Auckland-based Samoan influencer and his pug, Fraser, on a mission to help men cook

An Auckland-based Samoan social media influencer is on a mission with his four-legged best mate, named Fraser, to help men learn "how to cook".

Daniel Rankin, 29, is a baker and has taken TikTok by storm, building a massive following in his efforts to make men feel comfortable in the kitchen.

Rankin's has accumulated over 3.7 million like on his @mancancooknz TikTok account, and has had similar success on his Instagram profile.

He says the stigma around the world is that men, or Samoan men, don't cook.

But in Samoa, many of the men do cook, adds.

Rankin was born and raised Vaoala in Samoa, where he was known as the chef among his friends and aiga (family).

He says he was an overweight in his early years, but things began to change for him as he grew older and made healthier lifestyle changes.

"I started cooking when I was about 10. I started just because I was a big kid. I ate a lot, and my parents weren't around as often, so I kind of just needed to learn how to cook

Rankin's videos show him baking with his pug, Fraser, while dancing to music and singing in costume.

His favourite food to cook are mostly South American and Mexican.

"I like it because it has heaps of flavour that you can share in a group."

'I really believe men can cook'

Rankin named his online social content 'man can cook' to alleviate any doubt men had about being able to cook.

"I thought there was a stigma that men couldn't cook, not just in Samoan culture, but in general. I named it 'man can cook'.

"A lot of the chefs I followed [as role models] were men, that's how it came about, just to challenge that stigma.

"In Samoa, a lot of the men do cook. They're out there Sunday morning, doing the umu and helping do the cooking in the evenings.

"I think culturally it is quite normal for Samoan men to grow up cooking."

Rankin filmed his first YouTube video in 2014, at the time now knowing how to film it and "just relied on a mate to shoot it".

The cooking videos, he says, came "every couple of months".

But then he bought a camera to create content for a gym he owns.

"So I learned how to use [the camera]. Then lockdown came around, and I'm like, 'oh, I know how to use a camera, I know how to cook.

"Let's, let's create some content for my members so they can stay engaged during lockdowns and learn how to cook nice and healthy meals.

"And I was up, everyone loves Fraser, let's chuck him in there, and that's how it started."

He started off with a lot more dialogue and talking to camera with his helper, Fraser, beside him in his outfit.

But even that was a lot of work, while running the gym and then coming up with dialogue and content and recipes to cook.

"So I decided to cut down my content into more short form, 45 seconds to 60 seconds, no dialogue, just, feel good music, feel good recipes, and that's where Fraser and I really kicked off," he said.

'Being kind to the negativity'

But it has not been all smooth sailing for the influencer-baker.

As is the nature of social media, he has been on the receiving end of some negative comments and messages.

"It took me a while to get thick skin," he says.

"I believe in this industry, you have to have thick skin because you do get a lot of exposure out there, and not everything is going to be positive.

"I kind of just dealt with it, focused on what I could control. And I have always found that just being kind to the negativity helps me take it."

Rankin says the harshest comments he has received are regarding Fraser.

"I guess the worst message I've got was, what are you going to do when your dog dies?

"I found that pretty harsh attack me if you want, but just leave Fraser out of it."

He says his response to the negativity is to "respond with a love heart" emoji and "just respond with kindness and I feel good about it and move on with my life".

Rankin says he will continue to create content and bake, and he hopes to create classes for men who wish to do something similar.

"We are just going to keep cooking and baking and singing and dancing and see and see where it goes."