London – Friday, December 6, 2024: As Christmas draws closer, new research from Samsung found that leftovers are a consistent headache for Christmas cooks, keeping our fridges jam-packed throughout the festive season, with one in four (80%) of households admitting to being left with surplus supplies after the main Christmas dinner or lunch.

Turkey was the main offender, with one in four households having leftovers, followed by the humble potato and the much-maligned Brussel sprout.  Gravy, carrots, and chocolates tie at 15%, while indulgent treats like Christmas cake (14%) and cheese (13%) also make the list.

The top ten ingredients most commonly leftover:

1. Turkey (25%)
2. Potatoes (20%)
3. Brussel sprouts (16%)
4. Gravy (15%)
5. Carrots (15%)
6. Chocolates (15%)
7. Christmas Cake (14%)
8. Stuffing (14%)
9. Chicken (13%)
10. Cheese (13%)

From Surplus to Scrumptious: How Samsung Food Transforms Christmas Leftovers

To solve Christmas cooking challenges, Samsung’s innovative home appliances can take the stress out of every Christmas meal, whether cooking fresh or with leftovers, leaving hosts to enjoy the day with family and friends. From smart appliances like Samsung’s Dual Cook oven that allows different dishes to be cooked at different temperatures or for different lengths of time, through to innovative AI-powered solutions that automates cooking decisions, Christmas can be prepped on autopilot.

Dan Barfield, Director of Digital Appliances at Samsung Electronics UK and Ireland, said: “If you are hosting at Christmas it can often feel like a never-ending task, with preparation for the main Christmas dinner starting days, if not weeks, beforehand. Every year we face the same challenges around the big day – striving to make the dishes we share perfect and on time, for friends and family.

“That’s why our latest features focus on how we can make our customers’ lives easier. Whether it’s leftover menu inspiration, checking the oven whilst you watch the Christmas movie, or cooking two different dishes at different temperatures in the same oven, our innovative features can take the stress out of any cooking endeavour. It’s just like having your very own sous chef!”

• Your own personal sous chef with AI Pro Cooking: Available on the latest Samsung models, it optimises cooking settings, recommends mode, temperature, and time for recognised dishes, and allows real-time monitoring via the SmartThings App’s View Inside feature.

• Dual Cook Steam Oven turns two cooking tasks into one: With two independent cooking zones, it lets you cook multiple dishes at different temperatures without flavour transfer, ideal for turkey and dessert prep. Energy-efficient features reduce usage by over 25% and preheat 52% faster^[1], saving time and streamlining holiday cooking.

• Samsung fridges deliver maximum flexibility when space is at a premium: When it comes to keeping a stocked-up fridge fresh, Samsung fridges are perfect for busy kitchens at Christmas, combining innovative features to maximise freshness and storage. Humidity Fresh crisper drawers preserve fruits and vegetables with adjustable settings, while Space Max technology offers increased capacity without increasing external size^[2]. Twin Cooling Plus ensures separate cooling for fridge and freezer, preventing flavour crossover, while Smart Conversion lets you switch the freezer to fridge mode—ideal for hosting large groups during the festive season. Select models also feature AI Vision Inside, an internal camera^[3] that can identify certain fresh food items^[4] when put in or taken out and allows you to manage a food list, helping to reduce waste.

• The Samsung Food app provides effortless menu inspiration – an AI-powered, personalised food and recipe platform available across multiple devices including your phone, tablet and TV and on Android or iOS – can help Christmas cooks plan each meal, compile ingredient lists, compare prices for shopping across popular supermarkets, and even adapt recipes to cater for different dietary requirements.

[1] 25.3% energy savings and 52% faster pre-heating based on using only the top half of the oven. Internal testing on Series 5 NV7B5675LAK, upper vs. whole compartment for small cake baking at convection 165℃  (IEC-60350)

[2] Samsung fridge freezer capacity is 84.5L larger than the market average capacity based on all other wide combi models in the market (70-83cm width) sold in major UK retailers from February 2024. UK shopping bag average of 19.1L capacity.

[3] Red light will turn on when camera is working. User’s appearance can be captured, but surroundings other than food item will be automatically blurred.

[4] As of March 2024, AI Vision Inside can recognize 33 food items. If the food is not recognisable, it may be listed as unknown item. AI Vision Inside cannot identify or list any food items in the fridge door bins or freezer. It recognises food items based on deep learning models, which may be updated periodically to improve accuracy.

