Another useful tip is to grab an existing config, eg. the one for your current system found under /boot, rename it .config and then do 'make olddefconfig' (followed by building the kernel in the usual way).
Distro kernels are normally quite "full fat" so this may tend to build a lot, but it's a good way to get a kernel which closely matches what you're typically running, both in terms of device coverage and compilation options / hardening.
This and much more is covered in
https://kernelnewbies.org/KernelBuild