On TikTok, soup is getting a rebrand. It’s now water-based cooking to you.
“Pov you started water-based cooking and now your skin is clear, your stomach is thriving and you recover from illness overnight,” one TikTok post reads. Others claim the method is making them age backward.
But a quick scroll through the comments has many pointing out the obvious: “Bro invented soup,” one commenter wrote. Another added, “As an Asian, what’s new?”
The post made its way to Bluesky, where one user joked: “I need to start jumping on these phony trends. Get a water-based cookbook self-published by tomorrow. Hit TikTok running.” They added, “Send me soup recipes. Let’s all get rich”—to which one user replied, “I have one that involves chicken and noodles,” or as they called it: “chicken noodle water-based meal.”
While this cooking method predates TikTok by at least 50,000 years, it has been recently popularized on TikTok and Instagram by scientist and registered dietitian Michelle Davenport, PhD, whose work focuses on slowing the deleterious effects of aging.
She argues that cooking mostly with broth and water can help slow aging by reducing the amount of advanced glycation end products (AGEs), the compounds that attach to our DNA and cells. These are formed when food is cooked at high, dry temperatures and contribute to various health issues. On Davenport’s Instagram page, which has over 250,000 followers, you’ll find recipes for dishes like water eggs and breakfast soup. (“Dr. Michelle Davenport the woman you are,” the caption of the original TikTok post reads.)
“Water-based cooking—like steaming or simmering—is a simple way to get more out of your food,” dietitian Kouka Webb, MS, RD, CDN, told Fast Company. “It helps preserve delicate nutrients that are often lost with high-heat methods, and it cuts back on the need for heavy oils. As a dietitian, I’ve seen how small shifts like this can support things like blood sugar balance, better digestion, and even lower inflammation over time.”
But while the health benefits of water-based cooking are plenty, clearly not everyone is here for the TikTokification of recipes and cooking methods that have existed for generations.
And on TikTok, food trends come and go quicker than you can say, “lemony miso gochujang brown butter gnocchi.” Last year, there was the “dense bean salad” trend—which is exactly what it sounds like: a bean salad. There was also the “tadpole water” trend (just add chia seeds to a glass of water). And, of course, who could forget the classic “girl dinner”?
May I interest you in a delicious bowl of alphabet soup?
