Home Cooking Trends of 2020

As a new decade dawns, we're serving up and celebrating the biggest home-cooking trends from the most enthusiastic cooks we know: our community.  We crunched the data from 1.2 billion annual Allrecipes.com visits and 2.5 billion annual page views. Then we dug even further, surveying Allrecipes cooks about what's in their carts and fridges, on their stovetops and tables, and on their minds. We learned a lot about the recipes and products they love, the fresh ways they explore food, and the new ingredients and diets they're most curious about. This feature offers up a sampling of the trends we learned and illustrates what the Allrecipes audience is cooking up in 2020 and beyond. As you'll see: The future is now, and it's delicious.

Let's start by exploring what we are seeing happening now in Allrecipes kitchens. We know more people are cooking than ever: Nearly three-quarters of Allrecipes cooks say they're using more new recipes versus two years ago. More than half of these Allrecipes cooks are preparing new recipes weekly.

Across all ages of home cooks, the criteria for a good recipe remains the same: taste, convenience, and ease are most important. (We hear you!) But we've seen a rise in the importance of healthfulness and familiarity with ingredients to Allrecipes cooks.

In this research, we found seven key areas of insights. Here, we explore where we are today, with the ingredients and foods you likely have in your fridge as you read this. And then we look at where we're headed, with an eye toward things we expect you'll be reaching for sooner rather than later.

Ready? Let's get started.

TREND: Appetite for adventure and cultural heritage. 

Cooks today are arguably the most informed generation yet when it comes to access to unlimited resources across magazines, the Internet, TV, and smart devices that are rich with recipes, ingredient information, and cooking instructions. The increased curiosity and connectedness around food is driving a strong appetite for adventure and cultural heritage when it comes to our food choices.

Indeed, we see in our growth of cultural recipes from around the world that cooks want to travel with their taste buds. They're excited to prepare traditional dishes from many global cuisines. This trend is being driven by a variety of factors including: the increasingly cultural diversity, young parents prioritising passing along cultural heritage to their families, and growing excitement among cooks to see the world through foods.

Now: Filipino cuisine. 

Food from the Philippines — which blends Asian, Latin, American, and island culinary influences for a delicious flavor all its own — is trending, in restaurants and home kitchens. Indeed, our research showed that Filipino cuisine has seen a significant popularity growth in the last year, with Filipino recipe views growing by a whopping 32 percent year over year. Why? Perhaps it's because most of the dishes are gluten-free. Favourites like chicken Adobo and Caldereta (A Filipino beef recipe). fit into that category. It may be because many of the dishes are prepared ahead of time, so they lend themselves to popular meal-prep cooking.

It might also be because families across the U.S. are finding themselves drawn to cultural or ancestral elements of the island nation. The Filipino Kamayan, a communal feast laid out on banana leaves, encourages eating with your hands, connecting to your dishes, and experiencing flavors and foods in close proximity.

Next: Indian cuisine: 

You don't have to tell anyone who loves Indian curry or any of our most popular Indian recipes why we predict Indian food will be the next trend in global cuisines for the home cook. Indian foods align well with vegan, vegetarian, and flexitarian diets. Many are gluten free, and they also lend themselves beautifully to preparation in a slow cooker or instant pot. 

Many traditional Indian dishes also employ ingredients, like turmeric that are trending and healthful. Lentils, chickpeas, spinach, and kale are also on on the frequently-used ingredient list.

Shifting shopping behaviours 

As cooks become comfortable with preparing new cuisines, they are encountering and embracing new ingredients. This shifting behavior is driving increased shopping of grocery channels, such as ethnic grocers and online grocers, as cooks seek to find ingredients that may not be in their pantry or conventional supermarket.

In fact, more than one-third of Allrecipes cooks say an "interest in experimenting with new foods" is extremely important to them when choosing a new recipe. And nearly a majority of Allrecipes cooks say they are always looking to add new flavors to their foods and like to try foods they haven't eaten before.

These cooks shared with us their favorite ingredients, and then we're sharing the things we see heading for home cooks's kitchens very soon.

Now: Pork belly

Pork belly, a boneless piece of meat which comes from the pig's midsection, has long been considered a delicacy in Asian cooking, but today, it's been embraced by home cooks of all stripes. Over the last year, Allrecipes has seen more than 100 percent growth year over year in searches for pork belly recipes, as new ingredients inspired by global cuisines are finding a new life in home kitchens.

Chef John's crispy pork belly is a wonderful introductory recipe if you've never cooked with pork belly yourself, but you'll find it in Asian favourites like Dong Po (Chinese Pork Belly) and Thit Ko (Caramelized Pork Belly). 

Next: Mexican Chorizo 

If you thought the search for recipes with pork belly was impressive, you'll be blown away by the increased search for recipes with Mexican Chorizo In the last year, we've seen a nearly 300 percent growth in search for recipes that use the spicy ground meat sausage. 

Next: Chipotle 

New global flavors are extending beyond traditional boundaries. Chipotle for example, has been a hot flavor for several years. It's influence is felt most heavily in Mexican cuisine, but really, there's no where chipotle won't go — burgers, meatballs, hummus. 

Next: Harissa 

But coming to your kitchen soon will be harissa, a spicy pepper sauce traditionally served North African and Moroccan recipes. Harissa, similar to chipotle, offers an easy way to add heat and flavor to any number of dishes. 

It's likewise very versatile, easily going in sauces on eggs, in soups and stews, or swirled into dips. Bonus: It's gluten-free, which makes it a no-brainer for cooks who prepare food for a variety of dietary needs. 

Next: Korean fried chicken

New flavors and ingredients in the home cook's kitchen and pantry are driving twists on classic American dishes. Korean fried chicken which moved from food trucks to brick-and-mortar restaurants to home kitchens, has seen year over year growth with Allrecipes cooks.

As cooks become comfortable with preparing new cuisines, they are encountering and embracing new ingredients. This shifting behavior is driving increased shopping of grocery channels, such as ethnic grocers and online grocers, as cooks seek to find ingredients that may not be in their pantry or conventional supermarket.

In fact, more than one-third of Allrecipes cooks say an "interest in experimenting with new foods" is extremely important to them when choosing a new recipe. And nearly a majority of Allrecipes cooks say they are always looking to add new flavors to their foods and like to try foods they haven't eaten before.

These cooks shared with us their favorite ingredients, and then we're sharing the things we see heading for home cooks's kitchens very soon.

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