Cooking More at Home is Here to Stay

My social media feed has been filled with photos of all kinds of wonderful and delicious food that my friends are cooking at home. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, it is no surprise that more people are cooking at home.

Cooking at home was on the rise even before the pandemic

Data from the American Time Use Survey (ATUS) shows that cooking at home has been on the rise since 2003. In 2003, an estimated 48% of American adults (18 years old or over) prepared food and drink at home on a typical day. That estimate has jumped to 56% in 2019.

What’s driving the rise in home cooking? More men were cooking at home.

Despite the steady increase in men cooking, however, women were still much more likely to cook at home.

For men, the rise in cooking at home can be seen across all age groups. The jump is particularly prominent among younger men – those who are 40 or younger.

What about women? There were no statistically significant changes by age group for women. One thing I’d like to note is that cooking at home appears to really take off when a woman is in her mid-twenties or over.

 What’s driving this upward trend?

There may be multiple contributing factors to the rise in home cooking, but I believe the biggest driving force is the internet. Resources like Google and YouTube have enabled Americans to learn how to do almost anything, including how to cook.

Data from Google Trends shows that web searches in the US for “how to cook” has been steadily increasing since 2004, with peaks during the months of November, most likely because of Thanksgiving. The peak popularity occurred in November 2020. There was another peak in April 2020 when the lockdown started in the spring.

Will cooking more at home continue?

HUNTER, a food and beverage marketing communications firm conducted a survey in April 2020 where they asked 1007 Americans between 18 and 73 regarding their cooking behavior. Half of the respondents said that they have been cooking or baking more than before COVID-19.

The survey also showed that of those who are cooking or baking more, half are more confident in the kitchen.

Cooking is a skill. And like many skills, the more confident you are at something, the more likely you are to do it. That’s why I believe cooking more at home is here to stay.