Milk chocolate, cheddar and margherita pizza: Britain’s most-craved meals, according to scientists

Fish and chips is not Britain’s favorite food, scientists said today.

And even a full English is not in the top 20.

Instead, the chocolate, cheddar, and margherita pizza tops the list of the country’s most beloved treats.

Researchers questioned more than 2,000 Britons about their food preferences to create a ranking of the UK’s most wanted items.

Fish and chips, a staple of British cuisine, came in fourth, just ahead of spaghetti bolognese.

Sandwiches from McDonald’s, KFC and Pizza Hut also made the top ten.

Oranges were the most requested healthy option, ranking 13th out of a list of more than 500 foods people were asked to share their thoughts on.

At the other end of the scale was salicornia: a salty-tasting vegetable, similar to asparagus, usually served with shellfish.

How should a balanced diet be?

Meals should be based on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally whole grain, according to the NHS.

• Eat at least five servings of a variety of fruits and vegetables every day. All fresh, frozen, dried and canned fruits and vegetables count

• Base meals on potatoes, bread, rice, pasta or other starchy carbohydrates, ideally whole grains

• 30 grams of fiber a day: This is the same as eating all of the following: five servings of fruits and vegetables, two whole grain crackers, two thick slices of whole wheat bread, and one large baked potato with skin.

• Have some dairy products or dairy alternatives (such as soy drinks), choosing options that are lower in fat and sugar.

• Eat some beans, legumes, fish, eggs, meat and other protein (including two servings of fish a week, one of which should be fatty)

• Choose unsaturated oils and spreads and eat them in small amounts

• Drink six to eight cups/glasses of water a day

• Adults should have less than 6 g of salt and 20 g of saturated fat for women or 30 g for men per day

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Chicory and marrow rounded out the three least drool-worthy foods.

Researchers at Cardiff University have created a database of people’s opinions about food for other scientists to use in their own studies.

They asked 2,150 people in the UK to share their perception of the taste and healthiness of 520 foods, as well as how much they craved them.

The items, which were baked goods, savory treats, desserts, takeout, cookies, candy, fruit or vegetables, were displayed in pictures in front of them.

In the case of cravings, they were asked “How badly have you craved this food in the last seven days?”, on a scale of “not at all” to “extremely.”

The scientists then translated the responses into a score out of 100.

Milk chocolate was craved the most, on average, with a score of 59.5.

It was followed by cheddar cheese (49.6), pizza margherita (48.4), fish and chips (46.7), and spaghetti bolognese (45.7).

Other items in the top 20 included French fries, sweet chili fries, chocolate cupcakes, roast beef, a full English, and biscuits.

Samphire had a desire score of just 2.2, followed by chicory (2.7) and marrow (2.9).

The findings were published in the Open Science from the Royal Society daily.

The researchers, led by researcher Dr. Mark Randle, noted that energy-dense foods are “typically highly desired and inform subjective taste experiences and food cravings.”

They said: “These are often processed foods that are high in fat, salt or sugar, with the exception of fruit, which has been reported to be commonly craved.”

The volunteers ranked healthy foods “significantly lower” based on taste compared to junk food, the team noted.

And participants who were hungry when sharing their views on food were more likely to rank junk food higher and healthy foods lower, they said.