He had never cooked and he became a rage on Tik Tok making old recipes

With more than one billion active users, TikTok became not only the center of entertainment and leisure for the new generations but also the source of recommendations, trends and songs for people around the world, without distinction of age. His latest achievement? He is transforming the way we eat and the way we cook.

According to the report The future of food and drink: how Tik Tok is influencing the way we eat, the American company Verve analyzed eight trends that in 2023 managed to transform entire industries by boosting the sale of forgotten ingredients or little known, as happened with “feta” cheese (a Greek sheep’s milk cheese made with curd cured in brine) or the use of supermarket tortillas in much more sophisticated meals.

And without the pretension of perfection that some of the Instagram recipes have, On TikTok, videos of dishes that appear feasible and that use relatively easy-to-find ingredients are usually successful. And it’s not just about eating well, habits also matter. For example, the “meal prep” trend (preparing the entire week’s meal on the same day) made many people improve their diet and optimize resources and ingredients.

This social network is revolutionizing the publishing market: While the Internet has democratized being able to write a book, neither bloggers nor Instagrammers have sold in the past like TikTok users do. And publishers are taking note.

Maybe The most revealing case is that of Dylan Hollis, a musician who until three years ago had only cooked a few dinners and lunches, but who In 2023 he published one of the most successful books in the United States, Baking Yesteryear.

The title, which includes classic recipes from the 20th century, sold 150,000 copies in its first day alone and became one of the best debuts in the history of the Penguin Random House publishing house. Where did all these readers come from? Possibly from his more than ten million followers on TikTok.

At 28 years old, this young man from the state of Wyoming, found a way to pass the time on the social network during the confinement measures due to the pandemic of Covid-19. Pushed by circumstances to cook, he came across a recipe for a pork pie from 1915 on the web, which he cooked while filming and which amassed a million views in its first week. This is how he began to record cooking old dishes, all created between 1865 and 1990. He soon became a digital celebrity and now a publishing industry event.

There are so many TikTok users that they allow an extensive culinary world to develop from vegetarian recipes or pasta dishes, to vegan grills or Korean food fused with Mexican condiments. And while not all recipes work, Creators who do their job well are rewarded with views, likes, and sales.

The next Doña Petrona has not yet emerged, but we should not be surprised if she arrives with vertical videos.