The UK has become a nation of foodies, with increasingly sophisticated tastes and an appetite for world cuisines. Witness all the TV food programmes and cookery books, the celebrity status of many chefs, the popularity of farmers' markets and regional food fairs, the trend in food related travel and the money we spend on doing up kitchens.

　　Jamie Oliver won massive support for his campaign for improved standards in school dinners and Gillian McKeith had phenomenal success from her 'you are what you eat' approach to eating. And yet, we are also labelled a bad food nation.

　　The ready meal boom

　　The UK eats the most ready meals in Europe. Pizza, pasta, oven chips all quickly re-heated and no messing. Supermarkets and convenience stores display a dazzling range – the more exotic the better.

　　Julia Michna, head of 'meal solutions' at Marks and Spencer observes that 'Britain's multiculturalism [means] ethnic cuisines, which people are often scared of cooking from scratch, are far more popular.

　　One quarter of chilled meals are Indian, and nearly one in five is Chinese'. Only 18% of sales are for traditional British food. We want a tastier, spicier variation on the bland, standard UK diet.

　　Taste, time, trends – and talent

　　Why do ready meals seduce us? Convenience certainly; people commonly say they are too busy; they don't have enough time to cook.

　　Other relevant trends in the ready meal boom are social; as more people live alone they are less motivated to cook from scratch. Families often eat apart, and ready-meals allow them more flexibility. Lloyd, 26, from Devon, says 'I think ready meals are okay. They do what that say (give you a fast food fix).

　　My favourite is Marks and Spencer jacket potato with cheese.' Ashleigh, 22, from Downpatrick, says 'My favourites are pizza and frozen meals which I have about twice a week'

　　Our passion for ready meals is probably due to the huge variety and the quality available. We are always so busy and finding time to cook can sometimes seem like an inconvenience when there is a quick tasty alternative. Some people do still enjoy the creativity of cooking a meal from scratch though. What do you prefer?

　　Glossary

　　a foodie - (n.) : someone who is knowledgeable about food and drink

　　sophisticated (adj.) : good judgement about socailly important things

　　cuisine (n.) : a particular style of cooking e.g. French cuisine

　　a ready meal : a meal which is bought from the shop ready to be reheated and eaten without cooking. These meals are often frozen.

　　dazzling (adj.) : very impressive or attractive

　　bland (adj.) : having little taste

　　a boom (n.) : a rapid increase of business activity

　　jacket potato (n.) : a potato cooked in the oven in its skin

　　do something from scratch : begin something without using anything that existed or was prepared before