Cooking Experience Research Articles

From 'cooking wife' to 'cooking mother': Exploring generational shifts in perceptions regarding domestic cooking practices.

Utilising the life course perspective as the theoretical framework, we investigate how women from different generations perceive their cooking experiences and articulate their feelings regarding this activity. Following a review of the literature and four exploratory focus groups, an interview guide was developed and piloted. Interviews were conducted with 22 Brazilian women spanning three distinct generations. Participants were prompted to recall their life stories, spanning from childhood to the present day and focused on cooking-related situations. Interviews were transcripted and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. There were three major themes developed. The first theme outlines variations in the food context across generations. The second theme encompasses perceptions of the responsibility for cooking as being linked to the female gender, indicating a generational shift from the role of the 'cooking wife' to that of the 'cooking mother'. The third theme explores thoughts and reflections on feelings of obligation, oppression, and liberation in cooking, tied to changes in the social and temporal context in which these women operate. Strategies promoting cooking should consider the meanings attributed to it, contribute to the deconstruction of gender-specific family dynamics, and encourage the pursuit for pleasure, satisfaction and autonomy in this practice. This study contributes novel insights into cooking, including reflections on obligation or oppression versus liberation and the evolving social roles of women as primary cooks.

A visual digital twin framework based on residual-based fourier neural operator online simulation method

ABSTRACT To enjoy a wonderful cooking experience in a smart kitchen, users and designers need a visual interaction platform. This paper proposes a DT framework incorporating data processing, flow field online simulation, equipment monitoring, interaction and visualization. Specifically, the DT online simulation and visualization of the kitchen fume flow field serve as the foundation for appliance design and control. Additionally, users can gain deeper insight into the state and change trends of the kitchen. To address the online simulation of the flow field, a RFNO online simulation method is proposed. In addition, this paper proposes an Echarts-based 2D and UE5-based 3D flow field visualization method to enable dynamic visualization and interaction of the flow field. The proposed DT framework was successfully verified in the case of the smart kitchen, demonstrating its efficiency and effectiveness.

Understanding the e-cooking experience from the perspective of the everyday cook in Nakuru, Kenya

Transitioning to electric cooking in East Africa offers established health benefits and promising economic, time-saving, and environmental advantages for everyday cooks. Furthermore, battery-supported e-cooking systems can facilitate earlier adoption in regions with unreliable grid quality. However, successful adoption necessitates understanding of how the needs and behaviors of everyday cooks can be effectively translated into e-cooking practices. This nine-month study engaged 20 participants from Nakuru, Kenya, observing their transition to e-cooking with battery supported appliances. Qualitative methods were used to understand changes in cooking practices. The findings comprehensively analyze participants' preferences and concerns about traditional cooking and e-cooking and summarize the cooking experiences in journey maps. The study addresses the benefits, challenges, and unresolved issues of transitioning to e-cooking, including time savings, appropriateness of e-appliances, cost implications, and gender roles. The study raises questions about appliance design, fuel stacking and the co-benefits of biomass cooking. It highlights the importance of addressing safety concerns and providing training on electricity usage alongside e-cooking adoption. The economic benefits, particularly when systems include battery storage, remain uncertain due to potential appliance inefficiencies and behaviour changes that can impact energy consumption, undermining anticipated benefits. These findings inform avenues for comprehensive e-cooking services that support the transition to e-cooking.

Using Cooking Schools to Improve the Pleasure of Food and Cooking in Patients Experiencing Smell Loss.

Smell loss affects around 15-20% of the population, with a major effect on the quality of life. The most common complaint is the impairment of the eating experience, with around 90% of patients reporting this issue. A study conducted at a specialised Taste and Smell Clinic investigated if food and cooking can positively affect the enjoyment of food, subjective cooking skills, and quality of life in patients with smell loss. The 49 participants in the study received a 5-week cooking school course that focused on emphasizing the other senses to regain the enjoyment of food. Participants gained more confidence in cooking, and their quality of life improved significantly. Positively evaluated recipes were adjusted based on feedback and published as free e-books in Danish, German, and English. Eating and cooking are multisensory experiences, and the perception of food depends on the complex interaction of senses and surroundings. If the olfactory input is reduced or absent, both the enjoyment and cooking experience can be negatively affected. Therefore, focusing on food and cooking can have a positive impact on patients with smell loss.

