Latest / Tigs Bits Podcast / Cooking With Amber Nicole | Southern Food and Social Media Fame
Transcript
- 0:00I did a video, I cooked Michael some beans and it went crazy.
- 0:04Like 2.9 million views on my first cooking video.
- 0:08How did he start being called Mr. 30?
- 0:11Just with him one to 10, he says 30.
- 0:15I will say ketchup is really good on jumble life.
- 0:20What? If you spend any time on social
- 0:33media, especially food social media, you probably come across
- 0:37cooking with Amber Nicole. She's built a massive following
- 0:42by cooking real Southern food, just being herself and not
- 0:47getting caught up in a lot of the noise that comes with the
- 0:51Internet. She just recently crossed
- 0:541,000,000 followers on Facebook, which is a huge milestone.
- 0:59And this is actually, this is her first podcast.
- 1:03So what an honor for us. We're going to talk to her about
- 1:06how she got started, her approach to cooking, how she
- 1:10handles Internet judgement, and why authenticity still matters,
- 1:17especially in food. And towards the end of this,
- 1:20we're going to have a little fun with some hot food takes with a
- 1:24little Tigs Blitz. Let's get into this.
- 1:27Welcome. Hello.
- 1:30I'm glad to be here. I'm so happy that you're here.
- 1:33This is going to be so much fun. I've been we've been talking
- 1:37about doing this for a while and I'm honored that you would
- 1:41choose. Us.
- 1:42Well, I love y'all. Before social media and videos
- 1:48and all of that good stuff, what did cooking look like in your
- 1:52life? I've always loved to cook like,
- 1:57it wasn't until I started pipelining though.
- 1:59I started cooking like more and more different stuff.
- 2:02Like before that I was hamburger helper, spaghetti like steaks
- 2:07and mashed potatoes. I mean, I was pretty pretty
- 2:10simple. Yeah, but that's where you have
- 2:12to start, I think. I think that's where anybody has
- 2:15to start. You got to learn.
- 2:16First of all, you got to you got to know how to do the beef
- 2:19stroganoff from a box, or you know what I mean?
- 2:22And it's so good and so nostalgic, like you can't beat
- 2:26it. When you first started posting,
- 2:29was it just for fun or was it something that you you thought
- 2:33that you could kind of grow into?
- 2:35I never in my wildest dreams like my very first TikTok posts
- 2:41like cooking. I was just thinking like, let me
- 2:44look and see what these little filters that all these little
- 2:47cutie girls are putting on their face would look like on me.
- 2:51And I'm like, I did a video, I cooked Michael some beans and it
- 2:55went crazy. Like 2.9 million views on my
- 2:59first. That kind of makes you start to
- 3:03think like, OK, because that's a lot.
- 3:07That's a hell of a lot of views no matter what way you cut it.
- 3:10It really is. Do you remember an early moment
- 3:15where you realized beyond that though?
- 3:17Like after you got that first little bit of attention, you
- 3:21obviously had a follow up to that video, which probably
- 3:24didn't do as well if I'm just guessing, it did, it did.
- 3:28Yeah, it did more. What it did, it was crazy.
- 3:33So at this point you're like, OK, this is something's up.
- 3:38Yeah, cuz you just don't get millions of views without
- 3:41something being completely right in that video.
- 3:44You know this. You've been doing it long
- 3:45enough. Well, what I was doing was, and
- 3:47I didn't know that this helped your algorithm or whatever, but
- 3:51I was responding to people like we were having a conversation.
- 3:54I was in my comments like cuz I didn't know.
- 3:57I mean, I was just, I just talking back and forth and
- 4:01right, I think it shot him up. I really do.
- 4:04Do you see now, because I mean, obviously you have millions of
- 4:07followers on Facebook and, and, and combined everywhere multi
- 4:12millions. Do you think that that that is
- 4:16one of the key components? Because I know that there are
- 4:19going to be content creators or people who want to be content
- 4:21creators that listen to this show.
- 4:24Is that some big advice you would give someone to when you
- 4:27start posting? Yeah, absolutely.
- 4:29You need to make the people feel special who are there giving you
- 4:35their time and comments and thoughts, even if they're not
- 4:39the best thoughts, you know? But I think interaction, which I
- 4:44mean like even in real life with relationships that you've got to
- 4:47have you. Got to interact, do you?
- 4:50Do you try to prompt it to get them to respond more or you just
- 4:54a straight up answerer I guess for lack of a better term.
- 4:59Well, so you mean like, do I do stuff to make people talk?
