Should I give you a try? Consumers’ familiarity shapes preparation and consumption of dishes at home

Summary

Every day we decide what to eat, often sticking to familiar dishes. Some days we may feel adventurous to experiment with unfamiliar recipes. In these moments, we may ask: “Should I give you a try?”.

This thesis explored if and how the food identity (familiar traditional dishes in a country) is changing across generations in America, Europe, and Asia. It introduced the Consumer Dish Familiarity Index to classify consumers into four familiarity levels. This helped to understand how familiarity shaped their motivations and preferences when preparing and consuming familiar and unfamiliar dishes at home. Finally, this thesis examined the preferred adaptations made by home cooks in terms of ingredients to be kept, substituted, added or removed when cooking familiar and unfamiliar dishes.