Unforgettable Food Experiences: A Model for Constructing Rural Tourism Cooking Experience Classrooms

Unforgettable Food Experiences: A Model for Constructing Rural Tourism Cooking Experience Classrooms

Design of Cookware Induction Plate

An optimum temperature distribution at the bottom of the cooking vessel is necessary to enhance the cooking experience for induction heating users. Traditional ferromagnetic cookware has good efficiency in heating surfaces but uneven temperature distribution with flat inductors, which ultimately leads to inequitable cooking outcomes. To address this issue, the paper proposes an alternative solution by incorporating different designs of cookware. The paper describes the analysis and design of cookware using the finite element method to improve the temperature distribution of the cookware. This paper explains the temperature distribution and magnetic flux distribution at the bottom of the cookware. The results demonstrate that the proposed solution achieves a well-balanced trade-off between efficiency and even temperature distribution at the bottom of the induction cookware.

“I need energy to make my brain work”: Supporting children, teachers and whānau through the KidsCan ECE programme

The KidsCan ECE programme is designed to remove barriers to participation in early childhood education through the provision of raincoats, shoes, nit treatment products, lunches and snacks. Data from an evaluation of the pilot programme involved surveys and interviews with whānau and teachers. Findings showed the benefits for children’s health and attendance, although not every child experienced the same beneficial changes. This article considers some of the key findings of the evaluation in relation to participation, nutrition, wellbeing and learning and, recognising not all services have access to the KidsCan programme, discusses the potential value for all children of shared eating and cooking experiences.

Artificial intelligence software can generate residency application personal statements that program directors find acceptable and difficult to distinguish from applicant compositions

Study objectiveCreate personal statements using an artificial intelligence program for anesthesiology residency applications that residency program directors rate as acceptable. Study designGenerate two personal statements and survey program directors. SettingAnesthesiology residency training programs. InterventionsWe instructed ChatGPT, a new artificial-intelligence software program, to generate two 400-word personal statements using the common applicant experiences of involvement in athletics or gourmet cooking. MethodsWe sent the generated personal statements to anesthesia program directors and asked them if the statements were acceptable for application to their individual programs, to rate them as poor, good, or excellent, and determine if they could detect anything in the statements that indicated they were not written by an applicant. MeasurementsNinety-four program directors received and opened the survey, and 31 responded. Twenty-eight (90%) responding directors found the personal statement with athletic experience acceptable, with 22 (74%) rating it as good or excellent. Nineteen (61%) program directors did not detect anything in the statement to distinguish it from an applicant-written composition. Twenty-nine (97%) program directors found the personal statement with cooking experience acceptable, with 19 (63%) finding it good or excellent. Twenty-four (80%) directors did not detect anything in the statement to distinguish it from an applicant-written composition. ConclusionsChatGPT can create personal statements for residency applications that program directors find acceptable and difficult to differentiate from personally crafted statements. Applicants may stop using expensive contractor application services and start using artificial intelligence software to create their personal statements because of its quickness, low cost, and high quality.

Fourth-Grade Cooking and Physical Activity Intervention Reveals Associations With Cooking Experience and Sex

ObjectiveExamine the impact of Fuel for Fun: Cooking with Kids Plus Parents and Play (FFF) on children's culinary self-efficacy, attitude, fruit and vegetable (FV) preferences, physical activity (PA), and body mass index. DesignRandomized controlled trial. SettingEight elementary schools in 2 Northern Colorado districts. ParticipantsFourth-grade students; 7-month interventions: school (S.FFF)—theory-based cooking + tasting lessons, active recess, lesson-driven cafeteria promotions; or school + family (S+F.FFF) with added family nights and home activities. Main Outcome Measure(s)Cooking self-efficacy and attitudes, FV preferences, PA, and measured height/weight. AnalysisIndividual outcomes nested by classroom, school, and district and assessed > 12 months with repeated measures controlled by sex and baseline cooking experience, with a significance level of P < 0.05. ResultsThe sample included 1,428 youth, 38 teachers, 4 cohorts, 50% boys, 75% White, and 15% Hispanic. No intervention effect was observed. Those who cooked retained higher self-efficacy, attitude, and FV preferences (P < 0.001). Girls reported higher self-efficacy and attitude than boys. Moderate-to-vigorous PA and metabolic equivalent minutes increased for all students; boys retained higher levels (P < 0.001). Body mass index percentile remained stable. Conclusions and ImplicationsCooking and sex were associated with all outcome measures and should be considered for intervention tailoring. Treatment impacts were not evident nesting by classroom, school, and district. Accurate assessment of school-based interventions requires rejecting student independence from group assignment assumptions.

