Ice cream preferences vary by gender
New market research shows that the perennial chunky vs. smooth ice cream divide splits along gender lines:
Mintel has released new findings about the varying ice cream preferences of men and women. According to the Chicago-based market research firm, seven in 10 men prefer plain ice cream flavors, such as chocolate or vanilla, while 74 percent of women look for those varieties featuring chocolate or candy bits [Progressive Grocer].
The next sentence is "Despite this marked split, each gender seems to enjoy the other’s preferred type of ice cream: 66 percent of women say they also seek out plain ice cream, and 63 percent of men eat enhanced flavors as well."
So it's not much of a difference.
Posted by: Eric Jaffa | June 11, 2009 at 11:32 AM
Those are two different questions: What style you prefer vs. do you sometimes enjoy the other kind as well. The big gender difference shows up when you ask people what their favorite style of ice cream is. Which isn't really surprising. IME, when it comes to ice cream, a lot of people have a favorite flavor but very few of them only eat that flavor of ice cream.
Posted by: Lindsay Beyerstein | June 11, 2009 at 11:42 AM
Damn, if only we'd known this before giving women the vote! Think of all the trouble we'd have saved!
Posted by: just john | June 11, 2009 at 12:37 PM
Yeah, right, statistics, all very interesting stuff ... but this is far more important:
What flavor of ice cream is that in the photo?
Posted by: TB | June 11, 2009 at 02:14 PM
It's purple flavored.
Posted by: El Gato Negro! | June 11, 2009 at 04:08 PM
Ice cream with things in it is an abomination ("toevah" in the original Hebrew of Leviticus) -- unless the things happen to be bits of chocolate-coated toffee.
Posted by: Alan Bostick | June 11, 2009 at 04:22 PM
I think it's Photoshop flavor.
Posted by: Lindsay Beyerstein | June 11, 2009 at 04:22 PM
It's the same color as aircraft hydraulic fluid, I can tell you that much.
Posted by: TB | June 11, 2009 at 04:28 PM
Alan, ice cream without chocolate chunks is sheketz.
Posted by: Alon Levy | June 11, 2009 at 05:14 PM
I prefer ice cream with things in it, like chocolate with chocolate brownie pieces.
Posted by: John | June 11, 2009 at 05:26 PM
Alon Levy has the mot juste, but am I nuts for liking nuts in my I scream? As for chocolate, if it's more a drug than a food (and the same can be supposed for sucrose), why not enhance the dosage? Chocolate chunks in chocolate-flavored ice cream would be like boilermakers or Negronis, or the hashish-chunks-on-green-herb "hellbowls" we indulged in back in my smoking days.
Posted by: Dabodius | June 11, 2009 at 07:30 PM
No! The important thing is that nuts don't belong in ice cream. Candy & chocolate bits are OK.
Posted by: supergee | June 12, 2009 at 06:55 AM
I was always fond of a flavor called "Chocolate Mousse Royale" that they carried at Baskin Robbins in the 80's.
Haven't seen it in years and now I feel old.
Posted by: Thomas | June 12, 2009 at 09:58 AM
Supergee, I got 3 words for you:
Pistacchio. Macademia. Pecan.
Posted by: Bloix | June 12, 2009 at 12:48 PM
Walnuts. Brazil nuts. Almonds! And -- though some niggler may object they aren't true nuts -- peanuts.
Posted by: Dabodius | June 12, 2009 at 06:12 PM
The odd thing is, generally speaking (to the extent that one can generalize about such a complicated thing as gender), men themselves tend to be chunky, and women are, of course, smooth. :)
Posted by: rea | June 12, 2009 at 06:30 PM
Bloix: I got 3 words for you:
Steak, onions, mushrooms.
You want those in your ice cream?
Posted by: supergee | June 13, 2009 at 08:03 AM
Who's gonna put'em in my ice cream? You and whose army? Eh? Eh?
Oh - one more thing. Hazelnuts.
Posted by: Bloix | June 13, 2009 at 11:35 AM
Nuts marginally ok. Marshmallows, chocolate chips, candy of any sort, not ok. And yes, as a male I much prefer smooth, with the exception of blackberries mashed into vanilla or blackberry ice cream.
Steak, onions, mushrooms.
I'm thinking crumbled bacon on vanilla might not be bad. I'm going to try it.
Posted by: cfrost | June 13, 2009 at 01:15 PM
Before I gave up dairy products altogether (for the sake of my health), I preferred ice cream that contained stuff like brownie chunks, cookie dough, caramel, and the like. Plain chocolate or vanilla never did it for me. Plain coffee flavour, I didn't mind though.
Posted by: Lesley | June 14, 2009 at 12:50 AM
Re "What flavor of ice cream is that in the photo?"
My blackberry smoothies come out that colour, so I'm guessing a purple berry or a mix of berries, maybe blue and black.
Posted by: Lesley | June 14, 2009 at 12:52 AM
I believe that what is pictured above is purple yam ice cream, popular in the Philippines.
Posted by: The Bobs | June 14, 2009 at 01:17 AM
Weird, I'm a dude and definitely like my ice cream chunky, unless it's a fruit flavour like mango sorbet. I'm of the same school as Alon: ice cream without chocolate chunks is an abomination. (Or Heath bar bits, or Skor bits...)
Posted by: Mandos | June 14, 2009 at 06:37 PM
From the earliest remembrance- vanilla/orange sherbet blend- to the present, it's Always been mixed &/or chunky, for me... raspberry ripple ruled my palate for years... and even of the "Big 3" basic flavors, the strawberry- with chunks of berry- is my fave. (Hell... I'm prob'ly gay...) ^..^
Posted by: herbert browne | June 17, 2009 at 01:38 AM