Great British roast debates revealed as EDF supercharges Sundays with free electricity
- Nearly half of Brits (41%) have argued with family and friends about what belongs on a traditional Sunday roast dinner
- Gravy (29%) and mashed potatoes (24%) are top points of contention for these dining debates - and one in 10 (10%) shockingly believe that eggs should be part of a Sunday roast
- With the average roast taking 2–4 hours to cook, three quarters of Brits are more conscious of the cost of cooking a roast now compared to five years ago
- To help, EDF is offering up to 16 hours of free electricity on Sundays for customers who take part in its Sunday Saver challenge
- TV personality, Jake Quickenden and wife, Sophie, have teamed up with EDF to see if cooking with free electricity can help solve some of Britain’s biggest roast debates
Roast dinner season is now in full swing and with over half of the country having already settled down for the nation’s favourite winter warmer, debates about what belongs on the plate are back on the agenda.
New research, conducted by EDF to mark its new Sunday Saver challenge, which rewards those taking part with free electricity on Sundays for reducing their use during the weekday peaks, found that 41% were divided about what should be served up.
Among the unusual roast dinner sides were garlic bread (10%), tomato ketchup (11%), and an adventurous one in 10 even adding eggs. Other top points of contention are gravy, with 72% opting for a thick gravy versus a mere 15% who prefer a thin jus - and vegetables, which saw a split between the 36% who say they should be seasonal and roasted, while 31% say boiled and 31% prefer steamed.
To supercharge Sundays for the nation this winter, EDF is giving free electricity to customers who sign up to take part in its Sunday Saver challenge and use less electricity during weekday peak hours (4pm-7pm). Households who reduce their usage in peak hours by just 10% will earn four hours of free electricity on Sunday, enough to cook a roast with all the trimmings. Customers could earn up to a huge 144 hours of free electricity between November and December.
The opportunity to save will come as good news to many, with nearly half (49%) of households considering Sunday the most important day of the week, and the 79% who say a traditional Sunday roast is an important family bonding experience. Knowing they could roast for less (or free) brings peace of mind for the majority of Brits, and 71% would embrace the weekly tradition even more without worrying about the cost of energy.
Given the opportunity to supercharge their roast with free Sunday electricity, a third would opt to slow-cook their meat, while almost a quarter (24%) would make a dessert as well, and 19% would avoid shortcuts and make their gravy from scratch.
There is also a north-south divide with 38% of those in the south firmly believe mash has no place on a roast, while almost three-quarters (74%) of northerners wouldn’t even consider eating a roast without it.
But one thing the nation can agree on is the time and effort it takes to serve up a Sunday roast, with the average feast taking 2–4 hours to cook (75%). Three quarters admit that they consider the cost of cooking a roast more now than they did five years ago, while a huge 85% say they explore more energy efficient ways to cook – including over half (58%) who now use an air fryer.
To mark the launch of the Sunday Saver challenge, EDF teamed up with roast lovers, Jake and Sophie Quickenden, to see if cooking with free electricity could help to solve the nation’s top Sunday dinner debates.
TV personalities, Jake and Sophie Quickenden, said: “As a family, taking time to come together to enjoy Sunday lunch without distractions has always been part of our routine, but we definitely don’t always agree on what a perfect roast looks like. When EDF told us we weren’t alone, we jumped at the chance to test out some of the nation’s biggest dining disagreements. And, while we still can’t quite see eye to eye on whether mash belongs on a roast or not, one thing we do agree on is that after using less during the week, free Sunday electricity made the process a whole lot more enjoyable.”
The top 10 debates Brits have when it comes to Sunday roasting are:
- Thick versus thin gravy (29%)
- Roasties versus mashed potato (24%)
- If Pigs in Blankets belong on a roast outside of December (24%)
- If Yorkshire puddings go with every meat (23%)
- If stuffing belongs on a roast (23%)
- Roasted versus steamed versus boiled vegetables (23%)
- If tomato ketchup belongs on a roast (22%)
- If gravy goes all over, or just on certain ingredients (21%)
- Granules versus homemade gravy (21%)
- If you mix n match meats and condiments (18%)
Rich Hughes, Director of Retail at EDF said: “As a nation, 83% of us would change how we use our electricity if we knew there would be a financial benefit. We also know that Sunday is the most special day of the week for almost half of us and most (79%) consider it the ultimate time to bond with family. That’s why we’ve created Sunday Saver, offering free electricity on Sundays - because at EDF, change is in our power.
“With Winter on the horizon, our new Sunday Saver challenge will enable more people to do the things they love at home on a Sunday - like cook a hearty roast - for free, saving them cash on their bills and reducing their carbon footprint.”
Find out more about EDF’s Sunday Saver challenge and how to earn free electricity on a Sunday.
About EDF
EDF is driving the transition towards An Electric Britain – a secure, affordable, low-carbon future for everyone. As Britain’s biggest generator of zero carbon electricity, we are investing more than £100 million weekly in Britain’s electricity infrastructure. We supply millions of customers with electricity and help homes and businesses switch to electricity for heating, transport and industrial processes.
We operate five nuclear power stations and more than 35 onshore wind farms and three offshore wind farms. Since 2009, EDF has invested almost £9 billion in the nuclear fleet to improve reliability and extend station lifetimes. The five generating stations currently supply about 12% of the UK’s electricity demand.
EDF is building the UK's nuclear renaissance with the construction of a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point C. We are a minority investor (12.5%) in and major supplier to a replica plant at Sizewell C in Suffolk. Hinkley Point C and Sizewell C will provide low carbon electricity to meet 14% of UK demand and power around 12 million homes. EDF Group companies Framatome and Arabelle Solutions have a presence in the UK and manufacture critical equipment such as reactor pressure vessels and turbines.
EDF is enabling its 5 million customers, both in business and at home, to choose electric solutions that save cash and carbon, whether it is buying an electric car, generating and storing electricity, selling energy back to the grid or installing solar panels or a heat pump. In 2025, EDF’s Customers business was ranked as one of the Sunday Times’s Best Place to Work.
It is also one of the UK’s leading developers of renewable energy through EDF power solutions UK and Ireland. We have more than 2GW of renewable generation in operation and over 10GW in construction, planning and development across a range of technologies including onshore and offshore wind, solar and battery storage.
We are one of the largest suppliers to British business and a leading supplier of innovative energy solutions that are helping businesses become more energy independent. In addition, the company’s energy services business, Dalkia, one of the UK and Ireland’s largest technical service providers.
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