The Fluffy Popcorn trend on TikTok is a popular snack trend for the spooky season, but it isn’t as safe as people making and eating it might think. One of the ingredients of the stove-top snack is raw flour, which numerous experts have warned can cause permanent health issues.
What is the Fluffy Popcorn trend on TikTok?
@shiannrichelle Fluffy popcorn 😋 #fyp #popcorn #recipes #kitchen #treat #treatyourself #marshmallow ♬ original sound – halloweendeCountdown
The ingredients are simple: popcorn, butter, marshmallows, sprinkles, and the dangerous ingredient, raw flour. The videos utilizing this trend are lighthearted, with not a lot of direction or detail provided in them beyond what viewers see in the video itself.
While the trend isn’t new to TikTok, it has recently become popular again as folks are using Halloween-themed sprinkles and audio when making their snack videos.
Why does popcorn become fluffy?
The popcorn in the Fluffy Popcorn recipes becomes extra fluffy because of the combination of raw flour and marshmallows. This turns the snack into an almost Rice Krispie-like snack.
@naraazizasmith all I want is sweet things #snacks #latenightsnack #treat #popcorn #marshmallow #fypシ ♬ original sound – Nara Smith
Microbiologist warns against making the Fluffy Popcorn trend
As much fun as the Fluffy Popcorn trend looks, there are some warning signs to put up about the trend, which microbiologist @𝔟𝔩𝔬𝔬𝔡𝔣𝔩𝔬𝔴𝔢𝔯 went into lengthy detail about in a TikTok video warning people about the trend.
It was later shared to the r/TikTokCringe subreddit by Redditor u/galaxystars1 on October 9th, 2024.
In the video, @𝔟𝔩𝔬𝔬𝔡𝔣𝔩𝔬𝔴𝔢𝔯 says, “Hey, if you value your kidneys, your liver, your colon, you don’t wanna get colon cancer, autoimmune disease, or potentially lose your life to a stupid snack on TikTok, you should watch this video. Did you know that when you eat raw dough, raw batter, raw cake mix, you are more at risk for getting a bacterial disease from the raw flour than you are from the raw egg?”
@𝔟𝔩𝔬𝔬𝔡𝔣𝔩𝔬𝔴𝔢𝔯 Botulism has a lot of misinformation – let’s talk about it! #science #stem #scienceeducation #microbiology #medlabscience #medicine #botulism #clostridiumbotulinum #foodsafety #homecanning #healthandwellness ♬ original sound – morticia 🥀
They went on to say, “We don’t typically think of raw flour as being a raw food, nor do we typically think of it as being a high risk food. It is indeed both of those things. It’s also a third thing, dangerous to eat.”
“Because flour is indeed raw, it does not undergo any sort of pathogen reduction step, meaning it harbors all kinds of nasty bacteria, namely E. coli and salmonella. And I know, I know, ‘I’ve never gotten sick and no one I know has ever gotten sick so it can’t be that big of a deal.’ Unfortunately, things do continue to exist even if we don’t experience them.”
“I think you have the right to be fully informed on the risk you’re choosing to take on. And I’m guessing the people posting these videos of these snack ideas aren’t exactly sharing that with you,” the TikToker added. “Nor are they telling you the advice that is often repeated on the internet,—‘Just heat treat the flour.’—also isn’t true and has no evidence supporting it. Let me just be abundantly clear. There is nothing you can do at home to flour that will suddenly make it safe to eat when it’s raw.”
They didn’t mince words as they said, “You are putting not only yourself, but anyone who eats that food at risk of a hemorrhagic E. coli infection, of an infection with salmonella and all of the things that come along with that. These bacterial infections are not something to mess around with.”
“Is that really worth the risk for some popcorn? No, it’s not.”
Their warning is verified by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s post about the topic.
Examples of the Fluffy Popcorn trend
There are plenty of people not using the flour that makes the Fluffy Popcorn trend a health hazard, and based on how popular it is, it certainly must be tasty. It looks like all of the other ingredients in the treat are safe, so long as the raw flour is excluded.
@shreyawesome #bigback ♬ You Can’t Hurry Love – Live At Jools’ Annual Hootenanny – Olivia Dean & Jools Holland and His Rhythm & Blues Orchestra
@kaitlynviducic a must for movie nights🍿 ingredients used: 1 bag butter flavoured popcorn 1/3 cup butter 1 tsp vanilla extract 5 cups mini marshmallows 1/3 cup vanilla cupcake goldfish (optional) #ricecrispies #popcorn #tutorial #viralrecipe #movienightsnacks ♬ original sound – kaitlyn
People have even started posting warnings on videos of people making Fluffy Popcorn because of the trend, warning them away from using flour in their recipes.
More viral TikTok trends:
- What is the My New Character trend on TikTok?
- Explaining the ‘I Lied, Put Your Clothes Back On’ meme
- What is the Hopecore TikTok trend? The wholesomeness and the controversy, explained
- The October Theory is going viral on TikTok
- What’s the Galvanized Square Steel meme all about?
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