From feta eggs to marry-me chicken – eight TikTok-viral recipes that are worth the hype
The health side of TikTok often trickles through to the most popular recipes – and this carrot salad, which promotes eating raw carrots for oestrogen balancing, particularly for female health, went wild with @frommybowl, who had more than five million views for her recipe.
SERVES 2
4 large carrots, peeled
1 tbsp grated ginger
1 garlic clove, grated
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tsp maple syrup
zest and juice of 1 lime
½ tsp ground turmeric
coriander leaves and stalks, finely chopped
2 tbsp sesame seeds
1 Use a swivel peeler to pare the carrots into long ribbons. Add to a bowl with the remaining ingredients, toss well and serve.
'NDUJA WANNA MARRY ME CHICKEN 37.5 million views
The story goes that this chicken is so good, if you make it for someone they'll instantly propose. @gimme.delicious racked up over 37.5 million views on their Marry Me Chicken video, then everyone started recreating it with pasta, rice, slow-cooker versions and more. I thought the original could do with more punch, so I've added my favourite spicy condiment, 'nduja, instead of the original Calabrian chilli paste. Leave it out entirely if you're not a fan of heat.
SERVES 4
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
4 skin-on chicken breasts
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tbsp salted butter
1 onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
5 tbsp 'nduja paste
½ tsp dried oregano
3 thyme sprigs, leaves only
280g jar sun-dried tomatoes, drained and chopped
350ml chicken stock (or chicken gravy)
300ml double cream
50g parmesan cheese, grated
200g baby spinach
20g basil, leaves only
1 Pour the olive oil into a large, shallow frying pan over a medium-high heat. Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper, then fry for 2-3 minutes until a beautiful golden colour on each side. Remove from the pan and set aside.
2 Add the butter and onion to the pan and sauté for 5-6 minutes until softened and translucent. Add the garlic, 'nduja paste, oregano and thyme and cook for 2-3 minutes until fragrant.
3 Add the sun-dried tomatoes, chicken stock (or gravy), cream, parmesan and spinach, stir well to combine, then put the chicken fillets back on top. Cover with a lid and cook for 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through.
4 Serve with a scattering of the basil leaves.
ZHOUG & FETA EGGS 7 million views
This is a mash-up of two viral trends – pesto eggs and feta eggs. Both use these oily/fatty foods instead of oil or butter for frying the eggs in, and the simplicity is intriguing. My favourite type of pesto is zhoug, a Palestinian/Yemeni fusion that uses fragrant herbs, spices and chilli for a fiery morning kick. Combining that with the feta and frying an egg on top makes for a perfect brunch. You'll have plenty of zhoug left over; it's wonderful on roasted veggies or with any meat.
SERVES 2
60g feta, crumbled
2 eggs
For the zhoug
1 green chilli
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 garlic clove, peeled
30g coriander (stalks and leaves)
30g parsley (stalks and leaves)
15g mint leaves
1 tbsp ground cumin
½ tbsp ground coriander
½ tsp chilli flakes
160ml extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp maple syrup
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
toast or flatbreads
extra herbs (optional)
1 Put all the zhoug ingredients (plus the chilli seeds if you like it spicy!) in a blender and blitz until smooth. Season to taste.
2 Pop a medium non-stick frying pan over a medium heat. When warm, spoon a few dollops of zhoug and the crumbled feta on the pan base, spread it all out and crack in the eggs. Cook for 2-3 minutes until the whites are set but the yolk is still runny, and the feta and pesto have begun to caramelise and crisp up on the bottom.
3 Serve with some toast or flatbreads and the few extra herbs, if you like.
VIDEO
TAHINI HONEY BUTTER TOAST 6 million views
Honey butter toast was a viral sensation from a bakery in London called Arôme. People all over the world who couldn't reach the restaurant were recreating this crunchy and sweet treat. @thechefmine gained six million views for her version. I've added some miso to the honey-butter mixture for a bit of savoury depth to cut through the sweetness. Serve it up with a tahini honey yogurt – again, to offset the dish and make it a bit more breakfast appropriate.
SERVES 4
1 brioche loaf
120g unsalted butter, softened
60g light brown sugar
1½ tbsp white miso paste
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp sesame seeds
2 tbsp roasted pistachios, roughly chopped, to serve
For the topping
140g Greek yogurt
1½ tbsp tahini
2 tsp honey, plus extra to drizzle
1 Preheat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
2 Cut the brioche loaf into 4 thick slices, using a serrated bread knife. Trim off all the crusts until you have clean, rectangular pieces.