When it comes to viral food trends the nation have built into their cooking routine, air frying came out top, with four in 10 UK adults (42%) now using air frying as a healthier option to deep fry food. Chips (39%), chicken (38%) and potatoes (33%) are the most popular foods to air fry, followed by less obvious foods such as salmon (19%), meatballs (19%) and steak (18%). Whilst sweet treats, such as cookies (25%) and donuts (16%), are also popular to cook in an air fryer.

In terms of gender, more women (45%) then men (38%) air fry their food, with the 18 to 24-year-olds age group air frying the most (62%). Regionally, those living in London have built air frying into their cooking routine (59%) more than anywhere else, followed by residents in the North West (49%) and North East (48%) of England.

To give the nation some air frying inspiration, Samsung’s teamed up with Jenny Tschiesche, author of Sunday Times Bestseller ‘Air Fryer Cookbook’ – which features 101 delicious, tried-and-tested recipes to help you get the most out of your air-fryer – to share her top five air frying hacks:

1. If you would like to cook something but only have oven cooking instructions, fear not. You can reduce the cooking time and the temperature as follows:
   • Reduce the temperature by 20º.
   • Reduce the cooking length by 20%.

2. You can air fry in baking sheets and trays. Not everything is best cooked straight on the air fryer rack. Foods that lend themselves best to being cooked in a baking sheet or tray include flapjacks, gratin dishes and anything with a sauce.
3. Space out your food. The most efficient and effective air frying happens when there is space between food items so that hot air can circulate all around it and cook the food evenly.
4. Invest in a digital food thermometer. This one tool will give you confidence when air frying. Air frying is a new way of cooking for many and knowing that your food is cooked to a safe temperature is reassuring. Here’s a useful table to help:

5. Buy a pair of tongs for turning food such as kebabs, burgers, croquettes, nuggets, and breaded fish for even cooking. Those with silicone tips will be the easiest to clean.

Other viral trends the nation are looking to build into their cooking routines include meal prepping (30%), meat free meals (26%) and ‘mindful cooking’ (20%), which involves tuning into the sights, sounds, smells, and textures of the culinary task at hand. Whilst some of the nation’s top cooking hacks and trends include creating butter boards (17%), using a ricer or food mill to grind potatoes (23%) and roasting a whole garlic (20%).

When it comes to the reasons why people use viral cooking hacks and make recipes they see online, creating more affordable meals (53%), simplifying the cooking experience (44%) and wanting to save time in the kitchen (43%) ranked top. Whilst others said they do so to streamline the cooking process (40%), create healthier meals (39%) and impress friends and family (23%).

Dan Harvie, VP, Head of Home Appliances, Samsung Electronics (UK) Ltd., said: “We know the impact cooking hacks and recipes found on platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and Facebook have on our customers cooking routines, which is why we continually innovate and introduce new features to meet changing lifestyle needs, such as air frying.

“Earlier this year, we launched the 5 and 6 series cooking appliances, including multiple ovens which come with an air frying function built in, helping to promote healthy eating. Simply place food on the tray and use the Air Fry mode to cook food using a little oil and without a deep fryer. Plus, with SmartThings Cooking, you can get personalised recipes and a weekly meal plan that promote healthy eating, ensuring you always stay on track.”

Air Fry mode on the 5 and 6 series ovens by Samsung

Discover the full range of Samsung ovens and cooking appliances on https://www.samsung.com/uk/cooking-appliances/all-cooking-appliances.

Overcooking or undercooking food topped the list as the most common cooking ‘faux pas’ (20%), closely followed by messing up timings of when to cook everything (19%) and burning the food (18%). Despite being in a relationship, some Brits surprisingly admitted to cooking a dish their partner doesn’t like (15%) or forgetting their loved-one is allergic to an ingredient they have used (15%).

The study by Samsung, to support their innovative Dual Cook Flex ovens, also revealed that fillet steak is likely to feature on many dinner tables this Valentine’s Day, with one in five Brits (20%) saying it’s their all-time favourite dinner date dish. However, Gen Zs did not agree, with a veggie curry topping the list (13%) for their age group.

The research highlighted the growing demand for ‘dine in for two’ style packages, with nearly one in five (17%) Brits planning to purchase one of the packages to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year.

When it came to date night turn offs, talking about ex partners topped the list (33%), followed by work chat (33%), poor table manners (32%) and cheesy music (19%).

