Great gender divide playing out in kitchens across the country
When it comes to cooking dinner – the burden of preparing the nightly meal still overwhelmingly falls on women.
The taste.com.au Dinner Heroes survey conducted by the Growth Intelligence Centre (GIC) found 72 per cent of women said they are solely responsible for cooking family dinners, compared with 49 per cent of men who said it fell on them.
But it's Aussie dads who are rising to the occasion – with two in five saying they are solely responsible, and almost the same amount saying they share nightly cooking duties.
And for Senior Lecturer in Public Health Dr Catherine Fleming, that is music to her ears.
'The family unity and the family dynamic are so important to having children learn to eat well and grow well,' Dr Fleming from Western Sydney University told news.com.au.
'There is so much evidence to show that that modelling (of children seeing their parents cooking) and especially coming from the dads is so important in helping a really healthy wellbeing environment within the home, which can contribute to lots of long-term health outcomes for these families that cook together, eat together, nourish together.
'For me, that's a fundamental part of learning and modelling those healthy skills,' Dr Fleming said.
'And young boys can see that 'hey Dad can cook really well, he is cooking great food that we can all eat and all share'.
'It doesn't just sit on the mum to then also choose a meal prep,' Dr Fleming said.
'I think it's a really important thing they get involved. If the dad's cooking he's probably planned what they're going to eat, shopped in the shops and got something on the way home. 'So seeing that whole process and understanding that process is really important for young girls and boys alike to see that dad's contributing and it's a family unit that's really sitting down to eat that meal.
'Food isn't just something that we eat that has no purpose in life. it plays a major role for all of us in the family,' she said.
While an overwhelming number of Australians (85 per cent) agreed sharing meals is important, the survey found just over half eat at the dining table, while more than a quarter said the couch was where they ate dinner most often.
One in five Gen Zers – those aged between 13 and 28 – who lived at home with their parents said they often ate their dinner in their bedrooms, with one in four living in four living in a share house said they did the same.
Social researcher, author and Gen Z expert Dr Claire Madden said where families once gathered around the TV, technology now is so individualised.
'Gen Z is that one generation that has grown up on individualised devices and are accustomed to being in their own virtual world 24/7,' Dr Madden told news.com.au.
'It's the shift from when the TV was at the centre of the family home.
'But what we need to be aware of is that young people are craving connection and meaningful connection, and being on their devices is not satisfying deeper human connections,' Dr Madden said.
Dr Madden said it was up to all of us to 'help shape the family culture' that we want, and can do this by encouraging putting away devices at meal times.
'What we need to consider is actually healthy disconnecting because these young people may not be aware of the process of what it took to make that meal,' she said.
'We can change these patterns in our households. We can say no devices during dinner. You can have it before and after dinner.
'You can take it in turns cooking and participating in the preparation … create an offline experience that is more fulfilling and engaging'.
She said cooking and meal prepping are a great way to build connections between generations and give Gen Zers the deeper connections they crave.
Dr Madden said young Australians like 'tactile, hands-on learning and cooking is an excellent way that produces results they can measure and see'.
'They can then take pictures of what they've cooked and share it online and on social media and show their achievement'.
And when it came to time spent in the kitchen, the survey found one in four Aussies spent one to two hours cooking dinner each week, with a third (29 per cent) of Gen Z and Millennials admitting to spending between three and four hours a week cooking.
The survey of 2083 Australians found Aussies have three or four go-to meals they cook each week, with one in five Gen Zers and Millennials more likely to cook something new for dinner two times a week, compared with 13 per cent of Gen Xers and 15 per cent of Boomers.
The dinner experts at taste.com.au have teamed up with Coles to create 20 brand-new, flavour-packed Dinner Heroes recipes that are quick, simple and delicious.
'Some meals actually taste better the next day once the flavours mellow … think curries, stews, tomato-based sauces and soups,' taste.com.au's Digital Food Director Amira Georgy told news.com.au.
'There are so many benefits to freezing meals, the biggest is that it saves you so much time and effort. On busy weeknights, having a ready-made meal to pull from the freezer is a godsend. It eliminates the need for last-minute cooking or resorting to expensive (and often less healthy) takeaway,' Ms Georgy said.
One in four women and almost one in five men said they spent less than 15 minutes eating dinner, while unsurprisingly families with children under 12 said they spend between 30 and 45 minutes.
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