PS-P14-4: ACTIVITIES TO PROMOTE “ADEQUATE SALT INTAKE” IN AMAGASAKI CITY

To promote the prevention and treatment of hypertension, it is essential to educate the public. Since 2015, the city of Amagasaki, where I practice, has been conducting activities to promote health through multidisciplinary cooperation. First of all, volunteers from the Amagasaki City Medical Association gathered to form the “Amagasaki Adequate Salt Intake Promotion Committee”. Next, in a tie-up with Amagasaki City's Health Up Amagasaki Strategic Project, which has been focusing on measures against metabolic syndrome, the committee has reserved a hotel for a day to hold a hands-on forum where citizens can participate in not only lectures on health and medicine, but also a movie screening and low-sodium cooking experiences. The event has been held in a hands-on manner. In addition, active interventions have been made for a wide range of age groups, such as active intervention for particularly high-risk subjects in health checkups, health checkups by placing health checkup vehicles in convenience store parking lots for younger generations who are less likely to receive checkups, and 2.2 g salt equivalent school lunches. In particular, forums for citizens, dentists, pharmacists, nurses, dietitians, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, universities, the Japanese Association of Hypertension, and Amagasaki City Administration have worked together to devise new approaches every year for four years, which have resulted in the participation of a large number of citizens. The key point is that we aimed to create a social environment in which salt reduction can be implemented as a matter of course in society, rather than relying solely on the efforts of individuals. Another feature of the event was that it was not targeted only at the elderly, who are highly interested in health, but was also designed to be an interactive event that young people can participate in with their children. In the future, we plan to continue our efforts with our colleagues to build a future in which “Adequate Salt Intake” is a part of daily life, while involving more industries.

Abstracts Teaching Kitchen Research Conference Los Angeles, California October 18–19, 2022

Abstracts Teaching Kitchen Research Conference Los Angeles, California <i>October 18–19, 2022</i>

Trends of Augmented Reality for Agri-Food Applications.

Recent years have witnessed an increasing interest in deploying state-of-the-art augmented reality (AR) head-mounted displays (HMDs) for agri-food applications. The benefits of AR HMDs to agri-food industry stakeholders (e.g., food suppliers, retail/food service) have received growing attention and recognition. AR HMDs enable users to make healthier dietary choices, experience novel changes in their perception of taste, enhance the cooking and food shopping experience, improve productivity at work and enhance the implementation of precision farming. Therefore, although development costs are still high, the case for integration of AR in food chains appears to be compelling. This review will present the most recent developments of AR HMDs for agri-food relevant applications. The summarized applications can be clustered into different themes: (1) dietary and food nutrition assessment; (2) food sensory science; (3) changing the eating environment; (4) retail food chain applications; (5) enhancing the cooking experience; (6) food-related training and learning; and (7) food production and precision farming. Limitations of current practices will be highlighted, along with some proposed applications.

Preparing the Future Nutrition Professional: Culinary-Focused Summer Internship for Nutrition Undergraduates

ObjectivesWe hypothesize that a culinary-focused summer internship for nutrition undergraduate students will increase their will and capacity to work in community settings to promote healthful and culturally appropriate eating patterns. This approach brings together the strong foundational science knowledge of nutrition, the art of culinary, and the interface of food, culture, and health. The specific aims include:•Increase knowledge of culinary aspects of ancient whole grains in mixed dishes•Increase knowledge of culinary wellness and aspects of working in a multicultural community•Transdisciplinary opportunities to better understand food environments•Transferable skill development MethodsThe Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) identified significant gaps in nutrition education related to culinary and culture. By creating a three-prong approach consisting of nutrition, culinary, and community, students can better understand the interaction between food, health, and culture. While practical cooking experience provides the foundation, it is insufficient for dietitians to be effective with clients especially related to unfamiliar foods and dishes. Four nutrition undergraduate students, two nutrition graduate students, and a local community chef participated in a 13-week summer internship. There were 6-weeks of virtual culinary modules followed by a week of training in a commercial kitchen. Students used culinary techniques to create ancient whole grain dishes, replace salt with spice combinations, and practiced plating techniques. Students used their new knowledge in a community tasting event and to facilitate peer-to-peer teaching in an undergraduate course. ResultsUsing thematic analysis, photovoice, video transcripts, student notebook analysis, and final reflections, themes emerged in increased confidence in the kitchen and increased ability to create recipes that meet sociocultural norms and dietary guidance. Further, students were able to use culinary terms, concepts, and practices to teach peers about the interface of culinary arts and nutrition. ConclusionsThe nutrition student benefits from culinary arts experiences as it bridges nutrition science content and an understanding of consumer-related messages. Funding SourcesUniversity of Minnesota Department of Food Science and Nutrition.