To help couples this Valentine’s Day, Samsung enlisted the help of leading dating expert, Sarah Louise Ryan, to provide her top tips on how to have a memorable Valentine’s Day dinner at home, including how to avoid common mishaps and ensure there are no kitchen or oven cooking dramas.

1. Dress to impress – after a couple of years in our favourite jogging bottoms, Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to pull out all the stops to feel good on the inside and look good on the outside. Dress to impress if you really want to set the date night scene.
2. Plan food ahead – you don’t want to have any last-minute hiccups with a missing ingredient or two, so plan what you’re both making ahead of time to make cooking hassle free.

3. You may want to make different dishes – why don’t you both mix it up by cooking a dish each? So your partner could take the starter and dessert, whilst you tackle the main course?
4. Work as a dream team as you’re working to dish up the romance – it may be the case that one of you is a dab-hand in the kitchen and the other one hasn’t the foggiest clue what to do. Practice lots of patience with one another to keep the flame of the evening firing away, and if needs be, maybe allocate a Chef and a Sous Chef.

5. Keep all work chat off the table – so many couples use date night as a time to plan and catch up on life admin and the seemingly mundane. Challenge yourself and each other to keep chit chat to strictly all things romance and about you two as a couple.

6. Topics to talk about – look at planning a holiday, your next weekend trip together or your weekly/monthly date nights. Think about things you’d want to do spontaneously or whilst planning ahead.
7. Keeping date night exciting – create a date jar where each of you writes down many things on multiple pieces of paper that you would like to do on your date nights – scrunch them up and pull them out one at a time on each date night alternately.
8. Dishing up dessert – why not rustle up a trio of desserts for you to share as you finish off your at home Valentine’s Day dining experience?
9. Keeping the night going – think about watching a movie together or playing a game or two for you competitive few. If you’ve been a dream team in the kitchen perhaps you want to set each other to task with competitive spirit. Or for those of you that are ready to wind down, simply relax on the sofa.
10. Make sure you have fun – Valentine’s Day Date night needn’t be a pressure cooker event. Do it the way you and your partner want to do it, keep it light and fun and playful and exciting. You both deserve to let your hair down and laugh, and who better to do that with than your significant other?

Samsung’s innovative Dual Cook Flex ovens are the perfect appliance to have in your kitchen for everyday use and special occasions such as this Valentine’s Day. With a flexible door and the ability to cook efficiently at two different temperatures and settings within a single cavity, the oven provides endless cooking combinations and ensures you can say goodbye to mealtime dramas.

For more information on Samsung’s cooking appliances, please visit: https://www.samsung.com/uk/cooking-appliances/

LONDON, England –18^th February 2021 – Shake up dinner time with the Samsung KX connected culinary experience; a snappy cooking demo hosted in collaboration with award-winning restaurant, Hoppers King’s Cross.

Famous for its Sri Lankan and South Indian cuisine, guests across the UK are invited to tune in for epic food inspiration with Hoppers Director, Karan Gokani, who rustles up signature dish, ‘Banana Leaf Bream’. Boasting a show stopping spicy fish supper, this recipe guarantees to get taste buds tingling.

This marks part one in the ‘Restaurants from Home with Samsung KX’ series, which will see local chefs and restaurateurs revealing how to create the nation’s top dine out dishes, powered by the latest Samsung technology, for viewers to try at home.

Karan demonstrates the seamlessness of connected cooking by remotely controlling the temperature of the Samsung Dual Cook Flex  oven, thanks to the power of Samsung SmartThings.

Once the hard work is done, guests can expect mouth-watering snaps of his final dish captured using food mode with the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, a flagship for the bold that pushes the boundaries of what a smartphone can do. This cutting-edge new device offers a best-in-class epic camera experience, with Samsung’s most advanced pro-grade camera system, enabling users to capture stunning, studio-quality photos in various settings, or shoot and edit videos with a toolbox of new AI-powered features that elevate every shot.

Karan shares his top tips for enhancing the at-home Hoppers experience:

• Compliment the spices of the fish dish with a zingy side salad, tossing the leaves with punchy flavours such as root ginger and fresh lime. Pair with a chilled bottle of dry Riesling for the ultimate finish.

• If you’re going all out with three courses, ensure that you include a cold starter, keeping your Bream on a low temperature whilst you eat, and have a pre-prepared dessert. In fact, if you have a Samsung Dual Cook Flex , the dual door system allows you to cook two dishes at different temperatures so you can bake your sweet treat, whilst your main keeps warm!

