Factors influencing cooking method, frequency, and duration of meal preparation in Moroccan households.

Background: The construction of the consumer's identity is dependent on how they prepare their meals.

Objective: Study the cooking methods, frequency, and duration of meal preparation in Moroccan households as well as the associated factors.

Materials and methods: This work is a part of a study with a validated conceptual and methodological framework that was conducted in 507 households in the region of Rabat-Salé-Kenitra in Morocco. The characteristics of the population and data on the cooking methods, frequency, and duration of meal preparation were collected by a survey. Associations between variables were studied by univariate logistic regression with a significance level of p<0.05.

Results: The majority of the population was aged between 35 and 65 years (76%) and lived in urban areas (70%). The univariate analysis showed that the urban area was a factor that hindered stewing (p=0.009), while the work status (p=0.04) and the marital status "Married" (p=0.04) were favorable factors; the household size (p=0.02) is a factor favoring steaming method; urban area (p=0.04), work status (p 0.03), nuclear family type (p<0.001), and household size (p=0.02) are factors hindering the use of oven cooking; urban area (p=0.02) and higher education level (p=0.04) are factors favoring the use of fried food, age category [20-34] years (p=0.04), higher education level (p=0.01) and work status (p=0.01) were factors that favored the use of grilling; nuclear family type, (p=0.04) and household size (p=0.03) were factors that hindered the preparation of breakfast; urban area (p=0.03) and Arab ethnicity (p=0.04) are factors hindering snack preparation; urban area (p<0.001) is a factor favoring dinner preparation; household size (p=0.01) and use of stewing at least four times a week (p=0.002) are factors hindering meal preparation time, while use of baking (p=0.01) is a favoring factor.

Conclusion: The study results point towards the implementation of a nutritional education strategy based on combining habits, preferences, and good cooking practices.