Remember when everyone was baking sourdough bread during the pandemic? Not to mention panic at the grocery store, fights over sell-out pantry staples, the rise of focaccia gardens, depression cake, viral feta pasta recipes and Dalgona coffee… the list goes on.

In all fairness, there wasn’t much else to do. Baking and cooking became an act of independence for a lot of people and a coping mechanism, a way to make time pass as kitchens became a safe world to escape into.

And it didn't hurt that people were learning new skills and expanding their appetites in the process.

But while the pandemic lingers in distant memory, Gen Z is showing no signs of kitchen fatigue. In fact, #Foodtok is only growing in popularity with videos relating to the hashtag having over 1 billion views and counting.

Whether it's videos showcasing intricate meals or hacks for meal prepping effectively, social media feeds have become full of fun and flavour all at once. Research even shows that Gen Z's favourite kitchen tool is their mobile phone as they use devices for inspiration or to find recipes.

But while cooking can be a highly personal and creative endeavour, the movement also has roots in the current economic situation. Meal-prepping videos are especially popular; which is perhaps unsurprising given the financial situation that many Gen Zers are finding themselves in.

Gen Z learned how to cook during the pandemic in their late teens or early twenties. And now as young adults, they face a mountain of rising costs affecting everything from housing to goods and education. According to one report, more than half of Gen Zers surveyed have an anxiety disorder, citing worry about the future as the top cause.

This has led Zers to make certain lifestyle adjustments, but it's not all doom and gloom.

In the US, many are opting for nights in as they experiment with sober lifestyles and adopt a holistic approach to wellness in what's being dubbed an 'Introvert Economy’. Often, food has become the main event as Gen Z become experts in the kitchen and self-taught at-home chefs on a mission.

But cooking has become about more than simply showing off skills for Gen Z. Rather, it’s about demonstrating the ability to get by and hack the system. Cooking has become a source of generational pride and prowess for Zers. It is an identity marker that's part ritualistic, part community-oriented, and 100% works up an appetite.