by Analie Nguyen (’26)

(All images are courtesy of Popin’ Cookin’ via popincookin.us)

Ever since I was little, I’ve been obsessed with tiny items. Shopkins, smelly erasers, mini rulers–you name it, I loved it. Yet, the one mini collection that always eluded me was Popin’ Cookin’ sets. When I was ten, my mother finally relented and bought me a set. It was the start of my first love…that in itself should tell you how barren my love life is. Here are all the sets I’ve done ranked from least favorite to most favorite with some tips and tricks!

9. Hamburger Set

I didn’t like this set very much. The buns and patty are a liquid until the chemicals kick in to make it solid. It leads to a gummy texture and a weird taste that I personally am not a fan of. Since the fries are also pineapple flavored, they also taste a little acidic. Overall, it’s definitely a fun experience but it doesn’t taste the best.

8.Frosting Cakes

If you hadn’t made this set before, it would have been really hard to make the cakes as beautifully as the cover. The frosting is really sticky and a little hard to stuff into the icing bag. However the flavors were pretty good. The wafers were really hard to cut perfectly so I recommend dipping the separating tool in water to soften the wafer when you cut it. 

7. Sushi Plate

This set is really aesthetically pleasing. However, I don’t like how I have to use my hands to shape the rice and seaweed. It also is really hard to add the fish and egg onto the rice base. The flavors are pretty decent and making the fish roe is really fun. However, just like in the Ramen and Toppings Set, the chemical water from the fish roe makes me feel a bit sick.

6. Vanilla and Chocolate Waffles

This set was really fun. It’s got great decorating opportunities for people who love art (looking at you DP Art students). However, that means it’s not fun for people who don’t want to put in a lot of work. It is still fun but there isn’t a lot of variety. There are only waffles and sauces to make so you repeat the same steps just for different flavors of things.

5. DIY Gummies

This set was so fun and takes a good amount of time and detail. You get to make all kinds of different shapes at different levels of skill. They give you the primary colors and little cup areas where you can mix colors. It’s really cool and kind of like the crayola marker making kit.

4.Ramen and toppings

Since this set makes noodles by solidifying liquid in the magic water, this set is pretty fun. It’s great if you want to have a variety of different foods to make. However, the magic water soup’s chemicals do make me feel a bit sick when I drink it. I would recommend drinking very little of  the soup. I do have to admit that the gyoza and egg roll fillings are really delicious and one of my favorite items from Popin’ Cookin’.

3. Donuts

This set is a lot like the waffle set. However, this is a lot easier to make them look pretty since there are no holes like in waffles. The waffle holes make it look uglier and donuts don’t have those. There are also really delicious sprinkles and color combinations to decorate with. These sprinkles are more tasty than the sprinkles from the donut set.

2. Bento Lunch

There are so many different items in the set which is really great for your money’s worth since you get to make more things that are all different. They all taste really good even though they are gummies that have to solidate, like in the hamburger set. These items are a lot more real gummy like than the hamburger buns and patties. The only thing I don’t like though is the black seaweed which gets all over your hands if you’re clumsy. 

1. Taiyaki

This set was the best of all time that I’ve ever done. It’s definitely more advanced than the other sets since it uses a microwave. The takoyaki that you put in the microwave even rises! The strawberry wrapped in the mochi was amazing. The mochi really felt like mochi and the chocolate sauce really tasted like chocolate sauce. The strawberry looked beautiful and had amazing details. 

Overall, I really recommend all these sets. They all have their own cons and pros. Don’t take my word for these items; everyone is different and these reviews are biased by my terms. Popin’ Cookin’ sets are found in Hmart which is a 15 minute drive from the school. If you want to buy a set but live far from Hmart, check Amazon. Otherwise, have fun!