Sensory-Informed Evaluation Method for Use With Peer Educators of Nutrition Education Programs

Determine acceptance of unfamiliar recipes and investigate the practicality of a hybrid (remote and in-office) method of evaluating recipes.

Peer educators from the University of Georgia's Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program-Education programs used a hybrid home-use test method to evaluate 8 recipes before and after preparation and tasting. We collected perceived and actual measures of recipe acceptance. The main outcomes included overall liking and preparation behaviors, analyzed using nonparametric approaches.

No significant differences (P > 0.05) were found between prepreparation and postpreparation overall liking or preparation behaviors for each recipe, supporting the practicality of the method. Liking of recipe preparation exceeded 7 out of 9 for all recipes, but ratings for recipe preparation willingness and perceived program participant ratings decreased after tasting.

Although tasting new recipes is necessary to determine specific modifications, a hybrid recipe evaluation format is practical for introducing new recipes to peer educators when resources are limited.