Posting photos of food on social media makes the meal taste better, a new study claims.

Diners who snapped Instagram shots of grub before chowing down rated their dishes more delicious, according to the study from the Journal of Consumer Marketing.

Participants posting the “food porn” found their meal more pleasurable because it delayed gratification, researchers said.

“It causes a momentary active delay in consumption, which increases the savoring associated with consumption of pleasurable foods,” according to the study. “It increases attitudes and taste evaluations of the experience when consumption actually takes place.”

The phenomenon was most likely to occur with participants munching more indulgent foods. But researchers also found that snapping photos of healthy eats might make those more ­appealing, too.

The first-of-its-kind study — headed by St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia and the University of San Diego in California — evaluated more than 120 participants, researchers said.

Other research proves the act of delaying eating, even just for a few seconds, leads to a more positive perception of the meal, according to the Journal of Psychological Science.