From Ketchikan with Love
A light holiday meal
While many of you know me for data over dogma, I also do a live cooking show on TikTok — where I’m @drterrysimpson.
Today’s live show will be Sunday, December 14th at 4:30 PM Pacific Time.
Years ago, I became certified in Culinary Medicine, and I’ve loved bringing that from theory to practice — taking what we know about nutrition, metabolism, and food science, and turning it into something you’d actually want to eat.
Today, I’m bringing you a dish I was served as an elementary school student growing up in Ketchikan, Alaska. Back then, our town was built around fishing — and most families, including mine, traced their roots to Norwegian immigrants who came to the coast generations earlier. Norwegian was still spoken on the streets. It was part of daily life, and I learned my first Norwegian words before I realized they weren’t English.
Our halibut came straight from the fishermen — men and women who donated their catch every week so that the children of our school district could eat fresh fish. For all of us kids, this was our favorite meal. To this day, my “older” brother and I still talk about it — how simple, buttery, and perfect it was.
🧈 Selma’s “Norske” Ketchikan Halibut
This recipe was named for Selma, one of the local school cooks who made sure every child in Ketchikan knew what halibut should taste like — buttery, delicate, and touched with the sea.
We’ll make it just as she did: dipped in melted butter, rolled in crushed saltine crackers, and baked until crisp on the outside and tender inside.
No compound butter. No complicated sauces. Just the kind of honest, nourishing food that reminds you why simplicity is the soul of good cooking.
🥗 Why Coleslaw and Potatoes Belong
We’ll serve this with a fresh coleslaw, because it complements the buttery halibut perfectly — crisp cabbage and carrots for crunch, bright vinegar for balance, and a little creamy dressing for harmony. It’s not just a side dish — it’s a way to get in those great vegetables and vibrant flavors that lift the meal.
And of course, we have to have potatoes. In the Norwegian tradition, no fish meal is complete without them. Boiled simply, tossed with a touch of butter and parsley — they’re humble, grounding, and exactly what my childhood dinner table looked like.
🌲 A Lighter Bite for the Holiday Season
December meals tend to lean heavy — roasts, gravies, and desserts galore. A light white fish like halibut is the perfect pause button for your palate.
It’s elegant but easy, rich without being overdone, and a reminder that festive food doesn’t have to weigh you down.
📍Join me live today at 4:30 PM Pacific Time on TikTok → @drterrysimpson
📖 Recipes will be posted after the show at TerrySimpson.com
💬 Takeaway
Food is more than nutrition — it’s memory, it’s culture, it’s how we tell our story.
Today’s halibut from Ketchikan is one of those stories — a connection between Alaska and Norway, between comfort and evidence-based eating, between community generosity and Culinary Medicine.
Come for the science. Stay for the sizzle.