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Move over avocados - Gen Z's latest health food obsession is the return of an unlikely old favourite: cottage cheese.
The low-fat, low-calorie dairy product seems to be back in vogue and has now featured in 138 million posts on TikTok - despite a spike in dairy prices.
The cheese was once fashionable as a dinner party staple in the 1970s but its uneven texture and divisive taste meant many soon left it out of their weekly food shop.
Fast-forward to 2024, and supermarkets are once again reporting a boom in sales, which have surged to their highest levels in 40 years.
Influencers have taken to social media to show off their best examples of cottage cheese recipes, often using it to put healthier twists on more indulgent meals.
One influencer - @cookingwithnoa from Melbourne - tried hot honey cottage cheese and even declared it to be the 'new avocado'.
Gen Z's latest health food obsession is the return of an unlikely old favourite: cottage cheese. One TikToker @cookingwithnoa even called it the 'new avocado' (pictured)
And Olivia Jarvis (@oliviajarviss) from the UK even used cottage cheese to make the base of her pizza, saying it added protein to one of her favourite treats.
Emily English (@emthenutritionist), a nutritionist who studied at King's College London, went viral for her take on the hot honey cottage cheese, racking up 4.3 million views for her recipe using the M&S dairy product.
It seems that many will be following in her footsteps, as fans rushed to explain that they'd tried it - and it was both healthy and delicious.
They said: 'Made this and can confirm it was delicious!';
'It's actually insanely good.'
Cottage cheese is considered a ‘complete protein’ since it contains all nine essential amino acids the body cannot make on its own. It’s also high in calcium and B vitamins.
Milk and dairy products, such as cheese and yoghurt, are sources of protein and calcium.
But cottage cheese is also high in protein and low in fat, making it a go-to for people seeking to build muscle mass.
Emily English, a nutritionist who studied at King's College London, went viral for her take on the hot honey cottage cheese toast, racking up more than 4 million views
Cottage cheese's uneven texture and divisive taste left many leaving it out of their weekly food shop - but now it's back in vogue
Olivia Jarvis from the UK even used cottage cheese to make the base of her pizza, saying it added protein to one of her favourite treats
It's a much healthier choice than butter — the typical binding ingredient in cookie dough — because it contains just 3g of fat per 100g, according to the NHS.
Research by The Knowledge Bank showed cottage cheese sales have surged to their highest level in 40 years.
Anne-Laure Farrar, UK Market Insight Manager from The Knowledge Bank, explained: 'The importance of viral trends cannot not be denied, and witnessing some varieties blow up in popularity thanks to TikTok and Instagram is brilliant as it can breathe new life into long-established products which have been able to capture a new audience.'
Since May last year, Stirlingshire-based Graham's Family Dairy noted a 40 per cent rise in cottage cheese sales – to levels not seen since the 1980s – and attributed them to this rise in demand for high-protein products, retro trends, and viral social media posts.
Its popularity has also been reflected in supermarket statistics, with sales increasing 50 per cent on last year at M&S and searches increasing by 59 per cent at Ocado.
Sarah MacKay, a fitness TikToker from Scotland who posts under the username @liftwsarah, filmed her reaction to adding cottage cheese to her scrambled eggs for the first time.
Sarah, 21, began her video by exclaiming: 'I absolutely hate cottage cheese. I hate everything about it - the taste, the texture, the smell, the thought.
'It just makes me gag, like, why are there lumps in there? It's disgusting and I don't understand it!
Sarah MacKay from Scotland said she hated cottage cheese but was left impressed when she tried it in her scrambled eggs (right)
Sarah then tried it with greek yoghurt, almond butter and fruit for a healthy breakfast, saying 'maturing is realising that cottage cheese is actually good'
TikToker @_cookwithmi, who lives in London, made lasagne with cottage cheese, saying she was 'hopping on the cottage cheese bandwagon and this did NOT disappoint'
'I'm not going to lie it was not looking promising. I was looking at the pan and thinking, are you serious I'm going to have to eat this?'
Things weren't looking hopeful as the eggs began to leak water and Sarah was considering putting a peg over her nose to eat it.
But after trying a bite, she was blown away. 'I tried it and girls! I was so surprised,' she said.
'I will be eating this for lunch every single day until I die. It was that good. It tastes like cheesy eggs. It was so good, I really recommend you try it.'
In another video, she added cottage cheese to her yoghurt bowl with almond butter, fruit, greek yoghurt and cocoa.
She said: 'Maturing is realising that cottage cheese is actually good. I know, I know, hear me out! I used to absolutely hate cottage cheese.
'I used to literally throw up in my mouth every time I put it in my mouth. But then I realised, I have to stop being such a baby at some point. I'm 21 guys, like we gotta grow up.
'And I realised, maybe I was just eating it wrong. Who eats cottage cheese straight out of the tub?'
Others have used it to make delicious snacks by baking it in the oven and added seasoning to make crisps
Emily English used cottage cheese from M&S to create a delicious hot honey toast
TikTokers have also been using cottage cheese in sweeter dishes, such as pancakes
It seems there are no limits to what cottage cheese can be used for - from making classic meals a bit healthier, to even being used in desserts.
Some have even used it as an ingredient in cookie dough, as seen in a recipe shared by Jake Cohen, a chef and New York Times bestselling author, in May.
Others have used it to make delicious snacks by baking it in the oven and added seasoning to make crisps.
TikToker @_cookwithmi, who lives in London, made lasagne with cottage cheese, saying she was 'hopping on the cottage cheese bandwagon and this did NOT disappoint'.
As she sliced up her delicious dinner, she added: 'I do love a cheese sauce but this is slightly healthier.'
Speaking about their recent boom in sales of cottage cheese, an M&S spokesperson said: ‘As part of our Eat Well range helping customers find healthy choices, it offers a great source of protein and is made in the UK with British milk.
'With a range of options from full fat to fat free, it is an increasingly popular ingredient for many meals options from a toast topper, a great addition to salmon or prawn salad or to help make a delicious frittata!'
