Starting our Live Cooking Show

First experiment today at 330 pm PST on TikTok and maybe Instagram

So today we are starting our live cooking show. If you follow me on TikTok where I am @DrTerrySimpson - you will see this show starting about 330 pm Pacific Standard Time.

Cooking for a charity event a few weeks ago - This was a Sous Vide Steak I made. My good friend, Simon Majumdar, was the star of the show - I was just helping him in the kitchen. Simon’s dinner was auctioned for one of our favorite charities - Girls, Inc.

Since today will be an experiment, there are many things that might go wrong. And that is the kitchen life. On today’s menu - meatballs - OK, maybe a twist - it will be Turkey and Feta Meatballs, and we will have a traditional Mediterranean cucumber and tomato salad and a side of Couscous.

Next week, we will put together the Thanksgiving episode, so that you can make a great Thanksgiving dinner - with a bit of flair.

All episodes will be recorded - put up on our videos here on substack.

For our paid members, you get the ingredient and recipe ahead of time if you want to cook along with me.

This should be a fun feature, and our plan is to have this on Sunday afternoons starting at 3:30 pm.

Thanks for subscribing.

Here are the ingredients and recipes for today’s show. Typically, this would be where the paywall is, so our paid subscribers will see below this area. But since today is an experiment, here is the recipe for everyone.

Middle Eastern Turkey Meatballs.

The meatball was brought to Sweden by King Charles XII in 1714. He was forced into exile in the Ottoman Empire (now Turkey) after losing a war to Russia in 1709. For five years, he was a guest of the Sultan, and besides trying to get the Ottoman Empire to go to war against Russia, he enjoyed the Ottoman cuisine. After five years, the Sultan became tired of Charles scheming and tossed Charles out of Turkey.

Putting ground meat with spices isn’t an original idea. In Roman times, the cookbook author Apicius (25BC–37AD) describes meats from chicken to fish being ground with spices added. Almost every culture has a variation of a meatball (ground meats roasted with some spices).

For the Ottoman empire, the meats they used were lamb and poultry. No pork (they were Muslim and pork was forbidden). The flavor came from the variety of spices available to the Ottomans. The Ottomans, it turned out, had all the known spices of the Western World. The spices from Asia and Indochina were traded to Europe through the Silk Road, which began in modern day Xi’an and ended in Istanbul. Charles returned to Sweden with two cuisine items: the meatball and coffee.

Ingredients for Four Servings

20 ounce of Ground Turkey

2 Eggs

1 cup Pearl Couscous

2 Persian Cuccumbers

2 oz Pitted Nicoise Olives

4 oz Arugula

8 oz Grape Tomatoes

2 lemons

4 oz Feta Cheese

6 Tbsp Garlic-Tahini Sauce

• ¼ cup tahini

• 1–2 tablespoons warm water (adjust for desired consistency)

• Juice from 1 lemon

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 medium garlic clove, finely minced or crushed

• Salt and pepper to taste

Optional: Add a pinch of crushed red pepper or honey for extra flavor. Whisk all ingredients together until smooth, taste, and adjust salt, pepper, lemon, or garlic as desired. This versatile sauce is used in grain bowls, wraps, and falafel dishes for a creamy, tangy, garlicky finish.

4 tsp Honey

1/2 cup Pank Breadcrumbs

1 tablespoon of Middle East Spice blend

• 1 tablespoon ground coriander

• 1 tablespoon ground cumin

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 1 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika

• ½ teaspoon ground turmeric

Mix all ingredients and store in an airtight container. Adjust amounts to taste and based on the desired batch size. The other hack for the above is buying Garams Masala blend and adding some turmeric and paprika.

Hardware:

Large Non-stick pan

Medium Pot - like a Dutch Oven

Chef’s knife and Cutting board

Always - a good olive oil (Mine is from California) , Kosher Salt, and some pepper.

The CousCous

Add Water to your Dutch oven or large pot about 3/4 of the way up - add salt, about a handful and bring to a boil.

Add the couscous to the pot of boiling water and cook it for 5 to 7 minutes. Stir occasionally. Once tender, turn off the heat.

Drain the couscous and return it to the pot. Add a drizzle of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.

Add the arugula to the couscous - and then juice one of the lemons. Combine.

Season with salt and pepper.

The Meatballs

While the couscous is cooking combine the turkey, breadcrubs, eggs and crumble the feta cheese into a bowl. Add the spices and mix together. Get primative. Using your hands make the meatballs. I sometimes use an ice cream scoop to make equal size meatballs.

I use a nonstick pan, or you can use a steel pan with olive oil. But put olive oil into the pan and wait for it to get hot.

Put the meatballs into the hot pan - even layer and then cover the pan with foil - allow them to cook for 6-7 minutes.

Remove the foil, and turn the meatballs - continue to cook until they are browned on all sides and cooked through.

The Salad

Halve the cucumber and thinly slice crosswise.

Halve the tomatoes

Combine the sliced cucumbers and tomatoes and put in the juice of a lemon, season with salt and pepper. This will marinate a bit and stir on occasion.

The Sauce

Whisk the garlic-tahini sauce and honey together. This is what you will put on the meatballs for an extra kick.

Combine

Top the couscous with the meatballs. Olives on the side. Salad on the side or combine if you are in love with adventure.

That is meatball 101. Now, if you want graduate level, with more spice and more ingredients check out the recipe on my website (terrysimpson.com - yes there is no security certificate). For that click recipe and more history click here.

See you today - check me out on tiktok