Mom's home-cooked meals are so good that children don't even bother to eat them: When young people 'dislike' home-cooked meals

In cities like Ho Chi Minh City, food service is so convenient that many young people increasingly prefer to "eat out". Just swipe the app with simple operations to have a quick meal, sometimes not as boring as eating at home.

The trend of young people choosing to order food through apps, moving away from home-cooked meals, is becoming more and more popular - Photo: CAO MINH

Except for those who are forced to live far away from their families, there are many people who live in the same house, sleep in the same house but do not eat in the same house.

The concept of "eating out" should probably be viewed from a different angle when people like to order food to eat at home and are not keen on their mother's cooking.

First-year student Tran Gia Bao (in District 4, Ho Chi Minh City) said he likes to go out with friends to eat popular dishes, which are a trend among young people, such as spicy noodles, mixed rice, hot pot, and grilled dishes.

One touch and you have your meal

Gia Bao is not an isolated case as many young people increasingly prefer eating out to eating at home. According to a report by Momentum Works on the food delivery market in six ASEAN countries, the total value of goods of this service in Vietnam in 2023 had a growth rate of nearly 53% compared to the previous year and continued to increase strongly.

This comes from the eating habits of young people, especially generation Z. Just sit anywhere, with a phone with a food delivery app installed, you can freely choose all kinds of food with rich prices, convenient, suitable for the choices of many young people.

Online food delivery services have become an indispensable part of the daily lives of many young people. Applications such as Grab, Shopee Foods, beFood have been growing strongly, dominating the market with a traffic rate of over 40%.

Quynh Thi (in District 12, Ho Chi Minh City) shared that she orders food via delivery apps on average 6-8 times a month. "I usually order food outside when my mother is not cooking, or I order it right after work to be faster than going into the kitchen to cook, which is both tiring and cumbersome," Thi said.

There is also the idea that eating out or ordering food online is the new trend! That it will be more exciting to order and enjoy the dishes you love. This not only brings excitement but also helps the young people's taste to be more fresh because the taste is very different from the home-cooked meals which are often quite monotonous.

On days when I don't have a date to eat out with friends, I order food at home on the app. The price is not too expensive and it looks very appealing. I can count the number of home-cooked meals I have now.

TRAN GIA BAO (student in District 4, HCMC)

Where are the fans of home-cooked meals?

The meal served included braised pork with coconut water, water spinach soup, and stir-fried green beans with beef, but Thanh Hung (in Tan Binh District, Ho Chi Minh City) clicked his tongue: "Braised pork with rice again, so boring!" After saying that, he went upstairs to surf his phone. About 15 minutes later, he received a call from the delivery man bringing a portion of still-hot mixed noodles.

Whenever he doesn't feel like eating at home, Hung just naturally orders food to be delivered, or finds an excuse to go out and eat with friends despite the food his mother has cooked. "Eating with friends at any street restaurant is delicious. The food my mother cooks is mostly traditional dishes, from meat to braised fish, and occasionally switching to fried dishes, which gets boring," Hung said.

Meanwhile, Huong Nhi (in Go Vap district, Ho Chi Minh City) said that she spends 1-2 million VND per month to order food through delivery apps. Nhi said that sometimes there are discount codes so ordering food online does not cost too much. She laughed: "I find ordering food very convenient, it saves time buying ingredients and having to prepare and cook."

However, this convenience makes many young people increasingly move away from family meals and home-cooked meals are no longer the preferred choice. Nutritional quality and food hygiene and safety are issues that young people rarely pay attention to when eating out, while home-cooked meals can be completely assured with this criterion.

Not to mention the habit of consuming fast food, eating foods high in oil and fat can contribute to increasing the risk of diseases such as obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular problems.

According to market surveys, the most popular users of food delivery apps in Vietnam are often young people aged 14-22. The number of orders has grown significantly and they can quickly find their favorite dishes with a variety of options that fit their budget.

The attraction for customers is that food delivery apps always have preferential programs for users. That appeals to the psychology of customers being favored when they can enjoy delicious food while saving costs and cooking time.

Another report from digital platforms and food delivery apps shows that the majority of orders in the food category, the most ordered dishes are pure Vietnamese dishes such as rice, noodles, dried vermicelli, and bread. In which, Vietnamese rice dishes combine quite a variety of foods, the most popular is chicken dishes, which are popular in both big cities, Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi .

Mother's cooking connects family

Refusing to eat at home to eat out is not only a health issue, but also a cultural issue. Skipping family meals is like missing out on spiritual values.

A family meal is not just a way to recharge the body but also a moment to connect the family members. At least after a day of traveling to work or school, in the evening, the whole family gathers around the dinner table, chatting happily, and feels closer to each other.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/chuan-com-me-nau-con-khong-buon-an-khi-ban-tre-che-com-nha-20241202234658779.htm