If a condiment is anything that adds flavor to a food, then by definition, things like frosting and butter are condiments. Claire Dinhut on TikTok is testing the definition of what is a condiment and spreading her love for condiments she uses from her worldwide travels.
Condiment Tok
TikTok has the ability to create sub categorites and communities within the app according to what each user likes to watch. Depending on what you interact with, your For You Page (FYP) could have a theme of the kind of content displayed for you.
If you like a lot of cat videos, chances are your FYP will have more content involving or related to cats. The same goes for if you like cake and food videos, you might end up seeing TikToks from @clairefromwhere on your FYP.
Claire From Where?
The Harvard graduate never intended for TikTok to be a big part of her life. Working in food and travel television, Dinhut started posting videos as a way to get onto shows.
“I’ve always wanted to be Anthony Bourdain,” Dinhut says. “So, when I was pitching shows, people were like, ‘Okay, well, you want to host the show, but how many followers do you have?'”
A little judgemental of placing importance on numbers and followers, Dinhut was driven to make her dreams a reality. Therefore, she created her account, @clairefromwhere, and started posting.
As for what Dinhut was going to post about, it was pretty simple.
“One of my best friends last year was like, ‘Claire you should post on Instagram, all the condiments in your fridge,’ because I just organized it,” Dinhut says.
“She was like, ‘Claire this is not normal, you have too many jars [condiment jars].'”
The Instagram story post turned out to get lots of responses, not only from friends.
“… like random boys I went to college with being like, ‘Oh you like the cherry bun? My mom loves jam. It’s my mom’s birthday this Sunday can you give me your top ones and I am going to go buy them for her?'”
Creating a “condiment community” isn’t something Dinhut ever expected, but it’s something she loves. After all, food runs through her veins, as she grew up in a multicultural household. Dinhut’s mother is Greek-American, allowing her to grow up indulging in delicious Greek cuisine like Spanakopita on Easter, and her father is French, another culture with diverse and tasty foods.
“I was raised in a very European household,” Dinhut says, who currently spends most of her time at her home in the United Kingdom. “It’s odd, the UK has a ton of condiments, a ton and I feel like I’ve found my people.”
Not only did her upbringing amplify her love for food and condiments, but foods to Dinhut are a way to understand, learn and appreciate different cultures and their history. Dinhut studied history and literature at Harvard with a focus in modern societal history and a minor in film studies. She focused on lifestyles like food and fashion, writing her thesis about Christian Dior and the rise of modern femininity during World World II.
“I want to try everything. I really want to dive deep into this culture [UK] because for me, it’s about curiosity and understanding of culture,” Dinhut says. “For me, the easiest way to do that is through food.”
Condiments Here, Condiments There, Condiments Everywhere
On Dinhut’s TikTok and Instagram, she shares multiple times a day about what she is eating and what condiments she is eating them with. Her videos showcase different condiment pairings she incorporates into her snacks and meals. To add to her condiment content, she makes very specific and helpful travel guides to places that she’s been to.
She talks about condiments and foods she finds in the places she travels, and she rates condiments she’s finished like kinds of chutney, soy sauce, butters, ranch, mustards and more.
@Clairefromwhere is not only a TikTok page for food recommendations, but it’s created a community of food-lovers and condiment-lovers to share their favorites.
“I am always getting new suggestions on what to try like, ‘Wow have you tried this, it’s my mom’s favorite condiment,’ or ‘My grandpa used to eat it with this,’ or ‘I hate this condiment but you know what, because of you I tried it again and now I love it,'” Dinhut says. “I get like 20 to 30 direct message’s a day with photos of condiments… like a slideshow of 10 photos.”
What’s the importance of having a community of people who share a passion for condiment pairings and flavors? The answer is how food can bring us closer together.
“I think nowadays, after the school lockdown and all that, to be able to share a meal with people is so much more meaningful,” Dinhut says. “All the best conversations are obvisously around the dinner table.”
To continue the conversation around condiments, Dinhut created her website, Condiment Claire, to write about the pairings and food items she adores. Without any previous website-building experience, Dinhut does a fantastic job at organizing the site and writing about her condiment preferences. She also talks about her experiences with food as someone who travels all around the world frequently.
“I think the fact that I’m able to help other people learn about people that aren’t even from my own culture is so crazy and I feel so lucky and privileged I’m able to do that,” Dinhut says. “I think the good thing with condiments is their price point is pretty low, so you can open your eyes to a whole new society or cuisine with something that is two or three dollars.”
Dinhut covers a vast variety of condiments on her platforms, but when it comes down to it, there are three condiments she couldn’t live without: mustard, cinnamon, butter and soy sauce (VALLEY asked her to name three but can you blame her, it’s a tough choice).
To Dinhut, the most versatile condiment is mayo. “If you mash mayo with any other condiment, that is savory, you usually don’t even taste the mayo because it’s just made of oil and eggs,” Dinhut says. “You can also bake with it and make a really good chocolate cake because mayo keeps it moist.”
If you are looking to branch out and expand your taste in condiments, Dinhut has two suggestions for you: anchovies and Branston pickle chutney.
“Anchovies are a condiment,” Dinhut says. “People get upset with me on that one.”
As for the Branston Original Pickle chutney, the smell is pungent and not the easiest condiment to get into, but Dinhut says, “even if you hate it, it’ll be a little experiment, a little adventure of the day.”
While not all of us are able to travel constantly and try foods of cultures in their homeland, Dinhut has allowed her community of condiment lovers to expose themselves to new and interesting flavors from all around the world.
What is your favorite condiment and pairing? Let us know by tweeting us @VALLEYmag on Twitter.
