Testing Out Viral TikTok Recipes To See If They Are Worth the Hype

TikTok recipes have gotten super popular recently, so I decided to try out some of them to see if they are worth the hype. The ones I chose to try were vegan chicken (seitan), the tortilla hack (breakfast vs spring roll edition), and feta pasta. 

(The wrap recipes are super lenient- you can use whatever ingredients you want, but feel free to follow what I used too).

Breakfast Tortilla Wrap

• Prep Time:2 mins
• Cook Time:5 mins
• Total Time:7 mins
• Servings:1
• Easy

Ingredients

• 2 eggs
• spinach
• cheese
• ketchup
• 1 tortilla

• Step 1

  Take your tortilla and make a cut about halfway through (shown below).

  

• Step 2

  Scramble eggs.

• Step 3

  Put eggs on lower left quarter of tortilla, spinach on upper left quarter, ketchup on upper right, and cheese on lower left quarter.

  

• Step 4

  Start folding each quadrant over the others (egg onto spinach, spinach onto ketchup, ketchup onto cheese). Be careful with this step because the food might fall out.

• Step 5

  Take your folded wrap and cook it on a pan until both sides are golden and cheese is melted (you can also use a panini press to make it easier).

  

Spring Roll Wrap

• Prep Time:2 mins
• Cook Time:0
• Total Time:2 mins
• Servings:1
• Easy

Ingredients

• 1 spring roll wrapper
• Cooked Shrimp
• Veggies your choice
• Hoisin sauce

• Step 1

  Take the wrapper and soak it in warm water for 15 seconds.

• Step 2

  Carefully make the same cut as you did for the breakfast wrap (it is okay if it rips).

• Step 3

  Place the veggies (I used cucumber and bell pepper) in the quadrants, along with the shrimp and hoisin sauce.

  

• Step 4

  Fold each quadrant onto each other until you end up with a triangle shape. Enjoy!

My rating: 100% worth the hype

This hack is for sure a time saver! I loved the breakfast wrap especially. The TikToks I've seen also used a panini press instead of a pan, which would definitely make this a lot easier but a pan is just as good. For the spring roll one, I personally would prefer it in its normal form, and it was interesting to see how different the taste would be just by changing its shape. Check this hack out here!

Vegan Chicken (Seitan)

• Prep Time:2 hrs
• Cook Time:45 mins
• Total Time:2 hrs 45 mins
• Servings:2
• Medium

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 cups water
• Garlic powder
• Salt
• Pepper
• Veggie stock

• Step 1

  Add water to the flour until a smooth dough ball forms (you may not have to use all the water). Let rest for 1 hour covered.

  

• Step 2

  Fill the bowl with dough with more water, and knead the dough underwater (the water will become white and cloudy). Empty and refill the water as many times as needed until water becomes less cloudy (not completely clear yet), while kneading the dough.

• Step 3

  Empty the bowl and squeeze all the water from the dough. Add seasonings of your choice (I used garlic powder, salt, pepper). Let rest for 1 hour.

  

• Step 4

  You can cook as one whole piece, but I separated the dough into 5 mini patties. Put oil in pan and fry the patties until golden.

  

• Step 5

  Fill pan with veggie stock, and let simmer for 45 minutes. Your vegan chicken is done!

  

My rating: Kind of worth the hype?

The vegan chicken recipe is definitely time consuming, so try it out only when you have time to spare. The texture was kind of confusing at first, but it was interesting to try. I turned them into mini chicken patties once they were done! Personally I would maybe try store bought seitan first to compare how they taste, since I've never had it before. If you're a seitan expert already though, go ahead and give this a try! Here's the link to the recipe

Feta Pasta

• Prep Time:5 mins
• Cook Time:40 mins
• Total Time:45 mins
• Servings:3
• Easy

Ingredients

• 2 cups pasta choice
• 1/2 lb grape tomatoes
• 3 whole cloves garlic
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 block feta 6-8 oz
• 1 tsp all purpose seasoning
• salt and pepper
• Optional: 2-3 cups additional vegetables e.g. spinach asparagus cauliflower onions basil etc.

• Step 1

  Preheat oven to 400ºF. Lay grape tomatoes and peeled, whole garlic cloves out on an oven safe baking dish and drizzle with a light layer of olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste and toss until tomatoes are evenly coated. Place the block of feta in the center and drizzle the remaining olive oil. Add seasonings of choice (I used all purpose).

  

• Step 2

  Bake the tomatoes and feta uncovered for 25-35 minutes or until the tomatoes have burst. Meanwhile, prepare pasta by bringing a pot of water to a boil, salting generously, and cooking pasta until al dente. Feel free to cook or boil additional vegetables during this time to add to the pasta bake as well!
  
  Strain the pasta when it's ready, but reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water.

  

• Step 3

  Once the tomatoes, garlic, and feta are ready, mash into a smooth mixture and add pasta and any add ins into the baking tray. I went with spinach and asparagus!
  
  If the mixture seems dry, gradually mix in some pasta water, stirring in between.

  

• Step 4

  When the dish is well combined, plate and serve!

  

My rating: The creaminess, versatility, and convenience of this recipe earns my fullest support and is indeed worth the hype!

I love how much freedom is involved as you essentially can use any pasta and include any add-ins of your choice. I would recommend using riper tomatoes so they burst more easily and create a sweeter (rather than sour) taste. Overall, this is great for serving many but can also be refrigerated and reheated when meal prepping for the week. If you're looking for a tasty and time-efficient meal, feta pasta is definitely one to try!

We had a lot of fun testing and tasting these recipes, and we certainly learned some cooking hacks. The only time consuming ones are the seitan and feta pasta, so plan your day accordingly to those, maybe prep ahead of time.