- 5:02Yes. Sometimes I will catch myself
- 5:04doing that, yeah. And do you think that's just
- 5:07something that's natural for you to to do?
- 5:11Me too. Me too.
- 5:12And I've I've learned it's like, oh, you're just being you're
- 5:16just doing engagement farming. I'm like, no, these are the
- 5:19questions. I actually think this is what I
- 5:21think about. Yeah, this is me to my crazy
- 5:25brain. You don't want in this thing.
- 5:27I promise. I agree is who we see just who
- 5:32you are? I know this answer because I've
- 5:34met you in real person in in IRL.
- 5:37But, you know, I mean, yeah. It's, I mean, I'll get on here,
- 5:41no makeup, no hair done, you know, like it's just, you get
- 5:45what you get. Like that's just me.
- 5:48You know, the other day I was chewing gum in a video.
- 5:52I didn't even know. Like I didn't even think about
- 5:54the fact that I was chewing gum. I was just talking.
- 5:57And it's like, you shouldn't do that.
- 5:59I'm like, I, you know, I didn't even think about it.
- 6:02But isn't that crazy? The things that people will
- 6:06discover and we'll, we'll, we'll come.
- 6:09We'll circle back. Yeah, to those folks for sure.
- 6:14It's tough. Do you think that people
- 6:16underestimate just how hard it is to be to just be yourself
- 6:21online, to be that authentic person?
- 6:24Yeah, I do. And I think there's a lot of
- 6:27people trying to be other people too, you know, And it just kind
- 6:32of, that usually falls pretty flat.
- 6:34Do you think that over time that your confidence on camera has
- 6:42has changed as your audience grew?
- 6:45Yeah, for sure. When I first started in the
- 6:48camper, I was, you know, I was kind of like shrinking myself
- 6:52and I just I wasn't is out and and now I've got people saying,
- 6:58oh, you're just so silly now, like I don't even want to watch
- 7:01you anymore. I'm like this is me.
- 7:04This is just who I am, and you don't have to watch me.
- 7:07Yeah. I was shy and stuff before, but
- 7:09I do think that it has gotten it's evolved.
- 7:13If you go watch like my older videos you can definitely see
- 7:16it. When did you actually start to
- 7:18post on social media? 2023 maybe?
- 7:23OK. Yeah, OK.
- 7:24So not that long ago. No, that's when, yeah, I did my
- 7:28first, that first video that I was telling you about.
- 7:30So y'all were in a camper. What is What does your husband
- 7:33do? We're going to get into him
- 7:34later in this show. By the way, OK, so he is now
- 7:40home with me because he wants to help me focus on what we've got
- 7:45going on. But before he was traveling
- 7:48doing what they call hot tapping.
- 7:50So you cut into live oil and gas lines and stop the flow of the
- 7:55oil and gas so that the gas companies don't have to shut the
- 7:59whole line down. So that's why y'all are
- 8:01traveling. That's why you had the camper.
- 8:03Yeah, that's which we were pipelining when we met and we
- 8:07both had a camper and then when he just, he got that other job.
- 8:11OK, so you were doing it too. Y'all were both, that's how.
- 8:15I love it. I was a payroll lady.
- 8:17You were a. Payroll lady, I sell insurance.
- 8:21You're the decision maker. You're the gatekeeper.
- 8:24You're the you're doing. You're who I need to have my
- 8:26meeting with Ohio. You would have been fun.
- 8:30I would have, I would have loved that meeting.
- 8:32Like, oh, yeah, I get to go talk to Amber.
- 8:34Nicole, we're going to put this accident policy in Amber.
- 8:36It's going to everybody's going to love it.
- 8:39Let's talk about your cooking philosophy and let's talk about
- 8:43your cookbook, because I know that I would be remiss if I'm
- 8:47this this far into the show and I don't mention your amazing
- 8:51cookbook. And my sister.
- 8:53My sister would punch me in the face if I didn't.
- 8:57I love. Her.
- 8:58She absolutely loves you, Amber. She can't believe I know you.
- 9:03She's like you. Really.
- 9:04You really know her. Yeah, we hugged one time.
- 9:08Well, what when, when people here, because I associate you
- 9:13with Southern soul food, that's what I would say.
- 9:17That's what I would label it as. I don't know if that's fair
- 9:20necessarily, but I think it's closed Southern food if nothing
- 9:23else. What do you think that people
- 9:26expect versus what you actually cook?
- 9:30I think they expect what I cook like you know, I mean I feel
- 9:36like I've made fattening unhealthy but super good meals
- 9:41like since I started. So, you know, I think when they
- 9:46come to my page, they know and you can look at me and kind of
- 9:50tell like. You're a modern day Paula Deen.
