You don’t have to boil water for this TikTok pasta hack — but does it work?

If you’re still making the viral feta pasta recipe in the year of our lord 2022, I’m here to upgrade your palate.

Actually, even if you aren’t, this cheesy pasta hack on TikTok looks so insane that I wouldn’t be surprised if people who are lactose intolerant feel inclined to risk it all.

This cheesy pasta hack doesn’t require any boiling water — just three different types of cheese and 2 cups of cream.

How to make TikTok’s cheesy pasta without boiling water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large, oven-friendly container, put 12 ounces of dry pasta with 2 cups of half-and-half and 1 cup of heavy cream. Then, add 3 to 3 1/2 cups of cheese.

Based on what I had in my fridge, I did 1 cup of four-cheese Mexican blend, 1 cup of pizza cheese (a mixture of provolone and Parmesan) and around 1 cup of mozzarella.

Cook the pasta in the oven for 50 to 55 minutes, taking time to mix the dish to ensure the noodles don’t stick together.

Does the cheesy pasta hack actually work?

Weirdly, this really did cook the pasta well enough without needing to boil water beforehand. Yes, I did encounter a couple of crunchy bites where small parts of the noodles were undercooked. But it wasn’t a total disaster like I thought it would be. Plus, the 3 cups of cheese and 3 cups of additional dairy certainly helped with the taste.

This is a cheesy pasta dish for sure. It’s nice that it’s low maintenance enough for someone like me, who has absolutely no patience when it comes to cooking. It’s definitely a dish I recommend to cheese lovers looking for some comfort food who don’t want to end up washing a ton of dishes.

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