Food entrepreneur Neo Nontso has taken her brand to new heights. 

The talented social media sensation who the hearts of South Africans’ when she started making mouthwatering food recipes during the Covid-19 global pandemic when restaurants closed down has released a cook book titled My Insta-Feast. 

Speaking to Nounouche, the self-taught cook said the book is a compilation of all her favourite, new and most popular recipes that she created over the years.

“This book was created for my insta family and my audience on all my digital platforms,” she said. 

“I want to take it back and enable them to access my recipes with or without the internet – because nothing beats a good old cookbook.”

“My audience has always been my inspiration and I hope they will enjoy this book as much as I did creating it.”

With over seventy recipes, Neo revealed that she has been working on the book for almost five years but the journey was not easy. 

“Writing a book isn’t easy, there’s a lot of work that goes into it but I’ve been so privileged to be working with such amazing publishers who have made this journey so seamless for me,” she said. 

Neo further shared that her book is unique and the fact that it is also friendly for beginners is what sets it apart. 

“I have taken my digital recipes, kitchen tips and hacks and put them into a physical book so that everyone can have access to them,” she said. 

“A lot of the recipes in this book are familiar to my audience, some of the recipes are new and specifically developed for this book.”

“I’ve also made this book user friendly for beginners as I walk you through the important equipment to have in your kitchen, my grocery shopping lists, and my most commonly used kitchen terms, tips and hacks,” she added. 

Neo has found a pot of gold with utilising social media, she explains how she managed to use it to her advantage and how others can do so. 

“Although social media has its negatives, there is a major upside to it. Social media has made cooking so popular, especially among millennials. There are more women and men too that are cooking at home – we saw a lot of this during lockdown.”

“My cooking career grew massively when I took it to instagram. Through social media I was able to monetise my passion for food and successfully launch my culinary career. It wasn’t easy but the best advice I can give to someone that wants to use the power of social media to their advantage is to stay consistent in what you share, stay true to yourself and stick to your niche. There’s a lot more that’s still yet to be explored online and I cannot wait to see it all unfold, ” she concluded. 

Although Neo is constantly on social media trying to grow her brand she shares that sometimes it gets overwhelming. 

“But when I get overwhelmed, I always take a step back and take time off. I understand that social media at times may not be reality, I truly believe it is important every now and then to take a step back and get into reality by limiting your time online.

“I’ve seen a lot of people doing this more often and this is exactly why I’ve decided to create a physical book. So even when social media gets overwhelming, I’ll still be there with you in my kitchen, through my cookbook.”

Neo says that this book will the first of many.

“My audience has been so supportive, it’s so refreshing to see how excited they are too, It’s like a dream come true. I have received so many pre-orders, I can only imagine what it’ll be like once the book is on the shelves.”

Neo wants to open her own restaurant soon. 

“During lockdown I had opened a dark kitchen which solely operated online through deliveries on platforms. It was a major success but I closed it earlier this year because I wanted to focus on this book.” 

“I definitely want to one day own my own sit-down restaurant like a cute little bistro with exquisite food, freshly baked breads and exclusive wines, I think it’ll be a massive hit,” she shared.