The Virality Of A Recipe: Anna Paul's Viral Turkish Pasta
But, Make It Puerto Rican
You know how I feel about TikTok. I love it. I’m obsessed with it. I consume…way too much of it. No, seriously. Too much. Which is why I felt the need to jump in on the discussion of the Keith Lee effect on the Bay Area last year, the one and only time I’ve written about food in pop culture. My most popular article in the five years I’ve been writing on Substack. Engrossing myself in unhealthy amounts of TikTok, I’ve also seen a substantial number of recipes go viral. And they all seem to have one thing in common.
What makes a recipe go viral? How did a 30-minute dish consisting of pasta, ground meat, Greek yogurt, tomatoes and onions all layered in a satisfying combination of cold and hot temperatures take over the internet? It also took over my kitchen and I hate pasta! If it wasn’t comforting enough, I’ve gone and added some maybe not so obvious Puerto Rican touches to the dish for those who like ample flavor. However, have we already moved on from its virality?
