Social media app TikTok has taken over the internet with its format of shareable short-form videos, showcasing everything from makeovers to dance performances. But, while it's become a communication tool of choice for Generation Z, it's also a rich source of recipe inspiration. Content includes historical dishes, brought back from the past, and the vibrant green goddess salad, which was one of Google's most searched-for recipes of 2022. There are also some brilliantly simple yet almost life-changing tips, from pickling garlic to baking your pasta sauce. Here are some of the most popular TikTok recipes and food trends worth trying at home.

The phyllo crinkle cake, with layers of filo (phyllo) pastry cuddled by custard, has racked up nearly 15 million views since it was revealed by creator @ramenasaidwow. It’s all about the crinkle, achieved by scrunching up the sheets of pastry and layering up before the initial bake, which makes it wonderfully crispy. You then drizzle with melted butter and bake again, then pour over a custard mixture before the third and final bake. The last step is to pour over a thick simple syrup and cool before serving.

Any recipes involving bacon tend to get attention, and this one puts a literal twist on the salty-sweet favourite. The hashtag ‘twistedbacon’ has garnered around 20 million views on TikTok and, as with many of the most popular recipes on the platform, the technique is wonderfully simple. You just twist rashers from the bottom up to create spirals, then bake in the oven or toaster oven. The result is a combination of crispy and chewy – and a fun addition to a cheeseboard.

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It’s tricky to pinpoint who started the trend of baking sushi ingredients and flavours into a delicious, shareable dish, though many of the earliest videos were shared from the Philippines. Now the hashtag has reached nearly 90 million views, perhaps because this is a genuinely clever and very, very tasty idea. It effectively takes the ingredients of a sushi roll – rice, seafood, seasonings and sauces – and layers them in a casserole dish before baking.

There’s nothing tricky about this huge TikTok trend, whose hashtag has amassed around 30 million views so far. It’s really just milk (dairy or plant-based) with a little sugar and vanilla extract stirred in. Whether or not you heat it up, in a saucepan or microwave, is up to you, though this will help to dissolve the sugar and makes a wonderfully comforting drink. People love it because it apparently tastes just like melted vanilla ice cream. And because it’s so simple.

French toast and Nutella in one neatly rolled package? It’s not hard to see why this TikTok trend has become so popular, with more than 37 million views of videos demonstrating the recipe. User @lila.bakery’s simple version has been viewed around 4.5 million times. You spread Nutella on white bread, roll it up, dip in a custard mixture, roll in cinnamon sugar and fry.

TikTok user @emilymariko cooked up a storm when she shared her salmon rice bowl creation, with the hashtag edging close to 80 million views. The beauty here is the simplicity. It’s just cooked sushi rice mixed with leftover salmon, covered with greaseproof paper and microwaved. You can then drizzle over whatever sauces you like, from sriracha to Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise, along with other toppings like avocado and kimchi. Emily’s trick is to add an ice cube before microwaving – it keeps everything moist without making the rice bowl soggy.

To say the green goddess salad shared by @bakedbymelissa in late 2021 took off would be an understatement. Her original video alone has been viewed around 21 million times and the ‘greengoddess’ hashtag has passed the 115 million mark. Its vibrant green hue is undoubtedly part of the appeal. But the super-healthy combination of all kinds of finely chopped green and white veggies with a velvety dressing including olive oil, lemon juice, basil, spinach and cashews is also delicious.

The ‘smokedqueso’ hashtag has surpassed 50 million views on TikTok, with snackers clamouring to make a version of this gloriously gooey creation. You just need an aluminium foil pan, which you then load up with whatever cheeses you like (ones that melt well are best) and any other ingredients like jalapeños, tomatoes, chopped peppers, onions and chorizo. Then just melt under a hot grill or in the oven, and devour with tortilla chips.

Perhaps the last place you’d expect to find a pizza recipe is on a supermodel’s TikTok, but here it is. American model Hailey Bieber started a tasty trend with her simple cheat’s pizza, reaching more than six million views on her original video and sparking a hashtag passing 120 million views. Her recipe was simply sliced sourdough topped with burrata and sliced tomatoes, grilled and finished with warm marinara sauce and a little Parmesan – though this one is obviously ripe for experimentation.

