TikTokHappy New Year! As January gets underway, it's a great time to experiment in the kitchen with some exciting new #FoodTok recipes. From quick and healthy dishes, to low budget, sustainable or minimal waste culinary masterpieces, there's something for everyone on TikTok when it comes to cooking inspiration.
So, who better to kickstart our Creator Spotlight series for 2023 than the incredible @chef_tristan_welch! Having trained with the likes of Gary Rhodes, Michel Roux Jr and Gordon Ramsay, chef Tristan has been wowing our community with his food content. His focus on and off TikTok is food waste: with videos detailing what to do with extra risotto, how to achieve braised broccoli stalks, and carrot top pasta - he really does have a dish for every kind of leftover!
Whether you are on a health kick, trying to make your food spend go further, or just want to get back in the kitchen this New Year - Tristan is the chef for you.
When he's not wowing the #FoodTok community, he's busy as Head Chef at Parker’s Tavern in Cambridge, masterminding ‘Rubbish Cooks’, a supper club that aims to eliminate food waste.
With a constantly growing audience of 344.9k followers, it is clear our community loves Tristan just as much as we do! We sat down with @chef_tristan_welch his week to hear all his views on food, his channel, and reducing food waste.
One bit of money saving advice for January?
An oven is one of the most expensive items most people have, coming second only to the tumble dryer they cost more than 21p per hour. But if you turn your oven off just two thirds of the way through cooking, and leave your dinner in the hot oven, it will cook fully in the residual heat and you’ll save a third of the cost!
What first inspired you to create on TikTok?
My wife told me I had the right sense of humour for TikTok. I’m not sure what that means, but I hope it was a compliment! Initially, I just shared my apple cider vinegar recipe just to see what would happen and it blew up. That recipe is something I make at home and costs next to nothing - at the end of the recipe you’ve got a litre of organic, probiotic, live apple cider vinegar worth about £10 in the shops for just half a litre.
Have you been surprised by the response to your content?
Yes, incredibly surprised, and inspired! People seem to enjoy the videos and I’m enjoying it too - I take daily inspiration from the community we’re building.
What is your goal on TikTok?
For me, I’m using TikTok to help make things a little bit more delicious and help people save a bit of money too, with the added bonus of helping to cut carbon emissions!
What other creators are on your For You feed?
I’ve got an eclectic mix: @gordonramsayofficial, @mrnigelng, @diywithemma (I’m following the story, it's like a series, it’s brilliant). I love @stalekracker. @love_fruitss is just peeling vegetables but it’s a lot of fun. And @plantyou – I love her zing and her zest for life.
What do you love most about the TikTok community?
The questions! And the comments. People who are genuinely interested in making something from nothing and who are interested in minimising food waste. I try to answer as many comments as possible and it sparks amazing debate and helps build that community, which I love.
What is your favorite TikTok you have made to date and why?
I’m passionate about all of them because we have so much fun when we film them, but there is one that comes to mind....the Dishwasher S’mores (making s’mores in the dishwasher basically).
Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. It was hilarious to film and we died laughing doing it. It took hours to get right.
New to TikTok and want to explore more #FoodTok content? Getting involved couldn’t be easier, simply download the app for free via the Apple App Store, Google Play or Amazon.
