Israeli Actress Mocks Viral Food Trends With Bizarre Rice Paper Couscous
Israeli actress May Zur Lupo went viral on TikTok and Instagram with satirical cooking videos, using expired rice paper to make fake couscous and other bizarre dishes.
A viral culinary video featuring rice paper couscous has sparked intense reactions across Instagram and TikTok, accumulating over a million views combined. Created by Israeli actress and comedian May Zur Lupo, the satirical video presents a bizarre recipe made from expired rice paper cut into pieces, marketed as a diet-friendly alternative for the Sabbath.
Behind the Viral Food Satire
Lupo, a 27-year-old graduate of the Beit Zvi acting school, explained that the trend was born out of a desire to mock the endless and often absurd rice paper recipes flooding social media, ranging from borekas to jachnun. Armed with a two-year-old expired pack of rice paper, she decided to create a series of culinary parodies that also included mashed potatoes, kubbeh, and sfenj for Hanukkah.
Despite the obviously unappealing textures, thousands of social media users took the videos completely seriously. Comments ranged from outrage over cultural insults to traditional dishes to humorous remarks, with fitness influencer Guy Shukron asking if he could substitute the rice paper with actual semolina.
Comedy and Public Reaction
Rather than taking offense, Lupo and her husband spent their evenings reading the polarized comments as a form of private stand-up comedy. Nutritionists rushed to clarify that rice paper is not inherently a low-calorie food, while other content creators and entertainment pages joined the conversation, and even AI-generated musical tributes were created based on the viral backlash.
Lupo noted that the unexpected success of her comedic food pranks significantly boosted overall engagement on her profile, bringing attention to her other comedic content as she prepares for her upcoming stand-up show.