A Structural Equation Model Demonstrating the Relationship between Food Safety Background, Knowledge, Attitudes and Behaviour among Swedish Students.

Traditionally, food safety knowledge has been seen as a factor in improving food safety behaviour. However, the relationship between knowledge and behavior is complex. The aim of the present study was to investigate self-reported data from 408 university students regarding food safety background, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviour using Structural Equation Model (SEM) to examine the influence of different factors on food safety behaviour. The SEM was applied to four factors derived from the data: Background, Knowledge, Attitude and Behaviour. The novelty of this current investigation is the inclusion of the Background factor (genus; experience of cooking and handling different food items; experience of a food safety education course; the foremost sources of food safety knowledge). The factors were constructed from variables with sufficient factor loadings and set up in a predetermined structure confirmed to be valid in previous studies. The results, demonstrated as regression coefficients between factors, confirm that the Background factor strongly influenced Knowledge (0.842). The Knowledge factor, in turn, strongly affected Attitude (0.605), while it did not directly affect Behaviour (0.301) in the same way as Attitude. Attitude had a stronger influence on Behaviour (0.438) than Knowledge. Thus, the Attitude factor seemed to play a mediating role between Knowledge and Behaviour. This indicates that students´ attitudes towards the importance of food safety may have an impact on their food safety behavior, which should have implications for the development of food safety education. This warrants further investigation and practical development.

Impact of clean cooking fuel adoption on women\u2019s welfare in India: the mediating role of women\u2019s autonomy

While the health and environmental benefits of adopting clean cooking fuel are widely documented in the literature, the immediate and direct benefit—women’s time-saving for fuel collection/preparation and cooking—has received little or no attention. Using panel data from 6 energy-poor Indian states involving about 9000 households, we test whether liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) adoption enhances women’s welfare by reducing fuel collection/preparation and cooking time and improving the overall cooking experience through a convenient and efficient cooking arrangement. We also explore the association between women’s participation in decision-making and the likelihood of LPG adoption and refill. The findings reveal that LPG adopters save time by collecting firewood less frequently and preparing fewer pieces of dung cake than non-adopters. Additionally, LPG adopters save 15 min of cooking time per day than non-adopters. Finally, LPG adoption makes the cooking experience more convenient and simpler than traditional cooking fuel. Women’s sole or joint decision-making power is positively correlated with LPG adoption and refilling LPG cylinders. These findings imply that the true social benefit of clean cooking fuel adoption is much greater than the welfare gain accrued through greenhouse gas mitigation and health benefits from cleaner air. However, these positive externalities are less likely to be internalized in fuel choice decisions in households where women do not participate in important household decision-making.

Modeling and Design of Cookware for Induction Heating Technology With Balanced Electromagnetic and Thermal Characteristics

Improving the cooking experience of induction-heating users involves, among other factors, an optimized power distribution at the bottom of the cooking vessel. Conventional ferromagnetic cookware presents high efficiency but unequal temperature distribution with flat inductors, which subsequently leads to uneven cooking results. In this work, we propose an alternative to the traditional cookware arrangement by inserting some aluminum pieces in the ferromagnetic bottom of cookware. This arrangement combines the optimal inductive performance of the ferromagnetic iron an the high thermal conductivity of aluminum. The performance of the proposed arrangement is analyzed by means of a multiphysics tool including electromagnetic and heat transfer sub-models which is applied to predict both the equivalent electrical circuit and the temperature distribution in cookware. As a result, a balanced trade-off between efficiency and temperature distribution is evidenced with the proposed solution. Experimental results also corroborates the predictions of the proposed solution.

Perspectives of Black and Hispanic Children Living in Under-Resourced Communities on Meal Preparation and Grocery Shopping Behaviors: Implications for Nutrition Education.

