit to using it five different ways this week. Chickpeas? Paprika? AEG helps you experiment confidently.
5. Host a No-Recipe Night
Invite a friend or partner to cook with you, no recipes allowed. Improvise a dish together and embrace the unpredictability.
6. Experiment with Your Appliance
Try a new appliance mode (like steam, sous-vide or assisted cooking) and build your meal around that.
Kitchen Calm – The Boar