This is mac ’n’ cheese made even better, so of course it’s popular – with around 40 million views of relevant recipes on TikTok. User @thehungerdiaries is credited with kicking off the trend with her recipe, starting with a block of feta cheese in a baking dish and then throwing in dried pasta, loads of cheese, red onion, milk and barbecue sauce. She soaks and then adds some cooked barbecue chicken – and more cheese – before baking to golden, oozy perfection.

Try the recipe for mac ’n’ cheese made with cheese puffs

Making this elegant-looking coffee was one of the most popular trends during the COVID-19 lockdowns, and it's still getting attention. Named after a popular street candy in South Korea and first appearing on a TV show in the country, dalgona coffee is made with three simple ingredients: instant coffee, sugar and milk, plus hot water. The secret lies in whisking the ingredients to stiff peaks, then topping a glass of milk with the whipped coffee mixture. To date, the hashtags 'dalgona' and 'whipped coffee' have together racked up around three billion views on TikTok.

Posted by creator @sydneymelhoff in April 2020, pancake cereal is exactly what it sounds like. Tiny dots of pancake batter are piped on a hot pan and quickly cooked so they resemble breakfast cereal flakes. The best bit about this viral recipe, with more than 350,000 views and around 1.7 billion hashtag views, is that you can make it entirely your own. Season with sugar and cinnamon, drizzle with some honey or top with bananas and chocolate.

Baked oats became one of the hottest breakfast trends, spreading to kitchens all over the world. Tasty, nutritious and with a texture resembling a pudding, it's not surprising, really. With more than a billion views, the baked oats hashtag is used for all manner of recipes. In its basic form, oats are mixed with milk, maple syrup, flavourings, nut butter, baking powder and ripe bananas, then baked in the oven or even cooked in the microwave.

Although birria, a traditional Mexican meat stew from the western state of Jalisco that's often served in tacos, has much deeper origins than TikTok, its popularity on the social media platform has gone viral, with videos using the 'birria' hashtag clocking up 1.6 billion views. It's traditionally made by stewing goat meat in stock with vegetables, spices and herbs until the meat is meltingly tender. But there are many variations on the dish, including using beef.

Take a look at our favourite taco recipes here

This recipe originally went viral on Instagram, when model Gigi Hadid shared her favourite vodka pasta recipe, but it really took off on TikTok. With videos notching up more than 77 million views, vodka pasta is quick and easy to make, yet packed with flavour – and wonderfully indulgent. Garlic and onion are cooked until soft then mixed with tomato paste, vodka and double cream. The sauce is finished with butter and Parmesan before being tossed with pasta and red pepper flakes.

Gone vegan and missing bacon, or just want to cut down on your meat intake? Don't worry, TikTok has a recipe for you. This nifty hack, posted by vegan chef @iamtabithabrown, uses thin carrot ribbons and a savoury, umami-packed sauce that replicates the smoky flavours and aromas of caramelised bacon. For the sauce, mix together maple syrup, liquid smoke, smoked paprika, pepper, garlic powder and onion powder, then slather onto your carrot ribbons and cook in an air fryer. The original video has been viewed more than 21 million times.

Once you've tried pesto eggs, you'll never go back to regular fried eggs. Posted by creator @amywilichowski, the recipe has had more than 12 million views. The idea is to switch oil for pesto, then crack in your eggs. The oil in the pesto prevents the eggs from sticking to the pan while also infusing them with great flavour. When ready, slide your eggs on a piece of buttered toast or on top of smashed avocado.

Find our best egg recipes here

A drink that promises to improve the appearance of skin, chlorophyll water has been popular with celebrities for years – and now it's taking over TikTok. One of the most popular videos, posted by @marycjskinner, has had more than two million likes and 10 million views. Devotees claim that the drink, which is made by mixing water with a shot of chlorophyll (the green plant pigment), is packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals, thus improving the skin and general health.

Looking for a tasty dressing to enjoy with all manner of dishes? You must try this flavour-packed hack from @lalaleluu. Videos using the hashtag 'pickled garlic' have been viewed more than 245 million times since the original recipe was posted in April 2021. Simply empty the liquid from your jar of pickled garlic (keep the garlic in the jar though) and replace it with hot sauce, thyme and chilli powder or flakes. Shake well and enjoy the punchy garlic with meat and in salads – or just eat it straight from the jar like @lalaleluu does.

Tortilla wraps have been around for a long time, but this hack, with more than 75 million views, is quite possibly the smartest way to prepare one. Start by making a cut in your wrap from the centre outwards, then fill each quarter with a different filling – like savoury breakfast items or strawberries and chocolate spread – then fold each quarter to form a triangle. If you wish, you can grill it before enjoying without the filling spilling out.

