Are you a bad cook? These cities are for you!
A recent analysis of Google searches in America’s 50 largest cities reveals which places have the most struggling cooks. The study focused on the frequency of searches for basic cooking tasks, such as “How to preheat an oven” and “What’s a whisk?”
Here are the top 10 cities with the most clueless cooks:
- Cleveland
- Pittsburgh
- Seattle
- Madison, Wisconsin
- Lubbock, Texas
- Portland, Oregon
- Austin
- Minneapolis
- Atlanta
- Nashville
Conversely, New Orleans boasts the fewest bad cooks, followed by Lincoln, Nebraska; Sacramento; San Francisco; and Philadelphia.
A survey of 2,000 people provided additional insights into why many struggle with cooking. The top reasons cited were “not enough time” and “too lazy.”
Here are a few more stats on America’s cooking habits:
- Embarrassment and Criticism: 28% of people are embarrassed by their own cooking, and 33% have been told that something they made wasn’t good.
- Intimidation Factor: 78% agree that dinner is the most intimidating meal to prepare, while breakfast and lunch are seen as easier.
- Barriers to Cooking: The top reasons for not cooking more include lack of time, the hassle of cleanup, complicated recipes, lack of experience, and fear of failure (19%).
- Cooking Fails: 75% have had a major cooking fail, including burning food (74%), cutting or injuring themselves (72%), undercooking a dish (54%), forgetting a key ingredient (51%), breaking a dish or pan (19%), causing a fire (over 10%), and using spoiled food by mistake (10%).
- Spousal Opinions: There’s about a 1 in 6 chance that your spouse secretly hates your cooking. 31% of married people said their spouse is not a good cook, and over half have kept that opinion to themselves.
So, if you’re struggling in the kitchen, you’re definitely not alone!