- 9:56You're a much, much younger, wiser and prettier Paula Deen.
- 10:00There, I said it. Thank you.
- 10:01I'm blushing. I know that you, at least of the
- 10:04videos that I see, you don't seem to chase viral food trends.
- 10:08You just cook. Yeah.
- 10:09Yeah. So did you decide once you made
- 10:12that first video like I'm going to just stick to this basically
- 10:18is that was so was that intentional?
- 10:21Yeah, so every morning I wake up knowing what I want for supper
- 10:25and like y'all might think Michael picks.
- 10:28He doesn't. He never picks and so.
- 10:31I believe that actually. Yeah.
- 10:34So whatever I want, that's what's getting shown and that's
- 10:37what we're making. Well, I mean, you're the 1
- 10:39making it, so I think that's only fair, yeah.
- 10:42Right. I love to eat, I love food and
- 10:45you know, that's what I show. Going back to your childhood,
- 10:49where, where did your your love of just food?
- 10:53Like what? What'd you grow up eating?
- 10:55What are some of the what were some of the staples of you
- 10:59growing up? So roast rice and gravy, creamed
- 11:03corn, butter, beans, peas, all that stuff is like one of my
- 11:08core memories. So my great grandmother, that's
- 11:11what she made. Like anytime we got together,
- 11:14that was it. And then my cousin, she had a
- 11:19grandma and we used to go to church with them and every
- 11:22Sunday after church we get home and you I could still smell it.
- 11:25Nothing in the world like some good old country cooking and I
- 11:29call it, you know, I'm from, I'm, I'm from Toledo Bend, so
- 11:34I'm a Yankee in Louisiana. I get the.
- 11:38Yes, as you should. I get the I know you live in
- 11:42Arkansas and I get the I I get the North Louisiana is just
- 11:47southern Arkansas thing all the time and every single thing that
- 11:51you just listed. That's what I grew up on too.
- 11:55And if that is wrong, then I'm going to tell you right now,
- 11:58girl, I don't want to be right. Amen.
- 12:01I feel like N Louisiana and Mississippi and South Arkansas
- 12:06are all kind of the same like the people, the food,
- 12:11everything. We live kind of in in northwest
- 12:14ish. And like once you go past a
- 12:17certain place, it just kind of, I don't it, it seems kind of
- 12:24northern where we're at, to be honest.
- 12:27And I love when I go back down South, yeah.
- 12:30That good old, like I said, it's Southern soul food, and that is
- 12:35the one thing that I don't believe in.
- 12:38Hey, how young? Criticize me all you want, I'm
- 12:41the one saying it. But I don't think that exists in
- 12:44South Louisiana. Everything else does, and it's
- 12:47all wonderful. It's the best food in the world.
- 12:50Yes, so I agree. I agree.
- 12:54And that's one thing that kind of, I don't, I don't know if I
- 12:57should, but it's like y'all want to come on here and criticize
- 13:04everybody's gumbo and this and that.
- 13:06They don't make half the stuff, you know, It's like you make
- 13:10some Southern cooking, like when you're not Browning something
- 13:13down and add in the Trinity. Like I love them to death.
- 13:19I love them to death, but it's almost like they just like have
- 13:23that one little skill set. You said it.
- 13:30No, we won't because it needed to be said.
- 13:32And I agree 100%. And that's the only thing and
- 13:36that's what I get over and over is the thing with North and
- 13:41South Louisiana, N Louisiana, South Louisiana.
- 13:44And if you want to add in Arkansas, I think you can add in
- 13:46the rest of the, the the South with the north part is that they
- 13:51don't season their meat. We don't put cayenne pepper on
- 13:56the meat. There's a difference.
- 13:58It is salted and there is seasoning.
- 14:01Is it spicy? No.
- 14:03That's a South Louisiana thing and that's fine.
- 14:06The Trinity and Browning stuff, you burn your meat.
- 14:10That's all they're doing when they put they and then they
- 14:13scrape it up with onions. Every dish you cook, you brown.
- 14:17You're cooking every single thing down.
- 14:20You brown the meat, then you brown the veggies, then you add
- 14:23liquid, and then you cook the liquid out.
- 14:26I mean, it's every single dish and it's like everything they
- 14:29want to harp on you for using a box jambalaya and it's like it's
- 14:34not that hard to brown some stuff down.
- 14:37And like. Like it's not.
- 14:39I'm using it because I want to. The northern people have spoken.
- 14:44Y'all get over it. Yeah, the Yankees.
