Britons will buy 88.5 million pots, pans and kitchen knives this year, research by Mintel has revealed.The cost of the kitchen tools will reach 487 million, the report added, up 14 per cent over the last five years.Mintels research also found that more than two in five (41 per cent) always cooked from scratch, while only 11 per cent use the microwave to cook their evening meal.Cass Titcombe, executive head chef and founder of London restaurant Canteen, said people are becoming more aware of what they eat.Generally as a nation we seem to be more interested [in food] than we were maybe ten years ago, he said.You can eat really well if you know what to buy and you know how to cook.Convenience food costs more and is less healthy, containing salts, additives and hydrogenated fats, he added.Mr Titcombe believes the rise of the celebrity chef and television programmes about food and eating habits on television have fuelled interest in cooking.