Because of this TikToker, everyone is eating cucumber salad

I love cucumbers. Refrigerator cucumbers? A kitchen essential. Chinese cucumber stir-fry? A simple but surprising triumph. Tzatziki on everything? One of my greatest joys.

Oh, my love is but a faint ember next to Logan Moffitt’s blazing flame. He loves Cucumbers. He Life Cucumbers. And if you are what you eat, then Is Cucumbers.

In his first mesmerizing cucumber salad, which went viral, he begins by saying, “Sometimes you have to eat a whole cucumber,” and then uses a mandoline to slice an entire seedless cucumber into a quart container.

He adds his favorite ingredients: soy sauce, fish sauce, sugar, scallions, sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and “MSG, of course.” Then he shakes it and slurps it. “It’s so simple and delicious,” he says.

Moffitt calls himself an “addict,” but the internet loves his videos perhaps even more than pickles; each of his dozens of recordings has millions of views. The most popular video right now, with over 20 million views, is one he compares to a New York bagel with smoked salmon and avocado. You’ll hear his signature, deadpan refrain – “start by slicing your whole pickle” to “a little MSG, of course.”

As much as viewers enjoy watching, it seems they enjoy tasting it too. In another viral combination featuring peanut butter, soy sauce, chili crunch, rice vinegar, garlic, sesame seeds and MSG, one commenter says, “I don’t like pickles but these videos have me craving them.” Another excitedly reports that she “just bought 5 pickles because of you,” to which Moffitt quips, “You need more than 5.” Part of the ritual is his enthusiastic and infectious “Mmmm!”

“I wanted to buy msg on Amazon and the ‘frequently bought together’ product was a vegetable slicer 🤣,” reports a commenter on his “Cucumber is Bratwurst” feta salad.

“Do you think he bought a mathematically large amount of cucumbers and now his fridge is full of them?” asks another in an original Redux video featuring soy sesame soy sauce.

What gets many commentators riled up is his frequent request to drink the remaining dressing – with a straw — So you might be wondering if he’s serious. Some of his stories are inside jokes, and he’s definitely in on them, but I believe this is true love.

When I met Moffitt, a recent communications graduate from Ottawa, he said it was a lifelong affair for him, having eaten it almost daily since he was a child.

“I didn’t post much about it until I realized how big the cucumber community is and how many people share my view on cucumbers,” he explains. Still, he’s as baffled as anyone else by the interest. “I don’t really understand why the videos are all so successful, but I’m happy about it because I enjoy making them and I’m happy to be able to offer viewers an interesting, fun and healthy snack.”

Does he eat anything else? Sure – whole onions, whole blocks of tofu and cereal – especially cucumber cereal.

OK, that’s a bit of an exaggeration. Moffitt is actually an adventurous eater and home cook who attributes some of his skills to watching another longtime favorite, Korean cooking expert and YouTube star Maangchi. His first cucumber salad bears more than a passing resemblance to her spicy cucumber salad (oi-muchim), and he told me he’s been watching her videos and cooking her recipes for his family for years.

“As my passion slowly became my work,” he says, “I am grateful that I was able to travel to South Korea and experience the culture for myself.”

Let’s try it! Given my personal love of ranch and tzatziki, I’m going to test out another of his most popular recipes: a “creamy cucumber” version using full-fat plain skyr (Icelandic yogurt), ranch dressing mix, lemon, fresh dill, a little hot pepper brine… and of course MSG. Garlic and green onions are optional. Since I don’t love cucumbers quite as much as Moffitt, I’m just going to cook half of this monstrous squash plant in a smaller container so I can try another recipe as well.

Moffitt recommends salad cucumbers, which have a thinner, more tender skin and less pronounced seeds, making them “burp-free.” He says he slices the cucumber directly into the container on the second mandoline setting, but he has the dexterity of youth and the skills of years of experience, so you’ll want to use a cut-resistant glove and the mandoline’s drip tray if you (like me) aren’t so confident. You can also use a knife to thinly slice the cucumber. Then shake, shake, shake! It might look like it’s too crowded to blend, but Moffitt has proof of his chosen technique here. (Pro tip: Hold the lid while shaking to avoid splattering.)

It’s delicious! But I personally found that I liked it better after letting the flavors infuse in the fridge for a few hours. This does soften the texture, but I think the more flavorful effect is worth it; your opinion may vary. (I also liked the version without the dressing mix better, which is more reminiscent of tzatziki.)

For the second half, I made his original version, which I think is where the MSG really deserves its spurs.

Many commentators wonder whether you have Add MSG (monosodium glutamate). I’ve tried it with and without and it definitely enhances the flavor. Unless you’re personally sensitive to it, adding it won’t hurt you and you may find that the umami booster allows you to use less salt overall, but you can leave it out if you want.

Although I was out of regular cucumbers, I still had a few mini cucumbers, and the soy peanut butter recipe that makes commenters buy cucumbers by the heap haunted my dreams. I tried slicing a cucumber at the thinnest setting and tossing it with a third of the amount specified. Personally, I liked it best this way; the different ratio of cucumber surface to sauce gives the dish more flavor and a softer texture.

“I’m impressed with myself,” he says in the video, and since I ate the whole thing standing over the sink for breakfast, I am too.

Logan Moffitt’s Viral Creamy Cucumber Salad

Ingredients

• 1 whole cucumber, sliced ​​on mandolin level 2

• 1/3 cup full-fat plain Icelandic yogurt (Skyr)

• Juice of half a lemon

• 2 tablespoons pepperoncini brine

• 1/2 packet ranch dressing mix

• 1 dill frond, cut

• 1/2 teaspoon MSG

• 1 garlic clove, grated (optional)

• 2 spring onions, cut into short pieces (optional)

Preparation

Place the ingredients in a 1-liter container with a lid and shake vigorously for about 1 minute. (Here’s a how-to video.) Enjoy the salad immediately if you like it crunchier, or let it marinate for at least a couple of hours for a softer texture but more intense flavor.

This article was originally published on TODAY.com.