deepfriedhoney started on Instagram back in May of 2018, with me posting the meals I made for my family. The page grew very quickly, and I’m a helper by nature, so in March of 2019 I created the site you’re currently surfing. So much has changed in the years since, but two things are exactly the same: the kitchen is still my very favorite playground, and if I can help make cooking more approachable and/or fun for y’all, I want to.

I frequently receive messages from folks telling me how I’ve had a hand in them being in the kitchen, either for the first time or back in a long time. I love when someone shares that I’ve inspired them to branch out and try cooking new things and this journey has been mutually beneficial: I’ve improved all sorts of techniques and dishes that I thought I’d already mastered before, in an effort to make sure I’m providing y’all with quality information. This isn’t to say I don’t still mess up – my grits boiled over just this morning – but I think a major reason why we’ve connected the way we have is that I’m pretty transparent. I’ll quickly tell you to “do as I say, not as I do.”

Now, fair warning? (@)deepfriedhoney(.com) isn’t a place for Judgy McJudgersons. Food snobs: I envy your elevated palates (truly! I wish I could relate!) but taste is subjective, right? It’s literally just your opinion and you’re free to have it. Only, quietly is all. Oh, and The Nutrition Police! Go judge someone else under the guise of being concerned for their health. I promise I’m good; you’re not telling me anything I don’t already know. I don’t shame people for their food preferences or choices and neither should you — when you’re in my spaces at least. An individual’s relationship with food can be varied, complicated, and deeply personal. I believe it deserves respect.

As I mentioned, name is María. I’ll answer to “Honey” at this point now, too. I have no professional training or experience but I’ve been cooking for more than 20 years. I grew up watching my grandparents cook, but from the other side of the breakfast bar. Although I didn’t begin teaching myself with any real intent until I was starting a family of my own, I still emulate what I remember from my childhood often. I learned how to make an omelet in freshman year Home Ec, but I credit the majority of my most sound knowledge to people on Food Network… that later turned out to be racists.

I almost always cook off-the-cuff. Some of the best things I’ve ever made I completely freestyled. I have never been fond of using recipes, but since creating this site I’ve come to love developing them so that I can help you accomplish in your kitchen exactly what I’ve demonstrated for you in mine.

I rarely cook with myself in mind, as I’m a shamefully picky eater. I have the average 3-year-old’s palette, to keep it all the way real. I’m neurodivergent so my taste buds tend to lean on nostalgia, and I often fall into hyper fixations that can last months. I’m the person that always orders the chicken tenders plate. I was determined to not let my own kids turn out like I did, and when they were young I made sure to encourage them to try new foods.

While I do love being in the kitchen, it’s more who I cook for than the cooking itself. I get to express my love through calories, and the bonus is that my friends and family have much more expansive tastes than me so I get to flex my muscles cooking things I’d never try for just myself. Before I drop kicked him to the curb back in January, cooking for my husband was one of my favorite things to do. He was is a country boy with a big appetite, and I really enjoyed making the same meals for him that my grandmother made for my grandfather when I was growing up with them in Goldsboro, North Carolina – especially because I and my daughters will not eat most of it.

As an aside, being an annoyingly picky eater myself is probably why I have such a low tolerance for people that can’t seem to see a plate of food they don’t like without saying they don’t like it. If I can manage to keep my opinions to myself when scrolling even though 90% of the food I’m looking at I wouldn’t touch with a 10-foot pole, so can everyone else! “If you can’t somethin’ nice don’t say nothin’ at all.” 

I’ll leave you with some fun facts about me:

• I was born in Compton, California, but raised and still live in Eastern North Carolina.
• I own an obscenely large collection of Funko Pop! vinyl figures.
• I’m a September (1st) Virgo. My ascendant is Leo, moon is Scorpio, and my midheaven is Taurus if you wanna get specific.
• I wanted to be Ellen Louise Ripley when I was young.
• I’m married and I love him (we’re getting divorced because he’s a lying piece of trash) but fuuuu the patriarchy; do not use my relationship or how you assume gender roles are distributed in my home to prop up any ideals of what makes a ‘good woman’ or wife or whatever. I will cuss you out.
• I believe everything is political, and that includes food.

Check out my F. A. Q. if you haven’t already and shoot me a message if you need anything or just want to say hello!