3 In a small bowl, combine the butter, sugar, miso and honey and mix until smooth.
4 Spread the mixture on both sides of each brioche slice. Put the slices on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and sprinkle with half the sesame seeds.
5 Bake the slices in the oven for 8 minutes, then flip over, sprinkle with the remaining sesame seeds and return to the oven for a further 8 minutes.
6 For the topping, mix the ingredients in a bowl until well combined.
7 Serve the toast with a dollop of the topping and a sprinkling of pistachios.
Tip Slightly stale brioche is perfect here – to help the butter spread more easily. So if yours is fresh, leave the slices to dry out slightly beforehand.
CORNFLAKE CHICKEN CAESAR WRAP 11.2 million views
There are hundreds and thousands of videos online about chicken Caesar wraps – @avocado_bella had 11.2 million views with her glorious concoction. I've combined my own vaguely viral recipe for chicken Caesar dippers into this new format: crispy cornflake chicken goujons replace the crunch of a crouton, and the yogurt-based Caesar dressing is tangy and moreish.
SERVES 4
650g chicken goujons
25g sachet of Nando's seasoning
6 tbsp plain flour
2 eggs
150g cornflakes
For the dressing
100g mayonnaise
100g natural yogurt
juice of ½ a lemon
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp fish sauce
1 garlic clove, grated
30g parmesan cheese, grated, plus extra for shavings
3 tbsp capers, finely chopped
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
To serve
4 extra-large tortilla wraps
1 romaine lettuce, shredded
1 In a large, shallow bowl, season the chicken with salt, pepper and half of the seasoning sachet. Toss in the flour.
2 Push the chicken to one side in the bowl, crack in the eggs and whisk with a fork. Push the chicken back over into the egg and toss well to coat fully.
3 Put the cornflakes in a large ziplock food bag and use a rolling pin to roll and smash them into fine crumbs. Add the chicken goujons, a few at a time, and shake around to coat.
4 Pop the chicken in the air fryer and bake at 180C for 7-8 minutes until crisp and cooked through. Alternatively, bake them in the oven on a lined baking tray at 220C/200C fan/ gas 7 for 11-12 minutes.
5 While the chicken is cooking, mix together the dressing ingredients in a bowl, seasoning to taste.
6 Shave lots of parmesan and set aside.
7 To assemble, heat the wraps in the microwave or according to the packet instructions. Spread a tablespoon of dressing over each tortilla, top with shredded lettuce, shaved parmesan, 2-3 chicken goujons and then more dressing. Fold over the two edges and roll up from the bottom. Wrap in foil or waxed paper and serve.
COWBOY CAVIAR 16 million views
TikTok's sweetheart @brialem brought this Texan dense bean salad – based on Mexican 'caviar' – to everyone's attention, spurring endless remakes and variations, when her version quickly racked up over 16 million views. This salad is full of all of the good stuff: beans, corn, veggies, feta and a spicy dressing, which I've taken up a notch with hot sauce. This dip typically uses mango, but I think pineapple is even zingier and more reliably ripe all year round. It keeps for up to two days in the fridge, after which it'll get a little bit soggy. Best eaten with lots of friends (it's impossible to scale down) and lots of tortilla crisps.
SERVES 8
1 red pepper, finely diced
1 yellow pepper, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
2 fresh jalapeño chillies, finely chopped
2 tbsp pickled jalapeños, finely chopped
1 large red onion, finely chopped
340g tin of sweetcorn, drained
400g tin of black-eyed peas, drained and rinsed
400g tin of black beans, drained and rinsed
2 avocados, finely diced
½ pineapple, peeled and finely diced
2 large tomatoes, finely diced
200g feta cheese, crumbled
200g pitted Kalamata olives, roughly diced
large handful of coriander, finely chopped
salt and black pepper
tortilla chips, to serve
For the dressing
100ml extra virgin olive oil
zest and juice of 3 limes
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
2 tbsp Cholula or other hot sauce
2 tbsp hot honey
1 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
1 Put all the ingredients for the salad except the tortilla chips in a large bowl, adding salt and pepper to taste.
2 Mix together the ingredients for the dressing in a jar or separate bowl.
3 Pour the dressing over the salad, season to taste (I always like extra hot sauce) and then serve with tortilla chips for dipping.
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Our recipes are taken from You'll Love This by Saskia Sidey, with photographs by Jo Sidey (HQ, £20). To order a copy for £17 until 3 August, go to mailshop.co.uk/books or call 020 3176 2937. Free UK delivery on orders over £25.
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