No, Potato Chips Cannot Be Mashed
There are three types of food on TikTok: really wholesome stuff, clean shitty posts, and honest content that’s just not good. If you watch this video of hacking mashed potatoes from elis_kitchen , it may not immediately become clear which type you are looking at. However, if you look at this in the context of their other videos, it becomes abundantly clear what Eli’s poster is.
Unlike a lot of viral food videos, there is no smooth editing at the end. This young man is not a liar, and the final “glamor shot” is very, very real. Chips are not boiled in slops, and then magically turn into an airy creamy puree; they turn into a watery mass with a consistency similar to wallpaper glue and remain so even after straining and mixing with cheese and paprika (although they become less watery as a result).
But it’s Eli’s confidence, their confidence, their faith in this plate of cheese potato gruel that makes the video immersive. It also prompted Joel and me to make our own plates of thick, cheesy, wet potato chips, even though we both “know best.”
“What’s the value in that?” – you ask. “What have we learned?”
I learned that I am old and that young people are very good at persuading me to do stupid things with food, even contrary to my common sense, especially if these stupid things are presented with the confidence of young people. It’s funny (for me), but it can also be helpful for other seniors who were just as influenced by the fresh TikTokers, because now you know that this “hacking trick” definitely doesn’t work and you can save your precious potato chips … (G / O media paid for mine).