TikTok's Candy Salad Is The Simple Treat To Satisfy Your Sweet Tooth
When considering the most popular candy varieties, aside from choosing chocolatey favorites like M&M's and mini Reese's peanut butter cups, most sweets fanatics can't resist the irresistible colors and flavors of chewy candy. While you might be able to make your own gummy bears, why not buy into the convenience of fruity-flavored Haribo bears, Swedish Fish, and Sour Patch Kids? With so much candy to choose from, it was only a matter of time before the social media platform TikTok inspired candy lovers to find a new and exciting way to consume their favorite sugary novelties. Enter candy salad.
Candy salad is a fun and vibrant way to enjoy all of your favorite candies without having to choose just one variety. All you need to do is select a handful of your favorite chewy and/or sour candy packages, rip open the bags, and dump the contents into a large bowl. Now all you have to do is give this delicious candy concoction a toss or stir and enjoy. TikTok offers more than enough inspiration if you're having trouble choosing the right candies for the job. Before revealing some fun deviations from traditional candy salad, let's uncover the most preferred candies for this epically sweet snack and a few tips to keep in mind when attempting this one-of-a-kind treat.
How to make classic candy salad, according to TikTok
Even though TikTok is responsible for food trends like tomato and feta pasta, not to mention a lemon juice hack that will change your life, the social network can't take credit for these kinds of candy assortments. But although the idea of adding all of your favorite confections to the same bowl may not be new, TikTok is the place to go for inspiration, especially if you're unfamiliar with the whole candy salad trend.
The most common candy salad contains an even balance of sweet and sour chewy candies, often in bite-size form. One TikToker's video for "road trip candy salad" makes for an epic combination that achieves impressive textural complexity and flavor variance.
@mikaylamcn Candy salad is a roadtrip necessity 🚘🍭 #candysalad #candy #restock #restockasmr #snacks #lifestyle #roadtrip #life #lifehacks #asmr #asmrsounds #vacation #foodtiktok
Not only do they choose two varieties of Nerds gummy clusters, but also Sour Patch watermelon bites, mini Starburst candies, Haribo gummy bears, and Gushers. Using scissors, they snip Sour Strips and SweeTARTS Ropes into bite-size pieces. While you don't need to use every candy variety mentioned, aim for at least a trio of different tastes to give your resulting mixture some depth.
Aside from also sticking to mini varieties and avoiding more oversized items (no jawbreakers), the sky's the limit when handcrafting your exclusive combination. A "summer cookout" variation of the party-ready dish from one content creator uses seasonally appropriate peach rings. Another TikTok user takes inspiration from Dorilocos, a popular Mexican street food, by mixing the gummy candy with chamoy, a pickled fruit condiment.
There's more than one way to make candy salad
The best part about making your very own candy salad is that you can make endless adjustments. While TikTok is bursting with ideas, social media influencer Addison Clarke has several examples on her TikTok page. Sure enough, you can make a candy salad with different varieties of gummy bears, holiday-themed candy salads for Christmas or Halloween, and even assortments that feature a specific flavor, such as Clarke's TikTok video for watermelon candy salad.
Unfortunately, gummy candy tends to have a very specific texture that isn't appreciated by all candy connoisseurs. While you could go on an epic candy hunt to construct a specialty salad featuring 25 candies from your childhood, you can also make a simple switch from gummy candy to chocolate-based treats for a rich and tasty alternative. To make a chocolate-based candy salad, choose your favorite bite-sized candy bars, M&M's, and any other varieties of candy that feature a different texture and come in small convenient shapes. You can either leave the salad as is or add some salad dressing by way of chocolate syrup or peanut butter sauce to give your mix a sweet and savory upgrade. Now that you know you can make a candy salad with many of your favorite candies, what will you choose to add to your own specially-made candy salad?