- 14:47Let's get into that Internet judgment and just letting it
- 14:50roll off your back because you do seem to be good with doing
- 14:54that. Better than some, better than
- 14:58me, probably. But people, people love,
- 15:01absolutely love to correct food creators.
- 15:06What's something that you get judged for that doesn't really
- 15:10even matter to you? You don't care what they say.
- 15:12Oh, everything that comes out of their mouth.
- 15:16Washing chicken, that's what like, come on, you know, and
- 15:22then they'll get into arguments with people because apparently
- 15:25the FDA says do not wash your chicken.
- 15:28Don't do that. Wiping my my fingers on my
- 15:32clothes. They can't stand that.
- 15:35They're like, and you know, I don't show on camera, but I do
- 15:39wash my hands. But if they don't see it, it
- 15:43didn't happen. It'd be right.
- 15:47Bless their hearts. I can't imagine living like
- 15:50that. I really can't.
- 15:51Have you seen my sister coming after the hate comments?
- 15:56She started making videos and it's hilarious.
- 15:59I have. Not Oh my goodness, I have to
- 16:02see this. OK, I tagged her in a video.
- 16:04You'll you'll have to go look it up.
- 16:06It's. Cute.
- 16:07Yes, I will. That's what we're all thinking.
- 16:10And God bless her for that. That's that's something that
- 16:13I've been asking some of the folks who've been coming on
- 16:15lately is trolls. Do you give them a pedestal?
- 16:20Should you give them a pedestal? What do you think about content
- 16:23creation? Like should you make videos like
- 16:27your sister's making? I mean, I think that that's good
- 16:29if that's what she wants to do. It kind of becomes that niche a
- 16:33little bit, but but otherwise, do you think you're wasted?
- 16:37You're kind of just beating your head against the wall.
- 16:39You better to just ignore them. Yeah, and honestly, without the
- 16:44trolls, like the, the engagement really wouldn't be there because
- 16:49I have noticed every single video where I have the most
- 16:53trolls, that's where I'm making the most money.
- 16:56I'm getting the most views. So honestly, I'm thankful for
- 16:59them. They can't whoop my butt.
- 17:02They can't bend me over the bed and spank me and they can't send
- 17:06me to hell. So you know, what are they?
- 17:09What are they going to do? That is exactly the way that you
- 17:12should look at it. Thanks for paying me.
- 17:17At what point did you realize doing this content creation that
- 17:21you do not owe the Internet an apology for what you do?
- 17:25It took me a minute. It's, yeah.
- 17:28Like my first few months, I was like, kind of on edge.
- 17:32And I was, I'm sorry, did you do, you know?
- 17:35Whatever. And then I'm like, these people
- 17:37are relentless. It doesn't matter.
- 17:39You can't please everybody. So just do what you're doing.
- 17:43And it taught me to do things, to make them talk.
- 17:47So yeah, now I'm kind of. So yeah.
- 17:52So you know how to play it. It's a volley.
- 17:55It's like a little volley. Yeah.
- 17:57Why? Why do you think that food
- 18:00brings out so much judgment compared to other content?
- 18:04I don't know. I'll never understand it because
- 18:08I don't think that way. I.
- 18:10Mean, I just like watching people's cooking videos and if
- 18:13they're cooking something that I don't like, I just scroll on.
- 18:17I don't feel like, oh, I need to.
- 18:20You took the time to make this video.
- 18:22Let me blast you, Sir. I do not like that Mac and
- 18:26cheese. You put green onions in it, you
- 18:28crazy psycho. You know, like why?
- 18:31Yeah, and they'll say my favorite 1 looks too salty.
- 18:35I'm like, is that a really? How do you know?
- 18:43Cuz I can't see the salt and I'm right in front of it like what
- 18:47are y'all doing? Have they ever been right, Amber
- 18:51and your? Probably, probably.
- 18:53I can admit it. Well, I said we were gonna
- 18:55circle back to him and we've talked a little bit, but let's
- 18:59talk about, let's talk about Michael, let's talk about your
- 19:03your better half. Let's talk about Mr. 30.
- 19:05Mr. 30. Let's talk about him because I
- 19:07know that there's some people that are tuning in and
- 19:10specifically are going to want to know, tell everybody who Mr.
- 19:1430 is and how that all came about.
- 19:16We were both pipeline and we were working for separate
- 19:19companies, but we were staying in the same campground and I was
- 19:24the payroll lady. He was working for them stand
- 19:28and he was actually working with a bunch of boys that I grew up
- 19:31with. So that was cool.
