You might not have given a second thought to how you eat your chocolate biccy with a cuppa. However, new research reveals that there is actually a way to eat a chocolate-topped biscuit to have a better taste experience.
Professor Charles Spence, a food scientist at Oxford University, suggests in a new report that the best way to eat half-coated chocolate biscuits is with the cocolate side facing downwards.
The report assessed a variety of reasons why the chocolate side down may lead to a better taste experience, including the sensation of the chocolate melting directly on the tongue.
The report also suggested picking up the biscuit with the chocolate side facing upwards initially so that your brain can see the chocolate coating approaching you, before flipping it around for the ultimate multi-sensory experience.
This news may be shocking to a lot of us. McVitie's did their own research and found that 77 per cent of Chocolate Digestive eaters eat their biscuits with the chocolate coating on top.
People explained the main reasons for this including it being the way they've always eaten them (52 per cent), never thinking about eating it a different way (39 per cent) and the belief that the "chocolate is the topping", similar to how you wouldn't eat a piece of toast with the topping on the bottom (33 per cent).
However, for those who did eat their Chocolate Digestives with the chocolate facing down, 35 per cent said this was because they wanted to taste the chocolate on their tongue first.
Of this chocolate on bottom group, 15 per cent of people admitted they liked the chocolate to melt on their thumb so they could lick it off afterwards. Another 13 per cent explained that they liked to lick the chocolate first underneath the biscuit before taking a bite.
Age and location also seem to be a factor too.
Advert
The McVitie's research showed that the over 75 age group were the most open-minded out of the chocolate side up category with half saying they would be open to eating them the other way round. Whereas those aged 18-24 were the least likely to give it a try, with less than a third saying they'd be up for giving it a go.
Out of Londoners, 28 per cent were already eating the chocolate face down, as were a quarter of Birmingham residents. However, it was the Welsh who seemingly had the strongest feelings about the debate with a quarter claiming that eating chocolate side down was just "plain wrong".
I think it's only right to conduct your own scientific experiment and grab a packet to do some thorough research.
Featured Image Credit: ShutterstockTopics: Food & Drink, Chocolate, Tasty