People are most interested in learning how to bake banana bread and roll pizza dough from scratch in isolation during COVID-19, new data from search giant Google reveals.
Banana bread and homemade pizza were the recipes most searched for over the past 30 days, according to a Google Trends report which shows people have been looking up more recipes since the coronavirus crisis began than at any other time in history.
Comfort food is the remedy for uncertainty, with recipes for French toast, chocolate and carrot cakes and Dalgona coffee – an indulgent South Korean drink made from coffee, milk and two enormous tablespoons of sugar – falling well inside the top 10.
Simple, cheap and calorific dishes are de rigueur for life in quarantine, with fried rice and spaghetti bolognese laced with minced beef among the most searched for dinner recipes.
Comfort food is the remedy for uncertainty, with recipes for French toast and chocolate cakes falling well inside the top 10 most Googled recipes during coronavirus
1. BANANA BREAD
Banana bread has been a much-loved treat in Australian households for decades, but the pandemic has catapulted this simple staple into kitchens worldwide as the internet’s most-searched for recipe.
Cheap, fast and easy to make, Facebook groups are filling up with photos of homemade loaves and tricks for making them with a handful of pantry ingredients for anyone still deprived of essentials in the aftermath of rampant panic buying.
One woman shared her method for making the bread in a slow cooker with just three ingredients – five bananas, two and a half cups of self-raising flour and a tin of condensed milk.
She mashed the ingredients together, poured the mixture into a loaf tin and left it to bake in a slow cooker for two hours with a tea towel under the lid to catch condensation.
A much-loved treat in Australian households for decades, banana bread is officially the world’s most-searched for recipe
How to make banana cake in a slow cooker with three ingredients
1. BANANA BREAD
Banana cake has become the world’s most popular homemade desserts since lockdown began
Ingredients
* 250g self-raising flour
* One can of condensed milk
* Three very ripe, large bananas
Method
Step one: Sieve flour into a mixing bowl.
Step two: Mash the bananas until smooth and mix in to the flour along with the condense milk.
Step three: Place the mixture into a slow cooker on a high heat and leave for two hours with a tea towel under the lid.
2. PIZZA DOUGH
Frozen pizzas are still readily available in supermarkets around the world, but millions are choosing to make their own instead.
British restaurant giant Pizza Express revealed its in-house recipe for pizza dough on Monday, showing lovers of Italian cuisine how to make their own using flour, sugar, yeast and water.
The sugar and yeast should be sifted into a bowl of warm water and left to stand for 15 minutes in a warm place, until a layer of froth develops on the surface.
Flour should be added to a separate bowl. Once the froth has formed on the yeast and sugar mixture, it should be poured into the flour the flour along with a dash of olive oil.
The mixture should be cupped together using lightly floured hands until firmly bound, then rolled and kneaded for 10 minutes until soft, smooth and ready to carry whatever toppings you choose.
Frozen pizzas are still readily available in supermarkets around the world, but millions are choosing to make their own instead
3. HAND SANITISER
Google’s algorithm includes searches for DIY hand sanitiser on the recipe list, where it falls at number three.
Now symbolic of the pandemic, hand sanitiser skyrocketed in scarcity after coronavirus reached Australian shores on January 25.
Shortages persist, leading many to resort to making DIY solutions with aloe vera, a rubbing agent with alcohol content of more than 60 percent and essential oils to mask the harsh, acetone smell of the gel.
4. FRENCH TOAST
Rich, sweet and divinely indulgent, French toast is the ultimate comfort food being chosen by millions to soothe coronavirus stresses in these extraordinary times.
An Instagram search of the hashtag ‘French toast’ conjures a veritable smorgasbord of culinary delight, with 2,273,703 photos of egg soaked bread laden with maple syrup, Nutella, strawberries, bananas and crispy bacon.
Celebrity chef Curtis Stone revealed the secret to perfect French toast on his YouTube channel in September 2018.
The Australian cook said sweet brioche bread covered with milk, plenty of egg and full cream butter achieves the best results.
Rich, sweet and divinely indulgent, French toast is the ultimate comfort food being chosen by millions to soothe coronavirus stresses in these extraordinary times
5. CHOCOLATE CAKES
Usually reserved for children’s birthday parties, chocolate cakes are enjoying a moment in the sun as housebound bakers search for creative recipes in droves during lockdown.
Facebook groups and Instagram feeds are littered with chocolate souffles, mousses, tray bakes, tarts and sponge cakes, the latter which Melbourne WAG Bec Judd tried her hand last Tuesday.
Bec shared a video of herself baking a ‘child-friendly’ flourless chocolate cake with Cadbury drinking chocolate, almond meal and five eggs.
Even royalty are gorging on chocolate desserts these days.
Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 94th birthday on Monday with a tray of luscious chocolate cupcakes covered in a mixture of buttercream and royal icing, with the initials E.R. – Elizabeth Regina, which means Queen Elizabeth, iced on top.
Usually reserved for children’s birthday parties, chocolate cakes are enjoying a moment in the sun as housebound bakers search for creative recipes during lockdown. One Irish baker made this drool-inducing chocolate cookie cake from leftover Easter eggs.
‘It’s literally the easiest cake in the world to make’: On Tuesday, WAG Rebecca Judd baked a flourless chocolate cake with her children
6. DALGONA COFFEE
Dubbed ‘the internet’s new favourite drink’ by BBC Food, Dalgona coffee hit the mainstream after Korean actor Jung Il-woo shared his attempt at making the drink on TikTok in January.
Laden with full cream milk, coffee and an eye-watering two tablespoons of white sugar, the indulgent beverage contains 36 grams of sugar, 40 grams of carbohydrates and a whopping 252 calories per serve, according to Good Food Australia.
That’s more than a Snickers bar, Mars bar or a Krispy Kreme glazed doughnut.
Laden with full cream milk, coffee and an eye-watering two tablespoons of white sugar, South Korean Dalgona coffee contains 36 grams of sugar, 40 grams of carbohydrates and a whopping 252 calories per serve – more than a Krispy Kreme glazed doughnut
7. CHICKEN BREASTS
Creative ways to cook chicken breasts has been the world’s seventh most searched recipe since countries shuttered borders and businesses in mid March.
Cheap and accessible in almost every country, chicken has become the centrepiece of pastas, stir fries and curries in households worldwide.
Australians keen to get their fast food fix in lockdown have been experimenting with recipes for DIY KFC chicken dishes and sharing their creations online.
One woman said her KFC-inspired chicken wraps turned out better than the original, after she recreated the popular snack with eggs, milk, chicken broth, garlic powder, salt, pepper, flour, paprika, lemon juice and mayonnaise.
The home recipe even won over her fussy four-year-old before it was shared on the Mum’s Who Cook & Bake Facebook page.
Others made KFC style chicken wings with salt, black peppercorns, dried onion rings, garlic granules, rosemary, basil, paprika, oregano, yellow mustard seeds, thyme, tarragon and plain flour before cooking them until crispy in an air fryer.
Australians keen to get their fast food fix in lockdown have been experimenting with recipes for DIY KFC chicken dishes and sharing creations like this online
One woman said her KFC-inspired chicken wraps (right) turned out better than the original, after she recreated the popular snack with eggs, milk, chicken broth, garlic powder, salt, pepper, flour, paprika, lemon juice and mayonnaise
8. CARROT CAKE
Carrot cake has somewhat surprisingly become one of the most searched for desserts in isolation.
Time consuming and rather complex in terms of assembly and ingredients, amateur bakers blessed with more time at home than ever before are trying their hands at the recipe which creates a rich, decadent flavour if it’s followed correctly.
A large cake can be made with 250 grams of self-raising flour, two teaspoons of baking soda,200 grams of white sugar, 200 grams of brown sugar, four eggs, six carrots and dashes of salt, cinnamon and vanilla extract.
It’s best topped with a creamy frosting, which can be made from 225 grams of cream cheese, 140 grams of icing sugar, a dash of heavy whipping cream and a handful of chopped pecans for decoration.
Time consuming and rather complex in terms of assembly and ingredients, amateur bakers blessed with more time at home than ever before are now trying their hands at carrot cake
9. MINCED BEEF
With a kilo of grass-fed meat costing less than $10 in most supermarkets, it’s little wonder recipes involving ground or minced beef were the ninth most popular search as the threat of recession looms large the world over.
The versatile and inexpensive cut works well in pastas, pies, tacos and burgers, making it a fail safe inclusion on any quarantine menu.
Photos of spaghetti bolognese and Mexican chilli loaded with minced beef have been appearing in Australian Facebook cookery groups with increasing frequency over the past month.
Photos of spaghetti bolognese loaded with minced beef have been appearing in Australian Facebook cookery groups with increasing frequency over the past month
10. FRIED RICE
Rounding out the top 10, searches for fried rice have soared since coronavirus was declared a pandemic on March 11.
The simple dish can be made with almost any meat or vegetables, and is a great way of using up leftovers from the fridge or pantry which would only spoil otherwise.
One Australian woman experimenting in the kitchen whipped up a batch of fried rice in a slow cooker from white rice, chicken stock, peanut oil, brown onion bacon and egg.
Her recipe was praised by thousands after she posted it in a Facebook group, with many calling it ‘genius’ and ‘better than any takeaway’.
An Australian woman experimenting in the kitchen during isolation whipped up this tasty batch of fried rice in a slow cooker, from white rice, chicken stock, peanut oil, brown onion bacon and egg