How to Spot a Bad Viral Recipe
Cheez-It is perhaps the perfect snack. The toasted, salty rectangles, which have been around for (are you ready for?) 101 years , are excellent not only for their crispy, buttery flakyness, but also for their ability to grab easily without even looking at the box. Bubbles for toast? Incomparable. Is their constitution made primarily of cheese? Exceptional.
So when I saw a viral video on TikTok explaining how to make them at home with just two ingredients, I knew this experiment was in my future. Why make a small batch at home, you ask, when you can buy them in bulk for $3.29? Well, several reasons.
Some of us like to feel the comfort of baking and the self-sufficiency of a diner at the same time. Also, as someone who would prefer Cheez-It to sweets as an after-dinner snack any day of the week, it’s a challenge for me to keep full boxes in my pantry that I can mindlessly consume in excess while watching Bridgerton’s after a perfectly healthy dinner. So a limited tray of freshly baked cheese chips sounds like the right amount, reflecting my appreciation of the ingredient list of just two items.
I followed the instructions of a video that I can’t find anymore because as anyone who’s been on TikTok knows, if you don’t like the video or save it live, you’ll never find it again. But here is a similar, explaining method.
As mentioned, the ingredients are simple:
- Cheddar cheese slices
- Puff salt
- Parchment
- Straw
- baking sheet
The original video recommended using ultra-thin slices , but I used what was on hand in my cheese drawer (yes, it’s a whole drawer): several Sargento Medium cheddars and 365 soft cheddar (slightly thicker slices).
How to make your own Cheese-Its
Cut each slice of cheese into four squares. Place the squares on a baking sheet lined with parchment. (Leave at least an inch between the squares, or they’ll cake together, which isn’t the worst , it just takes more force to pull them apart.) Pierce each square down the middle with a straw, removing a small amount of cheese to create that trademark Cheez-It look. Sprinkle with salt flakes and bake in a preheated 275°F oven for 22-25 minutes.
results
So, is it Cheez-It? No, not at all.
What came out after 22 minutes was more like those thin, textured chips that have a cheesy flavor but don’t have the tough, crispy Cheez-It crust. (Besides, the straw was useless; when the cheese melted, the holes disappeared.)
While the first bite does exude a satisfying crunch, subsequent bites were much more chewy and rich in traces of ghee. Were they terrible? Not at all. But they weren’t Cheez-Its.
Takeaway
Why didn’t it work? According to Lifehacker Senior Editor Claire Lower, “It’s just a bad recipe.” Okay, fair enough. But how does a non-food specialist spot such a bad recipe?
Pointing out that the main problem with the recipe is that it doesn’t contain any flour, Claire continued: “First, look at the ingredient list of what you’re trying to replicate. If your hack recipe is missing any important ingredients, this is your first clue.” (The first ingredient on a box of Cheez-Its? Flour.) Instead, she recommended this DIY Cheez-It recipe from Pastry Chef and Serious Eats author Stella Park as the best option.
Bottom line: If you’re trying to replicate your favorite mass-produced snack or junk food at home and a viral recipe looks like it’s too good to be true, it probably is. Read the label on the original. If a hack recipe does not include any version of the main ingredients, proceed with caution.