Minority children living in under-resourced communities are at the greatest risk for obesity and poor diet quality. Child involvement in meal preparation may be a helpful strategy to improve diet quality. This paper explores minority children’s perspectives regarding this. Eighteen children participated in a mixed methods study (online surveys, telephone interviews). Descriptive statistics were calculated for child demographic and psychosocial factors. Thematic analysis was used to code and analyze the interviews. Most children reported having cooking experience (83%) and cooking with family (94%) and exhibited high cooking self-efficacy (21.8 ± 2.9) and positive cooking attitudes (25.7 ± 4.4). Children reported helping with meal preparation (50%) and grocery shopping (41%) sometimes. The qualitative data further supported the results obtained from the children’s psychosocial factors. Most children noted the importance of learning to cook with an emphasis on life skills. Children also shared their level of involvement in cooking and grocery shopping. Most children reported using technology when cooking to find demonstration videos and recipes. These findings highlight that minority children participate in meal preparation and grocery shopping. Their perspectives are important for the development of nutrition education programs to achieve equitable dietary outcomes in minority families living in under-resourced communities.

Reproducibility of a Causal Relationship Model for Elementary School Students’ Cooking Experience and Self-esteem, Dietary Concept, and Interest in School Subjects

Reproducibility of a Causal Relationship Model for Elementary School Students’ Cooking Experience and Self-esteem, Dietary Concept, and Interest in School Subjects

ECooking: Challenges and Opportunities from a Consumer Behaviour Perspective

New opportunities are opening for electric cooking (eCooking) as a cost-effective, practical and desirable solution to the twin global challenges of clean cooking and electrification. Globally, momentum is building behind the transformative potential of eCooking to achieve a range of environmental and social impacts. However, cooking is a complex, culturally embedded practice, that results in an array of behavioural change challenges that must be understood and overcome for these new opportunities to translate into impact at scale. The Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS) programme was designed to explore this space and pilot innovative new eCooking services with the potential to rapidly scale. This paper reflects upon the programme’s key learnings to date on the behavioural change dimension of eCooking. It consolidates what we now know on the subject and highlights the gaps that remain, where further investigation is needed. The evidence shows that the uptake of eCooking can be hindered by (often false) perceptions around cost, taste and safety, the high cost and steep learning curve for new appliances, the lack of awareness/availability/after-sales service for energy-efficient appliances and the reluctance of male decision-makers to authorise appliance purchases. However, it also shows that the convenience and potential cost savings offered by energy-efficient appliances can offer an aspirational cooking experience and that uptake could be driven forward rapidly by urbanisation and changing lifestyles.

Nutrition Education, Hands-on Cooking and Financial Incentives to Change Purchasing Behaviors in a Low Socioeconomic Status Population: A Community-Based Study Protocol

ObjectivesSocioeconomically disadvantaged populations are more likely to have both low nutrition literacy and low cooking efficacy. This combination often results in a high consumption of convenience foods that are typically energy-dense, nutrient poor, and promote the development or exacerbation of chronic disease. The objective of this study is to examine the effect of nutrition education, hands-on cooking practices, and financial incentives on grocery purchasing behaviors and diet quality in a low-income community. MethodsForty participants will receive nutrition education and hands-on cooking experiences through a 10-week nutrition education program via Zoom. An instructor will teach participants a nutrition topic and then prepare and cook a related meal with them. Participants will be notified of the recipe prior to class, and required foods will be provided for those participants who are unable to afford them. Participants will also receive discounts on food items labeled as “Live HealthSmart Foods” (LHS) at the Village Market grocery store in the East Lake neighborhood of Birmingham, Alabama. LHS foods include fresh, frozen or canned fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins, and low-fat or fat-free dairy products. Participants will use a unique pin code to receive the discount and their account will be examined for trends in their shopping behaviors. Main outcomes of interest include proportion of LHS foods purchased, dietary intake measured by a food frequency questionnaire and changes in nutrition literacy and cooking efficacy. ResultsStudy results will indicate 1) if there is a synergistic effect of nutrition education, hands-on cooking practices, and financial incentives on grocery purchasing behaviors and 2) how the intervention influences diet quality. ConclusionsResults will also inform our endeavor of expanding the territory of the Live HealthSmart food model in a randomized community-based trial investigating the intervention’s potential for translation and implementation in a wider and more diverse community setting. Funding SourcesThis work was supported by the Live HealthSmart Alabama initiative, the Cooking Well nutrition program, Village Market, Albert Schweitzer Fellowship and the University of Alabama at Birmingham.