- 19:33We had a little cook and get together, you know, stand
- 19:37around, have a beer. And my mom was there and she
- 19:42looked at him and she said don't you even think about it?
- 19:48Well, that was the wrong thing to say.
- 19:51She should know better than that.
- 19:53And now we're married. But now he looked like Kid Rock
- 19:56that night, like he had long hair because he had just gotten
- 19:59out of the army and he was like sick of being told to cut his
- 20:02hair. He had on an American flag cut
- 20:06off shirt, some shorts and some Crocs.
- 20:09And my Mama knew she was like, she's going to go from him and.
- 20:17He texted me after that he was like, you want to hang out?
- 20:19And I was like, you can sneak over, like, but you know, I'll
- 20:23let you scratch my back and that's all you can do.
- 20:26So yeah, I was sneaking him in and out for several months.
- 20:35Wow, that's fantastic. Bless his heart, I know I would
- 20:40make him leave before like 3 in the morning because my
- 20:42Superintendent lived right beside me and I didn't want him,
- 20:47you know? You didn't want any drama or
- 20:50anything. Yeah.
- 20:51Yeah. Well, that was smart.
- 20:53Look at you knowing how to skirt the system a little bit.
- 20:57That's beautiful. So how did he, how did he start
- 21:01being called Mr. 30? Just with him one to 10, he says
- 21:0630. And so I was, I just started
- 21:09calling Mr. 30. Everyone thinks and they're like
- 21:13that's y'all's last name. Like I just figured it out.
- 21:16That's why you call him that. I'm like, I'll let y'all think
- 21:19that. Yeah, that's my last name.
- 21:23Amber, 30. Do you think he really believes
- 21:25that everything is a 30? He says that he does.
- 21:29I believe him, he say he seems he seems very believable in the
- 21:33videos. He looks extremely content and
- 21:36happy to be eating whatever the heck it is that you're cooking.
- 21:39People always ask, has there been anything that he doesn't
- 21:42like? I've made so chicken and
- 21:45dumplings. He doesn't like that.
- 21:47He does not like meatloaf. Yeah.
- 21:49And chicken and dumplings is like my favorite food.
- 21:52Is it? Yeah, so he hates, he hates them
- 21:57and he hates me. That's sad.
- 21:59I know, it's so sad. All right, let's talk about
- 22:01Facebook. I've been pumped.
- 22:04I know you're pumped too. You crossed the million
- 22:071,000,000 people threshold. Unbelievable.
- 22:12What's that feel like? It feels good.
- 22:15I mean, I don't really feel that different.
- 22:20I don't, I don't know, like all my friends were watching and
- 22:22counting down and texting, you know, and I was just like, OK,
- 22:27you know. I am thankful for it though.
- 22:29It's pretty cool. Do you think that milestones
- 22:32like that change how you view what you're building?
- 22:35They, I mean, maybe, yeah. I mean, because that's a, that's
- 22:41a significant amount of people. And you already have, I mean,
- 22:44you've got probably what I, I didn't do the math today, but
- 22:48couple million combined, yeah, that's a lot of people.
- 22:52That's a lot of people. Yeah, and honestly, that's why
- 22:56he came home. So yeah, I mean, I guess it does
- 22:58make us feel it different cuz he's like, I wanna focus on what
- 23:01we've got going, you know, I'll work around the house.
- 23:04Well, you mentioned before we went, went on the air that he's
- 23:08been, he's been Outback, he's been working running the running
- 23:12equipment and all. He's building you a cook shed?
- 23:14Yeah. Tell us about it.
- 23:16What's that? What all is going to be in that
- 23:19thing? Blackstone, the Weber Kettle.
- 23:22I think we're going to build a little bar.
- 23:25It's going to be cute. I'm excited.
- 23:27Is it just like it's, is it going to be like a little studio
- 23:30too where you'll have it set up easy to record videos and stuff
- 23:34like that? Yeah, that's what I told him.
- 23:37I said it needs somewhere that we can set up and because I
- 23:41think that he'll probably start getting more into like the grill
- 23:44inside of stuff since he's home. So, you know, it's going to be
- 23:50for, I guess both of us, we'll let him use it to kind of get
- 23:55going on his stuff. Sounds like Mr. 30's going to be
- 23:59a future guest on Tig's Bits is what this sounds like.
- 24:03Yeah, I love it. Heck yeah.
- 24:06What's his favorite? What is his favorite thing to
- 24:09cook on a Weber? And what is your favorite thing
- 24:12to cook on the Weber? Because I love a Weber grill.
