WHY AUSSIES LOVE TO ENTERTAIN AT HOME (& LEAVE THE CLEANUP TO SOMEONE ELSE!)
Aussies are a social bunch. We love to share a cheeseboard, have a soft spot for Sunday roasts, and can’t get enough of a backyard barbecue.
And new research from dishwashing tablet brand Finish reveals that most Aussies (61%) now prefer hosting dinner parties at home instead of going out.
Many prefer a relaxed home environment and save money by not going out.
However, nine in ten Aussies (89%) said there were definite stressors when hosting, with the post-meal clean-up (51%) taking the top spot.
It seems it’s a job best avoided, with an estimated 2.9 million Australians (based on 14% of Australian adults surveyed) leaving a dinner party early to avoid having to help clean up afterwards.
How and what we prefer to eat
When it comes to Aussies' preferred home dining occasion, the survey revealed that the nation’s most-preferred way to eat and entertain at home is the casual backyard BBQ (67%), followed by a buffet-style 'help yourself' set up (48%).
The traditional three-course dinner party—once the only way to entertain at home in the 1980s and 90s—has fallen out of vogue, with just 23 percent choosing it as their preferred home dining occasion.
As for our most preferred dishes to make and serve at a dinner party, roast chicken with potatoes is our overwhelming favourite (54%), followed by lasagne (36%) and Greek salad (33%).
Social dining etiquette
In terms of social dining decorum, nine in ten (91%) Aussies think there are dinner party etiquettes that should never be broken. The most common is not to lick the plate (57%), followed by not starting to eat until everyone is seated (52%) and not having mobile phones at the dinner table (51%).
Surprisingly, the remaining one in ten (9% of Australians surveyed, or about 1.8 million people, state there’s no such thing as dinner party etiquette, with Millennials twice as likely to believe this versus Baby Boomers (12% compared to 6%)!
Further, three in five (61%) say they never expect their family and friends to bring food to a dinner party at their home, believing providing food is the host’s responsibility.
Finish has partnered with chef Manu Feildel to create an easy and delicious Fancy Pasta Bake to cook and share with loved ones. For a chance to win one of five private online cooking classes with Manu himself and a Finish dishwashing prize pack, click here.
Feildel said, "In our busy, hectic lives, we often forget to stop and check in with those closest to us. The recipe I’ve developed is simple and nourishing—it’s a perfect way for family and friends to come together around the table and reconnect.”
For more information, to download Manu’s Fancy Pasta Bake recipe or to enter the competition, visit www.finishinfo.com.au
