Cork people experiment more with food than most

Cork has officially overtaken Dublin as the most adventurous county for cooking global cuisines in Ireland according to new research.

One in five people in Cork experiment with international dishes multiple times a week, with 77% of Cork people reporting using home cooking as a way to explore new cultures.

This is in line with the national average in Ireland and also ahead of 64% of families in the UK.

Italian cuisine at 57% remains the most popular global choice to cook at home in Cork, followed by Mexican (36%) and Indian (30%).

This appetite for global flavours shows no sign of slowing down, with 81% of families in Cork agreeing that they enjoy and feel excited by exploring global cultures through food.

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A total of 36% of Cork people said they cook international dishes more often than they used to. Social media is a key driver of this behaviour, with more than half (53%) citing online recipe videos as a source of inspiration.

Travel also plays a significant role, with 38% of Cork people saying they were inspired to recreate dishes they enjoyed while on holiday.

Difficulty sourcing the right ingredients (44%), lack of time (36%) and fear of not being able to recreate dishes to a high standard (26%), were seen as the most common challenges for Cork people accessing global cuisine.

The survey was conducted on behalf of food delivery firm HelloFresh Ireland.