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Banana bread is one lockdown trend that seems to be sticking around – and why not? Perfect for breakfast, with coffee or as a mid-afternoon snack, there's nothing quite like a slice of this moist, cake-like loaf. One of the most popular versions, posted by @cookingwithshereen, has garnered close to 28 million views since March 2020. It's a straightforward recipe but the secret is to use incredibly ripe bananas.

Try our espresso and cocoa nib banana bread recipe

With close to 330 million hashtag views on TikTok, a hot chocolate bomb is another fun idea people are rushing to try. Almost like a bath bomb for your drink, a chocolate ball is added to a hot mug of milk and starts melting. It splits open and mixes with milk to create a hot chocolate drink. You'll need some round silicone moulds to make the balls and something to fill them with – try marshmallows and sweetened cocoa powder for a classic hot choc.

First created by @natures_food and then replicated and shared by singer Lizzo to her audience of nearly 22 million followers, nature's cereal is a breakfast dish that swaps sugary cereals for berries. You can use anything you like, from blueberries and strawberries to pomegranate and grapes. Add your fruit and berries to a bowl and pour over coconut water just like you would milk. It's tasty, refreshing, healthy – and brilliantly simple. Don't just take our word for it: it's reached around 950 million hashtags views.

One of the first TikTok recipes to go viral, the egg sandwich has been shared far and wide, reaching more than 250 million hashtag views. Although it's hard to pinpoint the creator of this brilliant idea, one of the most popular versions was shared by @feelgoodfoodie. The idea is simple. First, add whisked eggs to a pan and top with two slices of bread. Let the eggs set, then flip over so it's bread-side-down and tuck in any overhanging cooked egg. Add any other fillings then flip one piece of bread to close the sandwich and slice in half to serve.

Have a party coming up? You need to try the fun snack hack that is the nacho table. Viewed more than 300 million times, the idea is simple. First, cover your table with tin foil, essentially turning it into a massive plate. Then scatter tortilla chips all over and build your nacho table with whatever toppings you like. Try shredded cheese or melted cheese sauce, sour cream and guacamole. The most popular nacho table video by @jasmineirmen has been viewed more than 50 million times.

Everyone loves perfectly crispy potatoes and this recipe by @scheckeats gets millions of views every time he posts it. Key steps include boiling the potatoes in properly salty water, roughing up the edges before transferring to a baking sheet and using plenty of seasoning, including Old Bay, paprika, rosemary and garlic powder. The trick for extra crispiness is to leave them in a turned-off oven for an extra 10 minutes after the initial 20-minute cooking time.

Check out our tips for perfect potatoes every time

Unbelievably easy to whip up, this is one of the tastiest mug cakes ever. To make an Oreo mug cake, which has been viewed 130 million times via the hashtag, first mix and mash four Oreo cookies with a quarter of a cup of milk. When ready, add flour, baking powder and cocoa powder, mix, and push one more Oreo in the centre of the mug so it's covered by the batter. Microwave for a minute and enjoy.

Craving a mug cake? Try this orange and chocolate mug pudding recipe

For those not into making their own sourdough, TikTok has an alternative: this easy three-ingredient cloud bread recipe. Made by mixing egg whites with sugar and cornflour, the recipe has been all over TikTok – but it's @abimhn's blue version (with food colouring added to the mixture before baking) that's really caught people's attention, racking up nearly 35 million views.

This isn’t pasta with chips (though we’re not against that combination). Rather, this is chips made of pasta. The ‘pastachips’ hashtag has reached around 1.1 billion views and the trend shows no signs of slowing. The recipe is pretty simple: just take cooked pasta, toss in olive oil and seasonings and fry or bake until crispy. Then serve with dips of your choice. It’s easy to customise with different herbs and spices, like paprika or Italian herbs.

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One of the most popular recipes to come out of TikTok, baked feta pasta or 'uunifetapasta' was originally posted on Finnish food blogger Liemessä's website in 2019. The recipe has since proven to be insanely popular on the video-sharing platform, with the hashtag clocking up more than a billion views. Its far-reaching appeal is largely due to how easy it is to make. Simply place a block of feta and cherry tomatoes in a dish, drizzle with olive oil and bake. When ready, stir everything together with seasoning and cooked pasta.

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