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Global (19 April 2025)<\/em> – South Africa might not have clinched the title but we\u2019ve officially cooked our way into the hearts (and stomachs) of the world. And we\u2019re loving every bite of it.<\/p>\n A viral \u201cFood World Cup\u201d series on TikTok has captured global attention… and proudly served up a side of South African flavour. The creator behind the trend, Pushpek Sidhu, a Canadian TikToker with over a million followers spent the last 230 days tasting over 200 dishes from 90 countries. The idea was simple: create food battles between nations and let the flavours do the talking.<\/p>\n Against all odds, South Africa made it to the grand final, facing off against India \u2013 a culinary heavyweight in any competition.<\/p>\n From Bunny Chows to Vetkoek, Koeksisters, Boerie rolls and Kotas, South Africa served some serious competition along the way, knocking out dishes from Turkey, Korea, the West Indies and Brazil. With every round, our food stood strong… and so did the humour.<\/p>\n Pushpek did his absolute best but let\u2019s just say he got very creative with our local terms. He bravely mispronounced Vetkoek as \u201cwet cock\u201d (we\u2019ll never unhear it), and then doubled down by calling Koeksisters \u201ccock sisters.\u201d He also translated \u201cVoetsek\u201d completely wrong but honestly, it just added to the charm. We all know how tricky Afrikaans can be when you\u2019re giving it a go for the first time.<\/p>\n The final showdown featured these matchups:<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Peri-Peri Chicken vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Tandoori Chicken \u2013 South Africa took the win!<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Boerie Roll vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Chicken Tikka Roll \u2013 India won that one (to be fair, \u201cboerewors\u201d isn\u2019t easy to pronounce).<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Vetkoek vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Vada Pav \u2013 Vetkoek came out tops!<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Kota vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Dosa \u2013 India took the win.<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Bunny Chow vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Briyani \u2013 Briyani edged it.<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Malva Pudding vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Jalebi \u2013 South Africa took the sweet victory.<\/p>\n \ud83c\uddff\ud83c\udde6 Koeksisters vs \ud83c\uddee\ud83c\uddf3 Kala Jamun \u2013 This final round went to India\u2026 and secured their overall win.<\/p>\n India may have taken the title but South Africa brought the flavour, the fun and the full experience.<\/p>\n And the world noticed.<\/p>\n\n