Brain tingles aren’t just for straight-A semesters or SAT problem solving. They’re also the result of ASMR, the sensation of pleasure through unusual stimuli. Short for “autonomous sensory meridian response,” this condition produces tingles that originate in the brain and cascade across one’s body.

Although any sensory input (i.e. visual, auditory or taste) could shiver the timbers, a subset of food ASMR videos has cropped up on YouTube. These people whisper into the camera—eyes hidden and mouths watering—as they slurp, crunch and lick their food. For a person with ASMR, these virtual noises instill pleasure and a sense of calm in the viewer. 

#SpoonTip: Still confused about what exactly ASMR is? Read this Spoon article to decode the scientific (and YouTube) phenomenon.

Why Breakfast?

Modern breakfast is a tear-worthy travesty. Most commuters just eat a protein bar or nothing on the fast walk to their car. The apple cinnamon pancakes, and wedges of Canadian bacon are missing, replaced with suburban traffic. Yes, breakfast is the “most important meal of day,” but it’s like telling college students that alcohol isn’t healthy for their livers. In both scenarios, who cares?

However, breakfast needs to make a sexy comeback—not only for health reasons, but because of the cooking potential us yuppies are missing out on. Don’t gourmet cereal and luxury toast sound exciting compared to run-of-the-mill lunch and dinnerings? Entertain those ASMR sensations at dawn, and the rest of the day will be a productive daydream.

Here are three ideas to get your spine relaxing through ASMR-enhanced foods. Let the brain orgasms commence. 

Leggo My Popcorn Chicken Eggo

Mackenzie Patel

Want chicken and waffles without the commitment and with all the titillation? Because college students are broke, pick up a 24-pack of Walmart Eggo waffles for $5. Toast them yourself, letting them burn slightly. Scrape off the excess burnt pieces with a butter knife and lean close—hear the rip as the charred waffle leaves the flesh underneath?

Put a platter of Publix popcorn chicken into the microwave for two minutes. Just before the one minute is up, open the door and let the sizzle of breaded heaven overwhelm you for a few seconds. Peel the packet of sauce open—I recommend Chick-fil-A sauces since the packaging is smooth but filmy. Then, spread onto the waffle. Drape the chicken on top and dig in. 

Did your experience go something like this?

The Eggcellent ASMR Combo

toast, egg, dairy product, pie, butter, bread, cake, pastry, sweet, cream
Shelby Cohron

For people with ASMR, scratching is another therapeutic feeling to get the sighs exhaling. Instead of scratching dirty skin, manually grate a brick of Cheddar (the cheese equivalent for scratching). Watch as the slabs of rounded, waxen cheese fall out of the grater and onto a bed of dairy.

It's birds nest time: cut a hole into a piece of buttered bread, place in a pan on medium heat, and crack the egg into the middle. Crush the shells between yolked fingers—satisfied yet? The hardened white mixed with the filmy slime creates a textured theme park. Cook your egg in this nesting style, rubbing salt and pepper between the fingers before sprinkling it over. 

Pierce the egg with a knife and watch as the fluid spills down the egg white like a broken faucet. Spine still not shivering? Watch GourmetASMR chewing eggs cooked in duck fat.

This Muffin Is No Impasta

fettuccine, tagliatelle, sauce, cheese, pasta
Shelby Cohron

Who says you can’t eat pasta for breakfast? For this recipe, bake crunchy pasta muffins with cheese and a sausage surprise hidden in it. After boiling angel hair or fettuccine pasta, comb your hands through the tangle to slowly undo it. Crack open an egg and mix with the packed pasta (one egg per three cups of pasta).

Dice up cooked sausage into small pieces—making sure to slice through the crunchy skin—and grate cheese. Spray a muffin tin (mist your hands with a buttering too) and pack the pasta in tightly. Wedge a few meat niblets in, top with sun dried tomatoes and basil and bake for 8-10 minutes. Sprinkle cheese on top and blow softly onto the muffins to cool. *Let the crunch fiesta begin.*

Tips For An ASMRtistic Breakfast:

· When pouring a drink, clink the ice cubes around the liquid so they hit each other and the glass walls.

· Listen to tranquilizing synth bands (i.e. Tame Impala) in addition to natural cooking noises.

· Eat on ceramic plates so the clink of metal utensils on them is more satisfying. 

Feeling calmed and a little spaced out? Before you know it, you’ll be whispering at the dinner table and listening to your fried chicken pop.