What is in this article?:
- Ethnic Food Flavors More Beef Dishes
- 'Larger Shopping Baskets'
Growing ethnic interest "speaks to our palates getting more and more adventurous.”
— Dave Zino, executive chef, Beef Checkoff
More consumers are cooking ethnic dishes at home.
Consumers are turning away from bland beef preparations, instead embracing more flavors and ethnic foods at greater levels, according to recent research from the Beef Checkoff Program.
Ethnic food categories experienced gains in appreciation by shoppers since the last time the Beef Checkoff polled consumers in 2005.
“Although American and local food is still the most popular, in 2005 8% reported liking Vietnamese food, that increased 21% this time around. Japanese went from 26% to 39%, so I think that speaks to our palates getting more and more adventurous,” Dave Zino, executive chef for the Beef Checkoff, told SN.
Pink steak is also in. Fifty-one percent of the consumers polled online said they preferred their steaks medium or medium rare.
“I expected the various ethnic foods to increase, but the fact that consumers are enjoying beef in that medium rare, medium range that we recommend for steaks that pleased me as well,” Zino said, also noting retailers could work with butchers and meat managers to educate shoppers on proper beef preparations.
Consumers are taking their ethnic food cravings into their own hands, cooking ethnic dishes at home.
For instance, 36% of 794 polled consumers who prepare Mexican dishes with beef do so from scratch, and 28% make these dishes from semi-prepared ingredients, the Beef Checkoff found.
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Consumers have still been eating out less than in the past, with only 15% of consumers reporting eating out five or more times per week for lunch or dinner, versus 22% in 2005. More of the polled consumers have shifted to moderate restaurant-goers since 2005.
Shoppers are instead bringing the restaurants to their home kitchens through recipes. In the “Recipes Are Cooking” report released last month, the NPD Group found 42% of female homemakers use a recipe at least once a week, up from 37% in 2005.
NPD says this growth is driven by younger shoppers — half of Millennials and 45% of Gen Xers report using recipes once a week.
