'With Love, Meghan' is a laid-back cooking and talking show that reveals the Duchess' favourite tips and tricks for cooking, gardening, crafting, and more. Photo / Netflix
'With Love, Meghan' is a laid-back cooking and talking show that reveals the Duchess' favourite tips and tricks for cooking, gardening, crafting, and more. Photo / Netflix
Meghan Markle’s new cooking and lifestyle show has just been released on Netflix following a lengthy wait, and viewers have been left divided over what they think of the Duchess’ unusual tips and tricks.
All eight episodes of With Love, Meghan were released by Netflix on March 4.It was originally going to be made available on January 15, but the Duchess of Sussex pushed the date back in the wake of the devastating wildfires that tore through Los Angeles that month.
The new eight-part series follows Meghan embracing home life as she shares “personal tips and tricks” and teaches how to strive for “playfulness over perfection” in her day-to-day routine.
Filmed in a hired home near her and Prince Harry’s US$14 million ($24.7m) home in Montecito, California, Meghan was joined by celebrity guests – including former Suits co-star Abigail Spencer, actor Mindy Kaling, and celebrity chef Roy Choi – for several of the episodes.
Despite rising to fame as Meghan Markle, the Duchess made it slightly awkward for one of her guests on the show when she corrected them for using her maiden name.
In an episode with Kaling, The Office actor was talking to Meghan about fast food when she said: “I don’t think anyone in the world knows that Meghan Markle has eaten Jack in the Box.”
Meghan Markle and Mindy Kaling in With Love, Meghan. Photo / Netflix
The Duchess quickly replied: “It’s so funny that you keep saying Meghan Markle, you know it’s Sussex now!”
Continuing on, she explained how special it was to share a surname with her children, Prince Archie, 5, and Princess Lilibet, 3.
“When you have kids, and you share your name with your children, I don’t know how meaningful it would be to me but it means so much to go, ‘This is our family name, our little family name’.”
Kaling seemingly agreed with the Duchess, replying: “Well, I love it...”
2. You’ve been making scrambled eggs wrong all along, apparently
With Meghan opening up her home to viewers, part of the appeal has been how the Duchess goes about cooking, especially with two young children at home.
Cut to the episode of chef Choi, who has a Korean-American background, and you’ll find the pair in the kitchen putting together a recipe for Korean fried chicken.
As Choi made the batter mixture, he poured a splash of cold sparkling water into the bowl, prompting Meghan to ask what it was for.
Celebrity chef Roy Choi added sparkling water to a batter mixture, prompting questions and revelations from Meghan. Photo / Netflix
“Does the sparkling water just help make the batter extra crispy?” she asked.
“Yes, exactly,” Choi affirmed, appearing surprised at the former Suits actor’s culinary knowledge.
Meghan then questioned whether he had tried another cooking hack using the same fizzy ingredient: “Do you ever put cold sparkling water in your eggs before you scramble them?”
When Choi said he hadn’t, Meghan replied: “Same sort of effect – helps them rise, get a little fluffy, it’s great. Just a tiny little splash.”
Meghan hasn’t been the first person to raise this. North Carolina chef William Dissen made a viral video about it in 2023, which is likely where she first learnt of the industry secret.
3. Meghan started out working in hospitality
The Duchess was joined by her former Suits co-star Spencer and friend Kelly McKee Zajfen for With Love, Meghan‘s fifth episode, where she shared that her first job was serving frozen yoghurt.
Meghan revealed she started her working career at Humphrey Yogart, a Los Angeles froyo store named after the late Hollywood actor Humphrey Bogart.
Meghan's eye for food and hospitality had early roots. Photo / @aseverofficial
She also shared her past experience working at a doughnut shop in episode three with Choi.
As she prepared the sweet breads before Choi’s arrival, Meghan spoke directly to the audience, giving an anecdote about her life before fame.
“I once had a job at a doughnut shop called Little Orbit Donuts. They made tiny, tiny, little ... not doughnut holes, tiny mini doughnuts, they would sell at craft venues. I helped,” she said.
When the producers asked if she’d be including doughnuts in her “surprise breakfast stuff” with her children, the Duchess replied: “My kids would love this for breakfast. What child wouldn’t love a doughnut for breakfast?
Other little jobs Meghan revealed she’d taken on before included being a “coat-check girl” in Chicago and a bartender, although she admitted serving drinks was not her forte.
4. Prince Harry loves his breakfast (and chicken)
Meghan made her husband’s preference for certain foods known throughout the show, while acknowledging in episode two that she takes “a lot of pride in making breakfast for my family” every morning.
In the episode with Kaling, the pair were discussing how best to season eggs when Meghan said: “I have a family, a husband, who no matter what meal is put in front of him before he tastes it puts salt on, so I try to under-salt.”
“I love knowing that your husband loves it salty,” Kaling joked in response.
Harry and Meghan shared a kiss in With Love, Meghan. Photo / Netflix
In another episode, Meghan said her husband “H” was a “great cook” and praised his ability to make “the best scrambled eggs”, noting his proficiency in making a “really good breakfast”.
“I find when I’m cooking bacon, my kitchen very immediately becomes full of husband and three dogs,” Meghan said while making brunch.
“It’s not my perfume that’s bringing them all in. My bacon brings all the boys to the yard.”
It’s not just bacon and eggs either. Meghan also revealed while cooking fried chicken with Choi that all her family members share a love for it.
“My grandma, my mom’s mom, used to fry chicken, but I love it and my husband loves fried chicken too.”
5. Meghan avoids mentioning the royals
Although the Duchess steered clear of any conversations related to her time in the royal family, she appeared to make references to how her lifestyle has changed since her and Harry’s shock departure in 2020.
In the final episode of With Love, Meghan, the 43 year old explained how her “new chapter” included “part of that creativity that I’ve missed so much”.
She also talked of the process of “healing” something that had become “broken”, without alluding to what it was.
Speaking to guests – including her husband and mother Doria Rangland – in the show’s finale, Meghan said: “I just want to raise a glass to you guys. This feels like a new chapter that I’m so excited that I’m able to share and I’ve been able to learn from all of you. So I just thank you for all the love and support.
“And here we go, there’s a business! All of that is part of that creativity that I’ve missed so much, so thank you for loving me so much and celebrating with me,” she added.
