Half of Brits cannot cook traditional Xmas dinner, Co-op survey reveals

Nearly half of adults in Britain cannot cook a full Christmas dinner that includes all the traditional trimmings, according to a survey unveiled on Wednesday.

Around 47 percent of respondents admitted they would be unable to cook a December 25 meal featuring roast turkey, cranberry sauce, bread sauce, Christmas pudding, mince pies and other storied elements.

The poll of 2,001 adults conducted earlier this month by researchers Censuswide on behalf of food and grocery chain Co-op found that around one in three do not plan to cook a Christmas dinner.

Around a third blamed never having been taught the cookery skills needed, while a third said they did not have the space or equipment to pull off making the dinner.

Cranberry sauce was the most challenging part to cook, with around four out of five people saying they could not make the sweet turkey accompaniment from scratch.

Bread sauce – another festive staple made from milk thickened with breadcrumbs – and Christmas pudding were next on the list of insurmountable dinner elements.

Nearly three-quarters of respondents conceded they would not be able to cook them.

However, people were more comfortable with roast potatoes and turkey, with only a third not able to make the vegetables and 40 percent not confident of cooking the bird.

More than half of those surveyed (55%) said they would rely on others to cook for them on December 25, while 15 percent revealed they would not eat a Christmas dinner.

Perhaps as a result of a lack of culinary skills, over a third (35%) said they expect to waste food this Christmas.

Brussel Sprouts, turkey and Christmas cake are most likely to go to waste followed by bread sauce, potatoes and Christmas Pudding.

However, over two thirds (67%) said they would find advice on how to reduce what they throw away helpful.

The research comes as Co-op commits to doubling Hubbub’s network of community fridges as part of its ongoing partnership with the environmental charity, funding a further 250 fridges, bringing the total to 500, which is expected to save a total of 34 million meals from going to waste annually.

In addition to reducing food waste, the fridges which will be open over the festive period and are a place where communities can gain access fresh food and learn skills such as cooking.

“The reality is that knowing how to cook from scratch isn’t a skill that everyone has access to. Through our partnership with Hubbub we hope that more people will take up the opportunity to meet with others at their local Community Fridge and share and learn skills such as cooking,” Rebecca Birkbeck, director of community and shared value at Co-op, said.