We love to moan about it, but when Christmas Day comes round this year turkey will still find its way on to most of our plates, according to research published this morning.
The Bord Bia-backed Christmas survey found the turkey and ham remained the favourite option for Irish diners by farm with just 11 per cent of people opting for alternatives including beef, lamb, duck, goose, pheasant and venison, although the numbers considering meat from Rudolph’s cousins on Christmas Day of all days are said to be very small.
The traditional turkey and ham combo will eaten by 57 per cent of diners, while the fowl option on its own will be the choice of 18 per cent. Some 9 per cent of people leave it at the ham, and 4 per cent of diners will tuck into the once-traditional goose. A further 3 per cent of people will have a duck.
According to the research 28 per cent of people said turkey was their favourite Christmas foods while stuffing finished in second place on 16 per cent. Ham was one percentage point behind the stuffing while mince pies finished in fourth place on 12 per cent.
Rounding out the top five favourite Christmas Day foods was the traditional plum pudding - declared to be the nicest thing by 10 per cent of people polled. Brussels sprouts did not feature on the list.
Cork people are the biggest fans of a meat-fest, and 40 per cent of people there will be talking turkey on December 25th and 30 per cent going with ham as their favourite food.
By contrast, only 5 per cent of Dubliners said turkey was what their heart desired most. Stuffing was what did it for most people living in the capital, and 40 per cent declared it to be the king of Christmas. A further 15 per cent of Dubliners chose cranberry sauce.
The responsibility for cooking dinner on the big day still appears to rest with Mná na hÉireann, according to the study, with 63 per cent saying their wife, mother or mother-in-law were doing to do the needful. Just 16 per cent of respondents saying that husbands, fathers and fathers-in-law would be cooking this year.
The tradition of eating Christmas dinner with extended family is still popular. According to the 2006 Census, the average household size in Ireland is 2.81 persons, yet 72 per cent of respondents have said that they will share Christmas dinner with four or more people and 40 per cent said there would be six or more people sitting down to dinner in their house on December 25th .
Bord Bia has unveiled a campaign in which it is encouraging consumers to look for food with the quality mark when shopping this Christmas to ensure the meat they are buying “has been produced to the highest quality standards and can be traced back to the farm”.