FSR August 2023

SPONSORED BY BEL BRANDS USA

BOURSIN CHEESE has long been known among chefs as the perfect comfort ingredient—one that can be used in a seemingly endless array of recipes and applications. More recently, Boursin is enjoying expanded popularity as a “darling” on TikTok, the trend-setting social media platform. In fact, year-to-date through May, Boursin has been featured in 112 mil lion TikTok videos, based on track ing of “#Boursin.” TikTok confirms this makes Boursin one of the most active hashtags in the food and bev erage brand space. Thanks to TikTok, a whole new generation is falling in love with Boursin. TikTok users are featuring Boursin in a variety of ways, from breaded and baked with hot honey to blended into soup, baked with hasselback potatoes, and more. There was a very simple pasta recipe leveraging Boursin that went especially viral. And because Boursin is sold all over the world, many of the Boursin-inspired rec ipe videos come from other countries, o‚ering global influence and flavor. Chef Ian Ramirez, culinary con sultant and owner of Mad Honey Creative Studio, says he is one the increasing number of chefs who check out TikTok regularly to learn more about food trends. He started seeing Boursin-inspired recipes on TikTok somewhere in the past year and says he was hardly surprised. “TikTok—or ‘FoodTok’ as I’ve seen Moment How chefs can capitalize on the iconic ingredient’s social media boost. BY CHARLIE POGACAR Boursin ’ s TikTok

THE TIKTOK CANDLE TREND (COVER) AND PASTA BAKES (THIS PAGE) ARE TWO OF THE HOTTEST THINGS CHEFS CAN TAP INTO WHEN SHOWCASING BOURSIN.

“FoodTok… is about simple,

it called—is about simple, delicious recipes that can be made with just a few ingredients,” Ramirez says. “I think that’s where Boursin really shines: It’s already a shortcut in and of itself. You’ve got the herbs and garlic in there, and it’s packed with a ton of flavor.” In other words, a lot of people found out via TikTok what many chefs already knew. For chefs in foodser vice, the question becomes: How can they capitalize on the TikTok trend? For one, Ramirez says, while Bour sin has always been an iconic ingre dient, it’s possible that it has never been more popular than it is now. Chefs can not only capitalize on the cheese’s ease-of-use, versatility, and distinct, rich flavor, but now they can call out the ingredient on menus to drive tra“c. “Boursin is a staple in every kitchen I’ve ever worked in,” Ramirez says. “It’s like it was a secret weapon in the kitchen because you can put it in almost anything to elevate it. Now, a lot of diners know about it and love it. That’s kind of a gamechanger.” Chefs may even consider incor

porating the Boursin TikTok reci pes onto their menus—but they bet ter get it right, Ramirez cautions, and use the right ingredients. “I always try to remind restaurants that some of the very best menu items are things that are delightfully simple,” Ramirez says. “But if you’re going to go simple, you have to use good, solid, proven ingredients. So if you’re going to make that TikTok rec ipe, you better use the best qual ity ingredients. You better not skimp out on the Boursin—it’s all about fig uring out how to make the dish with minimal prep and make sure it’s still done with love.” ❖ For more Boursin recipes, visit belbrandsfoodservice.com. delicious recipes that can be made with just a few ingredients.”

COVER: BEL BRANDS USA | THIS PAGE: BEL BRANDS USA

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FSRMAGAZINE.COM

AUGUST 2023