Bacon has been named the UK's favourite ingredient in a fry up, according to new research.

The study, conducted by Foodhub, one of the leading online food ordering platforms, investigated the UK's fry up habits in celebration of National Fry Up Day, and the Hungry Hack is not going to disagree.

We know how much you on the Shotley peninsula enjoy a good old-fashioned English breakfast, and before the pandemic struck the Hungry Hack went in search of the very best our area served up.

That appetite for investigative journalism of the food kind has not been sated and HH will be back undercover in 2022 from Brantham to Shotley and all points in between.

*Scroll on main picture for more breakfasts from the peninsula

Meanwhile, more than half of Brits (55%) crowned bacon as the best item on a fry up, with eggs closely following behind (54%) and sausage coming in third (43%).

At the bottom end of the scale, black pudding was voted the nation's least favourite ingredient in a full English, with nearly a third (30%) saying they would remove the controversial option.

In the fiercest and most controversial breakfast debate - red vs brown sauce - ketchup came out on top. Four in ten would opt for the tomato treat, with brown sauce losing out on top spot with 32% of the vote.

The study also discovered that a fry up is the best way to start the weekend, with a quarter of the nation (25%) stating Saturday is the day in which they most often tackle a full English. However, over one in 10 claimed they usually eat a fry up as their evening meal.

Also, the age-old question 'How do you like your eggs in the morning?' has finally been answered by the takeaway ordering platform. As fried eggs have come out on top with a staggering 58% of the nation choosing fried as their preferred way to have their eggs, with poached coming in second (14%) and scrambled following closely behind (13%).

However as much as Britain loves a fry up, it isn't enough to see it named as the UK's favourite British dish. A classic roast dinner was crowned the UK's ultimate meal, taking over half of the vote (53%), with the iconic seaside treat fish 'n' chips (50%) taking second place and fry up finishing in third (23%).

And another British classic, tea (40%) was voted the nation's favourite fry up thirst-quencher, settling the age-old debate of tea vs coffee. The latter did finish runner up with just over a fifth of the vote (21%), whilst fruit juice finished in third (13%).

Ardian Mula, Foodhub spokesperson, said: "We all know Britain loves a fry up, and it was interesting to see bacon come out as the nation's favourite ingredient, especially as the bacon sandwich was just crowned the UK's favourite sandwich in one of our previous studies to celebrate World Sandwich Day.

"The fry up is such an iconic, British breakfast dish, so we were surprised to discover that over one in 10 people would eat this as their evening meal. Remarkably, nearly a quarter of 18-24-year-olds claim they eat a fry up every single day! Luckily, Foodhub is on hand for the nation to get their fry up fix, as our platform offers a wide range of cuisines, anywhere at any time."

There was a generational divide when it came to choosing an accompanying sauce to a fry up, with over a quarter (28%) of 18-24-year-olds opting for mayo compared to just 5% of 55-64-year-olds. The younger generation also chose juice as their drink of choice over the traditional tea or coffee.

To celebrate National Fry Up Day (December 7th) with a delicious dish, head to Foodhub's website or app to order your full English exactly how you like it: https://foodhub.co.uk/

UK'S FAVOURITE FRY UP INGREDIENTS

BACON (55%)

SAUSAGE (43%)

MUSHROOMS (23%)

TOAST (17%)

BLACK PUDDING (14%)

FISH AND CHIPS (50%)

SHEPHERD'S PIE (21%)

STEW (15%)

PIE AND MASH (13%)

BEEF WELLINGTON (9%)

• If you have a recommendation for the Hungry Hack email the editor at [email protected]