Meghan Markle’s cooking is not as good as her mom’s — according to her husband, Prince Harry, at least.
The Duke of Sussex crashed his wife’s With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration, which premiered via Netflix on Wednesday, December 3, and was treated to an early Christmas Eve dinner. The meal, however, wasn’t exactly what the royal was accustomed to.
“Hi guys,” Harry, 41, said when he walked into the kitchen. “I smelled gumbo.”
Harry gave Meghan a kiss before introducing himself to celebrity chef Tom Colicchio, one of the Duchess of Sussex’s special guests featured during the episode.
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Meghan previously revealed that her mother, Doria Ragland, only makes gumbo once a year for their family’s Christmas Eve dinner. Meghan decided to try her hand at the recipe for her holiday special, sharing the family’s tradition with her fans.
“Gumbo, for me, is one of my favorites,” Harry said. “Especially her mom’s, but before the fish goes in.”
Meghan said that her mom “saves a portion on the side” for Harry as a result of his food preferences.
“My mom does the turkey sausage for you, so this one has more kick to it,” she warned. “I’ll give you a little towel. He’s going to sweat.”
“Wonderful,” Harry responded.
After one bite, Harry understood why his wife decided to give him a warning..
“I can feel it puncturing through the top of my head right now,” he joked. “It is delicious. I’m not so sure it’s as good as your mom’s but it’s certainly close.”
Meghan pretended to be offended by her husband’s statement, giving her husband an openmouthed stare. Colicchio laughed as he watched the couple’s playful interaction.
“My mom will love you for that,” she said. “What a good thing to say for your mother-in-law.”
Meghan did eventually thank Harry for coming with a kiss. She also subtly referenced her husband’s U.K. roots elsewhere in the holiday special.
While welcoming restaurateur Will Guidara into the show, Meghan discussed the importance of a Christmas cracker (the toy, not the food) in England.
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“Living in the U.K., it’s such a part of [the culture] for Christmas holidays, for sure,” she explained. “Typically people cross arms and do it. So they sit around a table and they all pull at the same time.”
Meghan added, “It actually does feel really connected and sweet.”
The duchess shared her history with the toy as well before making them for Harry and her kids, Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet.
“The way I really started to know them was they would always have a fortune cookie size joke or riddle inside or something sweet,” she recalled. The Christmas cracker is a cardboard party favor filled, oftentimes, with confetti and tied at both ends. People pull them apart during the holidays for a surprise — or most likely a paper hat — inside.
“We always want confetti inside,” Meghan said as she started to make her own. When creating one for Harry, specifically, she added “a little love letter, a chocolate [and] a little hat.”
All episodes of With Love, Meghan are now streaming on Netflix.