• If you are making this for a special occasion, you can elevate the setting with some bright florals, candles and focus on the finer details such as tying the cutlery into a bundle with ribbon for a focal point on your plate. Most importantly, have good music to set the mood. For a fully immersive Hoppers experience, we’ve shared a link to our favourite playlist!

Watch this easy how-to demo available now on the Samsung KX Hub. The full ingredients and equipment list to recreate the dish is listed below:

Hopper’s Banana Leaf Bream (Serves two)

• 1 whole sea bream scaled and gutted, or 2 fillets
• 150g fresh coriander
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1-inch ginger
• 1 green chillies
• 1 stem fresh lemongrass, (remove the drier, huskier layers and use only the first 2-3 inches of the white bit at the bottom)
• 3 tbsp fresh grated coconut, or 2 tbsp desiccated coconut soaked for 30 mins
• 6-8 curry leaves (ideally fresh)
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1 cardamom pod, seeds only
• ½ tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 tsp tamarind paste
• 1/3 tsp sugar
• 1 tbsp coconut oil, or any neutral oil
• 1/2 lime, juiced
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 lime, to serve
• 1 large fresh Banana Leaf (you can use baking paper if you can’t find fresh banana leaves)
• Kitchen Foil
• A food processor or blender
• Side salad of your choice and bottle of Riesling (optional)

*Please note all production activity supports social distancing, in line with government guidelines.

London, UK – 25^th May 2020 –Samsung Electronics UK Ltd. today released new research that shows how Brits have become a budding nation of amateur chefs in recent weeks.

The poll of 1,500 UK adults shows how cooking has risen in popularity, with nearly half of respondents (49%) saying that they are currently cooking more than usual. From batch cooking and basic baking through to not-so-perfect puddings, Brits are upping the ante in the kitchen and experimenting more with new recipes. Cakes top the list of foods that Brits are experimenting with (47%), followed by main meals (42%) with puddings and desserts coming in third at 29% – and when it comes to these main meals Brits are really mixing it up!

According to the research the nation has been cooking a variety of different dishes in recent weeks. While British food is still often the order of the day with 66% saying that they are cooking more traditional recipes, 53% are also cooking more Italian food and 32% more Indian. The top five cuisines are then completed by Chinese (27%) and Mediterranean (23%). But just why are we getting more creative in the kitchen?

“I think that cooking and baking is something that lots of people want to do more of, but it is difficult to find the time. In recent weeks that has clearly changed, so I’m not surprised that people are doing more of it,” explains Bake Off star and 2019 winner David Atherton. “Cooking is also a fantastic thing to turn to when you need a distraction, whether it’s an elaborate cake or flavoursome meal, because the art of cooking can be totally absorbing. Personally, I find it helps me to escape from reality and get some much-needed headspace. It’s also something you can get really creative with, plus it has a tangible result – when your food comes out the oven you get a real sense of achievement, as though you’ve done something productive with your time. The best bit by far is that you can then reward yourself by eating your creation!”

It’s clear that many Brits are also recognising the benefits of keeping calm and cooking on, with three quarters saying that they hope to continue cooking more in future.

The growing phenomenon is only serving to reinforce that the kitchen really is the heart of the home, with almost 3 in 5 Brits agreeing that they believe this to be true. Similarly, 62% agree that the oven specifically is the hero of the kitchen, making it by default, the unsung hero of the home!

Food is also helping to bring the household together during these times, with 48% of multiple person households saying that they are sitting down to eat together more often. But while they may be eating at the same time, they are not necessarily eating the same meals. In fact, 30% are cooking more than one main meal a day to cater to different taste preferences, while 20% are cooking more than one main meal due to having different dietary requirements within their household. Fortunately, with appliances such as the Samsung Dual Cook Flex oven, this needn’t present too much of a problem.

“People often want to cook more than one thing at a time, whether that’s multiple courses, different meals due to taste preferences or dietary requirements, or because they are batch cooking multiple meals at one time,” explains Ruth Storey, Head of Marketing, Home Appliances, Samsung Electronics UK Ltd. “That’s why Samsung has developed its Dual Cook Flex range which gives you the ultimate flexibility in the kitchen. Offering the opportunity to divide the oven into two, so you can steam your fish or bake your cake all in the same oven at the same time, with no transfer of odours or tastes.”

Top 5 cuisines that Brits are cooking more of

1. English
2. Italian
3. Indian
4. Chinese
5. Mediterranean