TikTok food videos are all about the visual. The cheese pull, the fork breaking through the crust and the snap of a crisp cookie.

And I’ll admit that when I’m skimming a cookbook, an arresting photo will make me stop flipping and start reading – the offline equivalent of clicking. The “noodle pull” photo for this chili oil noodle dish did just that when I came across it in “Caught Snackin’,” a bright, colorful cookbook released by the people behind the popular TikTok channel of the same name.

These spiced, oiled noodles paired with lightly steamed bok choy result in a satisfying contrast of soft and crisp and spicy and mild – and the dish is ready in 20 minutes.

The noodles will make your tongue tingle, but they’re easy to tame by reducing the pepper flakes and switching out some of the chili oil for more sesame or vegetable oil. If you don’t have udon noodles, use your favorite long pasta. “You can replace the bok choy with anything in your fridge,” said Katharine Scott Payne, the content creator for Caught Snackin’, which released its first cookbook this year with 100 recipes.

The TikTok account was the brainchild of three co-workers at Uncovered Group, a marketing and social media agency in London. In April 2020, Lydia Vernon, Freya Matchett and Jason Tamou pitched the idea of starting a food TikTok.

The three co-workers, who have all since moved on, met over Zoom and decided to focus on foods they loved but couldn’t go out and eat due to isolating during the pandemic. You’ll find lots of hacks for making things like McDonald’s apple pies. You’ll see the English influence in quick-and-easy recipes for crumpets and trifle, too.

“It quickly became the fastest-growing food TikTok in the United Kingdom,” Payne said.

Payne, who came to work at Uncovered in September, said Vernon mentored her for about eight months, “teaching me the ropes before giving me her baby.” The women worked together on the cookbook, which features 100 recipes, more than 90 percent of them created for the book.

“We wanted to show you can create proper dinner foods and still have that great fun element that’s on the TikTok page,” said Payne, who makes the food in a rented London apartment kitchen, working with a small team that comes up with recipe ideas and films the videos. Unlike the short-form videos, the cookbook provides ingredient amounts, cooking times and a difficulty scale that ranges from easy (the vast majority) to medium. That’s it.

“Our main thing is it’s got to be very easy, accessible and super fun,” she said, noting the account and the cookbook are aimed at Gen Z home cooks. “We focus on what people love. They love cheese. They love pizza and all the hacky things to do with that. They love puff pastry.”

On the TikTok page, which has 2.4 million followers, the focus is on snacking and desserts. You’ll find plenty of three- to five-ingredient recipes, lots of those cheese pulls and recipes that start with a store-bought mix.

The cookbook is just as vibrant as the TikTok, with brightly lit photos, over-the-top desserts and snacks, but it also features chapters for lunch and dinner with more substantial meals, such as ribs, shrimp and pasta bowls like these noodles.

“I honestly eat it two times a week,” Payne said of this chili oil noodle dish. “It’s perfect; you get home late from work, you can chop everything while the noodles are boiling and it’s done in minutes.”

Payne can’t help hacking even her own recipes: “I love adding a little bit of peanut butter. It makes it delicious as well.”

Chili Oil Noodles With Steamed Bok Choy

Total time: 20 minutes

2 to 3 servings

Spicy oiled noodles find an ideal partner in lightly steamed bok choy in this bowl from the popular TikToker “Caught Snackin’.” This tingling hot noodle dish can be tamed by halving the amount of pepper flakes and switching out some of the chili oil for more sesame or vegetable oil. If you don’t have udon noodles, use your favorite long pasta.

Storage: Refrigerate the noodles and bok choy separately for up to 2 days.

INGREDIENTS

Fine salt

5 ounce thick udon noodles

8 ounce baby bok choy or small bok choy, trimmed and sliced lengthwise

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seed oil

1 tablespoon chili oil

1 tablespoon white or black (or a mixture of both) sesame seeds

1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

1 clove garlic, minced or finely grated

1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes

3 tablespoon vegetable oil

Freshly cracked black pepper (optional)

1 scallion, thinly sliced, for serving (optional)

1 red or green chile, seeded, pith removed and thinly sliced or minced, for serving (optional)

DIRECTIONS

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to boil, add the noodles and cook according to package directions; drain.

Meanwhile, fill a medium pot with about 2 inches of water and bring it to a boil. Place a steamer basket over the top so that it does not touch the water. Arrange the bok choy in the basket – it’s OK if the vegetables overlap – then reduce the heat to low, cover with a tight-fitting lid and steam until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Uncover and turn off the heat.

While the bok choy steams, in a large heat-proof bowl, whisk together the sesame oil, chili oil, sesame seeds and soy sauce, garlic and red pepper flakes until combined.

In a small saucepan over medium heat or in a microwave-safe bowl, heat the vegetable oil until shimmering, about 2 minutes on the stove, or about 45 seconds on HIGH in the microwave. Pour the hot oil over the chili oil mixture and whisk until fully combined. Add the noodles and toss until each strand is well coated.

Divide the noodles and bok choy among warm, shallow bowls. Sprinkle with the black pepper, if using, the scallions and chile, if using, and serve

Nutrition: 397 Calories Per serving (1 cup noodles, 1 1/3 cups bok choy), based on 3: 40g Carbohydrates, 23g Fat, 3g Fiber, 9g Protein, 2g Saturated Fat, 413mg Sodium, 4g Sugar