- 24:14They're good. I would say steaks, steaks or
- 24:19hamburgers are always good. What?
- 24:22What's your favorite? Cut of steak.
- 24:26So typically I love a rib eye, but I had a porterhouse and then
- 24:33I got stuck on porterhouses. They're so good.
- 24:37They What do you like? What's your favorite?
- 24:39I'm a rib eye all the way, but I used to you could get the and I
- 24:46can't remember the proper term for it right now.
- 24:48The spinalis something that outside edge of the rib eye.
- 24:53You know the good fatty, the best part of the rib eye you
- 24:56used. You could buy the whole just
- 24:59that part that was cut off at Costco.
- 25:03They would take a whole rib eye. They would cut that cap off and
- 25:06make it a cap stake and they would roll it like pinwheels and
- 25:10they would be, it would be like thick like a like a filet and
- 25:15you would cook it like a filet. That's delicious because that's
- 25:19the first part that I go to whenever I have.
- 25:22The same I could just eat. That often.
- 25:25Eaten it. Yeah, the little lame part.
- 25:27Y'all can have that. I just want the fatty part.
- 25:30I know, and Michael doesn't like that.
- 25:32So that helps us work better in our marriage too.
- 25:36Because I get all. Of that you get you get the good
- 25:39trim ends. Yes, that that works this way at
- 25:42my household too. My wife my my kids, they don't
- 25:45like that part and I'm like y'all are insane.
- 25:47They're missing out. They are.
- 25:49They'd rather me just cook New York strips.
- 25:52And I'm not against a New York strip, but they're so lean and
- 25:55they're like a shoe leather. Even if you cook them right, I
- 25:59don't care what anybody says, a New York strip will.
- 26:02Yeah, that's never going to be as tender as a rib eye, period.
- 26:06What's your what's your favorite thing to cook on on the
- 26:10Blackstone? Well so I like the Blackstone
- 26:14for hibachi. He did hibachi the other night
- 26:18and it was delicious. And then burgers.
- 26:21But I mean a burger anyway is so good.
- 26:26Are you a fan of smash burgers or do you think it smashes all
- 26:30the juice out? No, I like smash burgers.
- 26:32There's no better way to do it than on a Blackstone.
- 26:35Yeah, or griddle, whatever you want to call them, but yes,
- 26:38they're. They're so good.
- 26:39Have you had the ones at Sonic? I have.
- 26:42And you know what, They are extremely good.
- 26:47I mean, it's just, it's very close to what I could pull out
- 26:52on my little Blackstone. It really and truly is.
- 26:55I was. I was blown away.
- 26:56Shout out to Sonic, not sponsored.
- 26:58Good. The little edges and everything.
- 27:03Yes, yes, I love a smash burger, probably.
- 27:08What's your favorite food? I love burgers too, but I I
- 27:12guess chicken and dumplings are a roast and rice and gravy,
- 27:15yeah. Yeah, I mean, you can't go wrong
- 27:18with any of those. That is as Southern as it gets.
- 27:21I want to talk a little bit about your cookbook because,
- 27:25again, my sister would be upset and I think we moved from it
- 27:29earlier, but how did that come about?
- 27:32What made you decide, hey, I should make a cookbook and then
- 27:36you just did it? Yeah.
- 27:37I mean, so I was wanting to do like digital products because I
- 27:42feel like you put some effort in, you know?
- 27:45Yeah, but like, you can sell it so big and it's cheaper to do
- 27:52digital. So really I just threw together
- 27:55this little digital cookbook and then people are saying that they
- 27:58wanted something that they can hold, you know, whatever.
- 28:01So I just made that little paperback cookbook and it is
- 28:06small. Like I really don't, I don't
- 28:09love my cookbook that much. It's small because I don't know,
- 28:13like inches and stuff. And it like gave you dimensions
- 28:18and I just like pick the first one because I'm a girl.
- 28:21Like we don't know, you know? And these cookbooks came, I
- 28:26mean, they're cute. It's cute, but I wish I had
- 28:30known that it was going to be a little bit smaller.
- 28:33And then also I couldn't put as many recipes in it because when
- 28:37you're uploading to like Amazon, it, it won't let you go past a
- 28:43certain like file size or yeah. So for my next one, I think that
- 28:50I'll, I'll probably do a little bit more research and try to
- 28:54figure out how to put out a bigger book because I mean,
- 28:57that's got 27 recipes. I know you got more than that in
- 29:01your arsenal and and there it is.
- 29:03There's a little exclusive on Tigs bit.
- 29:05So I'm going to say you're definitely working on a second
- 29:08cookbook to come out at some point.
