Half (50%) of Northerners say they “love” eating spicy food – with a quarter (23%) believing they are “very good” when it comes to facing the heat
Author: PA ReportersPublished 1 hour ago
Northerners are more confident when it comes to eating hot and spicy food compared to Southerners, according to new research.
Half (50%) of Northerners say they “love” eating spicy food – with a quarter (23%) believing they are “very good” when it comes to facing the heat, compared to Southerners – with 40% enjoying hot food, and just 14% believing they can handle the spice.
And six in 10 (59%) Northerners take their fiery tastes to another level, going as far as putting additional hot sauce and chilli onto their dish, even if it’s the hottest item on the menu, compared to 45% of Southerners.
When it comes to regions of the UK where spicy food is most beloved, Northern cities topped the list, with Manchester (74%) at number one, followed by Sheffield (72%), Birmingham (70%), Leeds (68%) and Liverpool (67%).
The findings come from the new Wingstop Heat Index, a nationwide study of 2,000 UK adults commissioned by Wingstop UKI.
And when asked about hot wings in particular, over half (52%) of Northerners are confident they could triumph at a hot wing eating contest, compared to 39% of Southerners.
But across all regions of the UK, almost half (48%) of hot food aficionados try to “out spice” their companions when ordering, despite 68% admitting they regretted doing so.
A large portion of respondents like to mix spice with other flavours – with eight in 10 (78%) embracing sweet and spicy combinations. Sweet chilli sauce (64%), hot honey (41%), teriyaki (31%), honey sriracha (21%) and mango habanero (19%) top the list.
Chris Sherriff, CEO at Wingstop UKI, said: “Hot Honey has been a fan favourite since we launched it last year, and it’s easy to see why – why choose between sweet and spicy when you can have both?
“I have to admit, I was surprised to see Birmingham only come third! Growing up enjoying plenty of spice, I’d have backed Brum to take the top spot. Clearly, there’s some healthy competition out there.
“Our new Hot Honey Sriracha turns things up a notch, bringing together sweet honey and a proper Sriracha kick. We’ve had a lot of fun with this one, and we can’t wait to hear what fans think.”
Hot Honey and Hot Honey Sriracha are available now at Wingstop restaurants across the UK and Ireland and on Deliveroo from September 30 for 90 days only.
