I think it would be certainly fair to say that TikTokers and 'viral hacks' go hand in hand like bread and butter, Bonnie and Clyde, Rock and Roll.
Personally, I don't use the app myself, as I tend to stay as far away from social media as humanly possible, but you'll always read about new cleaning hacks or be flooded with videos of DIY tricks from online influencers whenever you search the web.
And amidst all of the wannabe Hinchers and influencers, one of the biggest areas dedicated to viral trends comes in the form of exciting new food experiments.
Read more: I tried the new McDonald's double McPlant burger and it put me off ever becoming vegetarian
That's not to say that TikTok solely created this sort of behaviour, as I remember people experimenting with fast food when I was younger - going to McDonald's, ordering two cheeseburgers and a chicken mayo and cramming them together for some bizarre reason. But it certainly has put a hyper focus on people consuming weird and wonderful combinations of food in a number of manners.
The latest viral sensation comes in the form of the McDonald's Loaded Fries - which has been taking the internet by storm as of late thanks to Essex TikToker Dorian Jessica, who recently shared the best way to scran a deconstructed Maccies with her thousands of online followers.
In the video, Jessica uses just five ingredients from the fast food retailer to create the dirty fries, dubbing the concoction 'absolutely delicious'. In the video, the social media star combines a large fries with the chicken, cheese, lettuce and pickles from the new and improved Chicken Big Mac.
She then loads it up with one sour cream and chive pot and also a smoky BBQ dip from the fast food Goliath, mixes it all up, and it's good to go. The dish in itself looks absolutely vulgar, but Jessica swears by it - commenting: "Mmm...that's mad."
But is the new viral trend really a winner? Or just another abomination that needs avoiding? I decided to brave it and find out for myself - as should you.
I headed to my local McDonald's and picked up everything I needed for the meal itself. Two Chicken Big Macs, a large fries, one BBQ pot, as well as a sour cream and chive dip. Obviously I went for a water to go with it, to keep some form of healthiness in the calorific task ahead.
I got home and started prepping the dish. Fries went in first, topped off with the chicken, lettuce, Big Mac Sauce, pickle and cheese combo from the Macs. The I lashed the dish with the two tubs of sauce, gave it a quick mix and hey presto! It was good to go.
In terms of appearance, it's absolutely nothing short of an abomination. The BBQ had overpowered all of the other sauces in terms of colour, and it looked like a big brown bowl of mush...not ideal. The scent however was very inviting nonetheless.
The sweetness of the pickles were pungent, accompanied by the saltiness of the fresh and crispy fries. Once more, the BBQ sauce seemed to cut through above all else, but the vinegar in it wasn't so overbearing that it was off-putting.
After piling the fork high with a little of every ingredient, in the mouth the mixture went.
Now, I went into this 'experiment' with little to no hope of this being a decent or worthwhile meal, thinking that it was something the dog wouldn't even eat. But I'm humble enough to admit when I'm wrong.
Taste-wise, this TikToker seems to have found the perfect balance in terms of flavour and texture. The crispiness of the fries and chicken stands strong despite the copious amounts of sauce involved, and the crunch of the pickle also stays structurally tall.
In terms of taste, you practically get a little bit of everything on the old palate. The rich and smoky BBQ sauce merges with the signature Big Mac dressing, to make something unknown yet so pleasantly familiar at the same time. I used to actually put BBQ sauce on my normal Big Macs and chuck some fries in for good measure, and it's basically the deconstructed, chicken equivalent to this.
The lettuce provides an element of freshness and savoury in a very, very sweet and tangy dish - and the pickles provide extra balance with a hint of sourness.
However, I do have a couple of qualms here, and this is potentially just me nit picking a tad. Firstly, there's not enough cheese.
If you're going to try this yourself, maybe order the Chicken Big Mac with extra cheese - or have some cheese on hand to top it off with. I think that a couple extra sheets of cheese, grilled for a minute or two would have made the world of difference on this one.
Secondly, the sour cream and chive dip was completely obsolete. I did mention that you got a touch of ALMOST everything with regards to the concoction, but if you try this yourself, you won't get the slightest tinge of the sauce. Save yourself 50p and go without it.
Overall, I'm fairly happy with this new TikTok creation, and although it won't exactly be on the top of my list when I next visit my local Maccies, it's certainly something that I'm glad I trialled. I'm sure that may of you will have divisive opinions with regards to this one, so do yourselves a favour...
Give it a whirl, and let me know what you think in the comments as always.
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