- 29:11Yes, yes, that's going to be great.
- 29:15I can't wait to get it. Let's move into my absolute
- 29:18favorite part of the show. Always keep it light.
- 29:23But I'm curious like a cat to see what your answers are going
- 29:27to be on this. I think I know some of them, but
- 29:30we'll we're going to see. So it's time for Tigs Blitz, the
- 29:34fun part where I ask a quick question and we get a fast
- 29:38answer. Rice and gravy or gumbo?
- 29:43Oh, rice and gravy. Cast iron or non stick?
- 29:50Non stick. I don't do good with cast iron.
- 29:53I know this is supposed to be quick, but I no.
- 29:56We no we can expound. I will ruin a cast iron, which
- 30:00that was when I was living in the camper.
- 30:02Now I actually have room to store them.
- 30:04So I'm I'm going to put in a little bit of work and get me a
- 30:07little collection going. But I would have to say non
- 30:10stick because I get so mad at cast iron.
- 30:13I don't care what the Internet says about how easy a cast iron
- 30:18skillet is to cook with, it's not.
- 30:22It's BS, it's just not. It is not.
- 30:25I know you could season it right and do all that stuff but if you
- 30:29screw up one thing in it, you're done.
- 30:32It's over. You're going to have to re
- 30:34season it and all that. You don't have to do that with
- 30:37non stick. I know I agree.
- 30:40Sweet cornbread are no sugar in your cornbread.
- 30:45No sweet. That is the right answer.
- 30:49I will say Timmy, he mail he made a camp cake and it was with
- 30:54that jiffy, but you you do syrup.
- 30:57Oh my God, it was delicious. It that's the only sweet
- 31:01cornbread I'll eat is Timihima. I saw I saw that video and it
- 31:05looked good. And he makes boudin cornbread
- 31:08and and I think that Jiffy Jiffy is an acceptable cornbread, but
- 31:12I I don't really consider Jiffy cornbread.
- 31:16Yeah, like. It's like a dessert site.
- 31:18You're used to ground. That's exactly right.
- 31:21You're used to ground cornmeal. Yeah, and buttermilk, and that's
- 31:26how you make cornbread and you use the cast iron skillet and
- 31:30you get it hot and you do all of that stuff, okay.
- 31:33That's how you make cornbread. People.
- 31:35I'm glad we're in agreement because one thing I will say
- 31:38this, one thing that South Louisiana definitely does not
- 31:41know how to do beyond tell me mail is make cornbread.
- 31:47South Louisiana cannot make buttermilk cornbread the way
- 31:50that the good Lord intended. Which I've had Audrey cooking
- 31:54with Cajuns. His cornbread is really good.
- 31:57Is it I've I've been wanting some of that MF and cornbread.
- 32:00It's good. I really like to add corn,
- 32:03cheese and jalapenos to it. OK.
- 32:07OK. So you make it kind of like a
- 32:09little Mexican cornbread kind of kind of deal.
- 32:13Oh, I like that one dish that you could eat every week
- 32:17forever. Chicken and dumplings I.
- 32:20Knew it. I knew it.
- 32:21It had to be. It had to be what?
- 32:23Besides chicken and dumplings, what else could it be?
- 32:26Roast. Oh oh, so those Ragin Cajun red
- 32:32beans, we have been on a kick with those and I could eat that
- 32:37at least two times a week. So red beans, red beans, red
- 32:41beans and rice, Yeah. OK and I like my red bean soupy.
- 32:45I don't like them creamy. And that's OK, that's just
- 32:48personal preference. But I'm sure you have gotten
- 32:50absolutely murdered for that. Murdered.
- 32:53Yeah. I'm like, it's not hard to make
- 32:57them creamy if I wanted to not use as much liquid or let them
- 33:02cook lower and slower, mash them up.
- 33:04It's not hard. If I wanted them that way, they
- 33:08would be creamy. That's right, you make it.
- 33:10You know, at the end of the day, you're the one eating it, so
- 33:15make it the way you want to eat it.
- 33:16That's what I thought. Hello.
- 33:18Yeah, hello. Yellow.
- 33:21What's 1 food opinion that you'll stand on no matter how
- 33:27mad people get? I don't know, I'll have to think
- 33:31on that one. What do you?
- 33:33What's your answer to that? I'm going to have to think too.
- 33:40You can't spin this on me, Amber.
- 33:43I love it. Yes you absolutely you can.
- 33:48Mustard is a waste of everyone's time and space.
- 33:52You don't like mustard? I hate mustard.
- 33:55Mustard does not belong on anything.
