Google has just released its Top Ten most searched Recipes for the period March 1 to April 26, 2020. The results are not at all surprising in some senses, but they do reveal interesting aspects of our food culture, and give us a glimpse of where our contemporary cuisine and tastes come from…
With most restaurants closed or offering take-out or delivery only on restricted menus, COVID-19 stay home social distancers are reverting to their culinary roots, cooking their own meals more frequently and offering a window on our collective dining preferences.
The raw stats
Here are the Top Ten, as provided by Google Trends:
1. Banana Bread
2. Pancakes
3. Chicken
4. Pizza Dough
5. Brownies
6. “Recette Crèpe” (“Crèpe recipe” in French)
7. Meatloaf
8. French Toast
9. Lasagna
10. Cheesecake
While the Google survey of searches for recipes since the coronavirus lock down started is highly unscientific it does reveal some points to ponder…
What it means
Banana Bread recipes (see photo, above) flooded the net after celebrities admitted they were baking what’s possibly the most popular Quick Bread in the world as COVID-19 mental health and comfort food therapy. I and other food bloggers followed up with Cookie and other recipes that are just as easy or easier to make. The idea was to get folks who had never baked before to at least try it. Two months into the lock down folks are still talking about Banana Bread!
I was surprised to see Pancake recipes sitting in the number two slot on the Top Ten. But, on reflection, it stands to reason. Folks love them and they come in literally thousands of versions. Not only that, but they are reasonably easy to make, which would appeal to the newbie bakers out there. And they class as one of the essential Comfort Foods in my humble estimation.
Chicken recipes landed in third place on the Top Ten list (see photo top of page). With Beef and Pork Prices rising even before the COVID-19 crisis hit, popular tastes had been veering toward Poultry as a cheaper alternative. Then came the recent packing house closures due to outbreaks of the coronavirus among workers, and Chicken became an obvious choice. There are literally thousands of classic Chicken recipes out there covering all major cuisines, without even considering delving into the realms of the nouveau or exotique. While certain cultures have religious or traditional prohibitions on the consumption of Beef or Pork, all seem to find Chicken acceptable table fare. In fact, Chicken is probably the most widely enjoyed Animal Protein on the planet.
Okay. Pizza is the perennial leading take-out and delivery food in the world (still just ahead of Fried Chicken). So it should come as no surprise that folks stranded at home would want to try making their own. The truth is, it’s an easy meal to make and one that allows almost infinite variations in its toppings. Not only that, but if you can make Pizza Dough, you’re making a general purpose Flatbread that allows you to play with a host of Middle Eastern, Asian and African cuisines. Pizza Dough is a natural for the number four slot on the Google list.
In fifth place: Brownie recipes. An even more coveted comfort food than Banana Bread, in my estimation. Need I say more?
I was surprised – almost shocked – to find Crèpe recipes in sixth place. They’re tricky to make properly but, once you get the hang of them, they open the door to a whole extended family of Continental recipes from Cherries Jubilee to the original Wraps. Flour Tortillas have taken over the Wrap racket simply because they’re easier to come by ready-made and stand up better to handling. On another hand… Since the searches were in French, one wonders if most of those Googling Crèpe recipes were French?
Meatloaf occupies seventh place on the Google recipe list. Like Chicken, Brownie and Banana Bread recipes, the surge in interest in Meatloaf recipes indicates an essential cultural love of the familiar and comforting. I’d be interested to see where Tuna-Noodle Casserole and Mac and Cheese came in the Google list!
Another surprise awaited me in eighth place. True, French Toast is relatively easy to make, but it’s not one of the recipes I expected to find in the Top Ten. I would have thought the preponderance of younger folks out there would be more interested in more-contemporary dishes like Tex-Mex fare and Burgers. But it warms my heart nonetheless to see this classic comfort food treat – like Meatloaf and Pancakes – placing so high in the general esteem.
Lasagna: it had to be in there somewhere. After Pizza, it’s the most popular classic Italian dish. I was surprised to see it in the Top Ten because it takes so much time and effort. Then I reflected that, during the COVID-19 lock down, many of us have a lot of time to fill. And even though it requires a major investment in time and effort, the payoff is more than worth it. As well, there are many variations on the theme with lots of Vegetarian Options as well.
In tenth place comes Cheesecake. I think they still print the basic Classic Recipe on the back of every Philadelphia Cream Cheese package. But with time on their hands and a craving for something deliciously elegant and sinful, it appears many folks went looking for more-exotic implementations. The message seems to be, “If you’re going to do Cheesecake, do it to the hilt!”
So there you have it…
How many of the Top Ten recipes have you Googled in the past two months? How many more will you search for in the coming months? Who cares, really? Just keep on pumping out the comfort food…
~ Maggie J.