New research by foodtv.co.uk highlights the UK public's frugality and vulgarity under the 'credit crunch': four in five UK households keep meal leftovers; but nearly a third of people confess to eating mouldy food. Chewing with your mouth open is considered the most disgusting eating habit. The economic downturn has fostered a well-documented retreat to the kitchen and the findings suggest that people are taking this opportunity to hone their cooking skills and reduce food waste.

Four in five of us often (36%) or always (45%) keep leftovers after a meal but some are making their food stretch even further. More than a third (35%) admit to eating food past its use-by date regularly and 28% confess to eating food that has gone mouldy (after removing the mouldy bits). 8% say they eat takeaways for breakfast. A DEFRA report on food packaging and labelling this week highlighted the food waste problems in the UK.

Foodtv.co.uk has teamed up with cooking talent Jun Tanaka, executive chef at Pearl Bar and Restaurant, to provide tips to home cooks. Tanaka insists that food planning helps people reduce waste and urges people to run their home kitchen like a professional kitchen. "Plan what you're going to cook, the ingredients required and number of portions, otherwise you end up wasting food. Get creative and use up what's in your fridge on time. Do a search using the ingredients you have in cupboards and get cooking," he says.

Other findings of the curvey include: More than a third of UK adults (35%) admit to licking their knives while they eat and nearly a quarter (23%) confess to using their finger to clean their plate. Nearly half UK adults (44%) say chewing with your mouth open is the most disgusting food habit; a third say eating off the floor/ground is worse and 13% say licking your plate.

Half of all UK households sit down for a roast together at least once a fortnight; with nearly a third eating a roast together every week. Meanwhile, a third (33%) of households eat meals together once a day but close to a third (28%) also watch TV while they eat.

Tasty cooking on a budget:

Two in five (39%) households say they are buying fewer ready-made sauces and salads and are cooking more meals from scratch compared to a year ago. And it seems that people actually care about what they're cooking, with half of households (51%) rating taste as the most important criterion for their family when it comes to deciding what to cook.

Tanaka's tip : Buy the freshest ingredients you can afford. After meat, processed and packaged goods are the most expensive items in your shopping trolley. Make your own. Not only will you save money but your food won't be loaded with the salt and sugar found in most pre-prepared food.

What we eat and how we eat it:

We like to think we eat healthily but for two in five (41%), the main snack is biscuits/cake, and a third (33%) chomp on chocolate between meals. Nine in 10 of us believe we're healthy but only one fifth always eat their fruit and vegetable allocation. Men are more likely to snack on unhealthy things than women.

Meanwhile, 25% say their guilty food secret is eating a packet of biscuits in one sitting and one in four (22%) confess to eating ice-cream direct from the tub. 15% admit eating huge quantities of food in one sitting and 10% put their hand up to drinking out of the milk bottle.

About Foodtv.co.uk

Developed by Scripps Networks in conjunction with UpMyStreet.com Limited, Foodtv.co.uk is an online food experience with a difference. Its recipes and videos have been developed by culinary talent worldwide. For full survey findings go to www.foodtv.co.uk.

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