Indian, Filipino and Korean food among most popular on social media

Chef's Pencil analysed data from TikTok and Instagram in the past 12 months

An aubergine omelette by Filipino content creator Cuisineria. Photo: Instagram / cuisineria

South Korea's sweet and spicy bibimbap, aubergine omelette from the Philippines and Indian rice dish pulao are some of the most shared dishes on social media in the past year.

Analysing hashtags from Instagram and TikTok from February 2022 to March 2023, food website Chef's Pencil has released a ranking of cuisines with the most mentions.

Instagram famous cuisines

Italian cuisine tops the list on Instagram, amassing more than 2.9 million hashtags in the past year, according to data collated by the website. This is not surprising given the ubiquity of pizza and pasta around the world.

The Instagram posts, captioned with #Italianfood, show a variety of pasta dishes, from spaghetti cooked with colatura di alici (sauce made from anchovies) to baked paccheri with bechamel.

Other items typically posted with the hashtag are pizza, risotto and gelato. In fact, #pizza has been mentioned 9 million times in the past year, making it one of the most mentioned foods on the platform.

Indian food takes the second spot, garnering more than 2.24 million hashtags in the past year. Chef's Pencil noted the cuisine's rapid rise through the ranks, with many Instagram users appreciating its rich and complex flavours.

Given India's diversity, the dishes posted with #Indianfood vary extensively, but among the popular ones is pulao — a one-pot dish where basmati rice is cooked with a variety of herbs, spices and stock.

One standout post is a recipe for aloo matar pulao, a rice dish with potatoes and green peas. Colourful thalis are also in the mix, as well as different types of samosas and chaats.

After Indian, Japanese food lands a close third with more than 2.21 million mentions in the past year. The popular #sushi is the star of the cuisine, with 3.2 million mentions in the same period.

Dishes from Japan are perhaps some of the most Instagram-friendly, from kaleidoscopic sushi and sashimi to meticulously arranged bentos. After all, the Japanese are known for their attention to detail and masterful techniques when it comes to cooking and food preparation.

Mexican food nabs the fourth spot, followed by Korean, Chinese and Thai. These cuisines are not only popular in their home countries, but have also gained international appeal.

With more than 219,000 mentions of #Filipinofood in the past year, the South-East Asian cuisine sits at the 11th spot, even surpassing the popularity of French food.

But it's not the staple Adobo that's most widely shared. Instead, it's a collection of street food, such as grilled chicken intestines and quail eggs coated in orange batter, which some describe as "Filipino tempura".

One of the top posts is an elevated version of a saging con hielo, or ripe bananas simmered in brown sugar syrup with shaved ice and evaporated milk. Some even come topped with a portion of leche flan or caramel pudding to make it more indulgent.

Of regional relevance is a special mention given to Lebanese cuisine by the report, with 194,000 hashtags in the past 12 months, or an 18 per rise compared to the previous year, making it the cuisine with the second fastest growth in popularity on Instagram. Some of the dishes featured in the posts are hummus, mixed grill and vegetables stuffed with rice.

Star cuisines on TikTok

It's a whole new ball game on TikTok, which focuses on short videos instead of static images. Food-related content posted on the platform ranges from recipes to eating challenges and mukbang, the oddly entertaining clips of strangers eating exorbitant portions of food.

Taking the number one spot here is Korean cuisine, which raked in more than 15 billion views in the past year. South Korea's pop culture scene has exploded in recent years, and the fascination has inevitably spilled over to its culinary wonders. Korean noodles, in particular, are hogging the limelight.

A few viral recipes include jajangmyeon or Korean black bean noodles, gyeran bap or Korean egg rice, and classic beef bulgogi.

Chinese cuisine follows with 13.4 billion views, and the continuing popularity of mukbang might have a hand here. There are also plenty of videos featuring unusual ingredients, such as frogs. Varying kinds of dumplings and noodles are also on show.

Tacos and quesadilla are also widely shared with the hashtag #FoodTok, catapulting Mexican food to the third spot with 7.6 billion views. There is growing interest in creating healthier versions of these Mexican favourites, with content creators suggesting low-calorie alternatives to some ingredients such as tortilla breads.

Indian cuisine is a close fourth with 7.4 billion views, followed by Italian at 7.1 billion.

A standout in the list is Filipino cuisine, which historically lagged behind its South-East Asian counterparts when it came to mainstream popularity. The archipelago's food culture places eight in the Chef's Pencil analysis, garnering 2 billion views in the past year.

Similar to Instagram, Filipino food on TikTok features a variety of dishes. Aside from savoury food, there is significant showing of local desserts, using traditional ingredients such as glutinous rice, ube or purple yam and coconut.

Filipino fast food also takes a chunk of the views, such as Filipino-style spaghetti, which has sugar, condensed milk and banana ketchup.