- 33:57And if you're using mustard as a binder for your ribs or your
- 34:01pork bud or anything else, I don't ever want to talk to you
- 34:06again. Get out of my face.
- 34:07You're terrible. You don't, my best friend.
- 34:09Hates it that much too. Yeah, OK.
- 34:12I'm glad to know I'm not. Alone I use it though for like a
- 34:15lot of stuff. It's OK.
- 34:18I still love you. I'll get past it.
- 34:22I'll get past it. But yeah, I'm going to have to
- 34:24definitely say mustard is a waste of everyone's time.
- 34:30All right, now it's your turn. I.
- 34:32Don't know, I'm having like a brain fart.
- 34:34Remember when I told you that some questions just make me
- 34:36forget anything I ever knew? Ask the question again.
- 34:40One food opinion. Yeah, we're going.
- 34:42I'm, I'm not letting you off the hook.
- 34:44You have to answer this, especially since you just made
- 34:47me. We'll use it like this.
- 34:49A food opinion that you're going to make a video.
- 34:52I you're, you know, before you make this video, you're about to
- 34:57get a lot of heat from everybody, but you gonna make
- 35:00that video anyway because you don't care how mad people get.
- 35:04I'm trying to think of all the stuff that Hoss has roasted me
- 35:07for. I will say ketchup is really
- 35:13good on jumble life. What?
- 35:17Yeah, I must say that. I must say that Miss Miss Angel
- 35:22taught me that Cajun's wife. It's delicious.
- 35:26Huh. I'm not going to be like hoss
- 35:28and knock it because I haven't ever tried it, so I don't know.
- 35:32Yeah, I could. I could see it.
- 35:35I could see it not being terrible.
- 35:37You should try mustard if you did that.
- 35:39Mustard now. No, no, no.
- 35:42I come up there to you and we'd have a conversation.
- 35:47Well, I find it funny that you did not know this whatsoever,
- 35:52but I actually just had Hoss on the show and your name came up
- 36:01about it. I mean, you could not have
- 36:03segwayed this any better. I'm just going to play this
- 36:06video I like. It.
- 36:08What are some of your favorite Cajun dishes to cook and what
- 36:13make what makes them so special to you?
- 36:16All right, me, I don't know if you've been following me and
- 36:19Amber, Nicole. Has has this.
- 36:20Beef about me cooking pork in the gravy all the time.
- 36:25Whatever. There's a back story behind
- 36:28this, and I'm going to tell you what the story is.
- 36:31Well, whenever I was nine years old, my Mama had surgery on her
- 36:34foot and she couldn't stand up at the stove to cook.
- 36:39So she let me cook my first meal at nine years old and guess
- 36:44what? It was pork roast in a gravy.
- 36:48So. Every time I cook that pork
- 36:50roast in a gravy, it brings me back to being nine years old.
- 36:53When Mama's sitting there with me, telling me each step, how to
- 36:56brown it, how to cut the onions, how to brown the onions, how to
- 37:00cook it, everything. It just brings me back to that,
- 37:04that 9 year old memory. I can still see myself standing
- 37:08on that, on that chair, the stove, cooking that, cooking
- 37:11that roast whenever I cook a pork roast in a gravy.
- 37:14That's what food can do, man. And but if you're watching,
- 37:18that's the reason why. Oh.
- 37:19Now I'm crying. I can say little false Oh.
- 37:25I didn't want to make you cry, but he said you would.
- 37:28And I said, oh, I've got to show her this now, but I don't want
- 37:31her to cry. So I saved it for the very end I
- 37:33love. That oh, now I'm just going to
- 37:36picture that every time I go to make fun of him.
- 37:40You better keep him coming, Amber.
- 37:42Don't let that influence you. OK.
- 37:46You got to promise me. Yes.
- 37:50Well, Amber, I had a blast tonight.
- 37:54I mean, I really appreciate you trusting me for this to be your
- 37:58very, very first podcast. You did amazing.
- 38:01This ain't gonna be your last. I think people are going to walk
- 38:05away from this with a little deeper appreciation for who you
- 38:09are and why your content connects.
- 38:12So if you enjoyed this episode, make sure that you're following
- 38:18Amber and checking out our cooking.
- 38:20I'll have the links below, but Amber tell everybody where they
- 38:23can find you. Cooking with Amber Nicole.
- 38:26One word, all platforms. Boom, there it is, See,
- 38:30polished, polished. As always, I appreciate y'all.
- 38:35Thanks for listening, thanks for watching and I'll see y'all on
- 38:38the next one. Bye y'all.