When any trend enters the zeitgeist these days, you can bet with almost complete certainty that it originated on TikTok, and you can be certain that the social media app has an algorithm for every type of eater. Whether you're looking for health-conscious recipe inspiration, the hottest new restaurants, or fun and inventive twists on your favorite foods, TikTok is the ultimate destination for eating.
We're officially nearing the end of 2024 (I don't know about you, but I am very excited to leave this year behind us). Despite all the Ls we may have taken throughout the year, there were plenty of culinary bright spots on TikTok that kept us going.
These food trends made us laugh, they made us cry, they made us angry—but most importantly, they made us hungry. We rounded up some of the most notable TikTok food trends from 2024. How many of these have you tried? Let us know in the comments!
Sleepy Girl Mocktail
We can admit that this year was exhausting. But on the nights where we struggled to sleep, we turned to the sleepy girl mocktail. This blend of tart cherry juice, magnesium, and seltzer was touted as a miracle sleep aid. We can't confirm how effective it actually is, but it definitely tastes delicious.
Chamoy Pickle
If you spent any time on TikTok shop this year, you've probably encountered the chamoy pickle. Imagine a dill pickle seasoned with chamoy, candy powder, and Tajín. And as if that wasn't wild enough, you can often find it wrapped in a Fruit Roll Up and stuffed with Takis. Scared yet? We certainly are.
Tomato Ice Toast
Tomatoes are often maligned for being watery and flavorless, but this trend uses the high water content to its advantage. Frozen tomatoes are grated over toast and balls of burrata for a refreshing, if questionable, treat.
Chickle
Thought you had enough of wild pickle trends? Think again. The chickle is decidedly more simple than the chamoy pickle—simply fry cheese in a skillet, then wrap it around a dill pickle spear. It's horrifying at first glance, but it's basically a partial cheeseburger (which makes the concept just slightly less worrisome).
Tanghulu
This popular Chinese street food has been circling online for years, but it really took off in 2024. These candy-crusted fruit skewers are adorable, crunchy, and basically made for ASMR content.
Scrambled Pancakes
Flipping a pancake is one of the most stressful breakfast activities—from making sure it's the perfect shade of golden brown to avoiding any accidental splats. This somewhat controversial trend eliminates the need for flipping by simply scrambling the batter in the pan with a spatula.
Cucumber Salads
Sometimes, you just need to eat an en†ire cucumber. Logan Moffitt's TikTok series of crisp and refreshing salads made with thinly sliced cucumber had everyone and their mother buying mandolins for their kitchens.
Nara Smith
Nara Smith became a household name in 2024 thanks to her soothing voice and unique brand of from-scratch cooking. We might not have the time and funds to adopt her exact lifestyle, but she has inspired us to take on more cooking projects this year.
Cereal Milk Latte
Christina Tosi pioneered the popularity of cereal milk with the soft serve at Milk Bar. Now, thanks to TikTok, we've learned that you can (and should) add cereal-infused milk to your morning coffee.
Candy Salad
The concept of a candy salad is not unlike a potluck: everyone brings the treat of their choice to add to a giant bowl and make a dessert that's better than the sum of its parts. The only thing better than candy is even more candy.
Dense Bean Salad
TikTok creator Violet Witchel went absolutely viral this year for her meal prep-friendly recipes known as dense bean salads. Virtually all of our flavor combinations have been transformed into a DBS, and our weekday lunches have never been the same.
Filthy Martinis
Some of the most popular martinis on the internet over the past few years have technically not been martinis at all—the espresso and porn star martinis are just served in the same glass. This year, TikTok fell in love with a more classic recipe, complete with lots and lots of olive brine.
Swedish Candy
Thanks to brands like Bon Bon, the Internet has grown to love Swedish candy. The bright and colorful gummies come in a variety of flavors (some familiar and some controversial).
Raw Carrot Salad
The whole veggie trend didn't stop with cucumbers—it grew to include carrots too. Raw carrots became the perfect vehicle for fun condiment combinations.
Crumbl Cookies
The Utah-based dessert chain has been a hot topic on TikTok this year. Whether you love Crumbl cookies or hate them, you can't deny that they're taking over the world.
Egg Flights
The girl dinner trend never went away, it just changed forms. TikTok was obsessed with egg flights in 2024, where you add fun toppings to a tray of deviled eggs.
Tini's Mac & Cheese
We'd argue that Tini's mac and cheese recipe was the dish of 2024. Her creamy, indulgent version of the holiday staple inspired TikTok users to try it for their own Thanksgiving dinners.
Hear Me Out Cakes
What happens when you want to eat a sweet treat and reveal your questionable crushes? Meet the "hear me out" cake. We could spend hours scrolling through everybody's videos.
Onion Boils
Cooking onions in a skillet is a guaranteed way to make your kitchen smell heavenly. This viral recipe doubles down on the aromatic factor by stuffing a whole onion with butter and seasonings and cooking it until it's sweet and tender. We never knew we wanted to eat an entire onion in one sitting until now.
Chili's Mozz Sticks
Casual chain restaurants are in the midst of the dark ages with iconic American restaurants shuttering their doors. Chili's, on the other hand, is rising above the rest thanks to their fried mozzarella. The crispy, cheesy snacks have been a fixture on the menu for ages, but they got new life on TikTok thanks to off-menu saucy seasonings.
Cottage Cheese
Cottage cheese went from a maligned retro ingredient to everybody's favorite source of creamy, high-protein goodness. Its recent popularity starting growing before 2024, but it's still chugging along and being transformed into even fun recipes like cottage cheese bark and gnocchi.
Dubai Chocolate Bar
What happens if you mix the best parts of chocolate and baklava? Meet the Dubai chocolate bar. This viral dessert features a special filling made with pistachio and knafeh, a Middle Eastern dessert made from buttery strands of phyllo pastry. The Dubai chocolate bar got so popular that brands are recreating it stateside.
Bone Broth Hot Chocolate
The milk versus water debate for making homemade hot chocolate circles back every year. But in 2024, bone broth entered the chat. TikTok users claim that bone broth is a protein-rich addition to hot chocolate that doesn't negatively affect the flavor. We're still on the fence.
Tadpole Water
Chia seed water has existed online for years under different names like the internal shower. But this year it was rebranded to tadpole water and took off on TikTok again. The health benefits? Questionable. The texture? Unpleasant at best. Our verdict? Let's leave it in 2024.
Hwachae
Hwachae is a Korean fruit punch typically made with strawberry milk, carbonated beverages, and lots of sweet mix-ins. It gained popularity on TikTok as a spinoff from the candy salad trend, with users adding their own fun fruits and jellies to the bowl.
Freeze Dried Candy
This light and crunchy candy trend skyrocketed on TikTok Shop, where sellers freeze dry our favorite candy to make the texture even more fun.
Olympic Chocolate Muffins
Did you forget that the Olympics happened this year? We'll never forget Team USA's gymnastics performance, but our favorite part of Paris 2024 was the iconic chocolate muffins from the Olympic Village dining hall.
