Who cooks more? Top 3 spices? Worst cooking sins?

You asked, we answered, join us as we go through your questions about everything from our relationship and favourite foods to how we cook and our future plans.
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🧆 Join our Patreon and come hang out with us on our discord server / middleeats
☕ Or buy us a coffee ko-fi.com/MiddleEats
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You can reach us on instagram and we'd love to see any recipes you cook.
➥Instagram / itsmiddleeats
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🍳 My Kitchen Equipment 🥘
(These links are amazon affiliated and help support the channel at no extra cost to you)
Food Thermometer: geni.us/CC34osG
Citrus Juicer: geni.us/8xWwcBB
Stainless Steel Cookware: geni.us/EsaLACR
Pyrex Jugs: geni.us/QAuvNNB
Stick blender: geni.us/E2FNym
📷 My Filming Equipment 🎥
Sony a7c: geni.us/atNOY3P
Tamron 28-75mm F2.8 geni.us/0Pe3jm
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0:00 Intro
0:59 How do we balance youtube and our day jobs?
2:25 How can you veganise middle eastern recipes?
5:05 What are our favourite weeknight meals?
6:47 Why did we start this channel?
8:51 What are some of your favourite cuisines and who cooks more?
11:29 What middle eastern dishes would we recommend to a newcomer?
14:25 What are the ways we connect to our heritage besides food?
16:30 What are the top 3 spices you need to cook middle eastern food?
20:08 Top 3 sins when making middle eastern food?
25:01 Is Molokhia grown in Europe bitter?
26:23 How did we get Maple 🐱?
27:21 How has the channel growing so much changed our lives?
29:21 When is a video on feteer (Egyptian pies) coming?
30:25 What middle eastern cuisines do we want to cover more in the future?
32:15 What are common middle eastern snacks?
35:39 What were the most surprising/disgusting foods from the middle east?
37:25 Are we building a website?
38:15 Why aren't there more English speaking middle eastern cooking channels?
40:15 You are forbidden from eating middle eastern food. What is your breakfast lunch and dinner?
41:26 Who inspired us to get into cooking?
43:07 If we could only eat one cuisine other than birth country, what would it be?
44:48 If we could live in one country, where would it be?
46:12 What are our favourite dishes?
47:10 What tools or spices do we consider essential?
48:12 Will we ever do a cooking class?#
48:42 Can we show you how to make phyllo dough?
49:04 Where's the best place to get spices?
49:49 Would it be bad to ask for a doner kebab video?
50:09 How did we meet?
51:15 Bonus cat content

[@MiddleEats]

Thank you all for your support and getting us to 300,000 subscribers. If you want to see part 3 of the Q&A head over to patreon.com/MiddleEats and sign up!

[@djeniiala]

Mashallah for you guys :) I am going to Dubai in September.

[@Dosadniste2000]

In times of Netflix it's a pleasure to look at real Egyptians.

[@le2382]

I love seeing the two of you together in videos! Congratulations to Salma on her PhD! 🎊 🎉

[@MiddleEats]

Thank you!! 😊

[@dea_ali]

As one of your Kurdish followers, I’m willing to translate for you if you ever need translation! :) love your channel and you both are super cute together!

[@hasna6096]

MasahAllah! I love the content of your channel! I am Moroccan, living in US. Obviously, I love my own cuisine. I have been cooking Moroccan food for over 20 years, and I am still trying to master some complicated dishes, Like Pastilla. I would love to see your approach to Moroccan cuisine!

[@connerwomack9990]

I love your videos ( American here). I recently made a friend in Algeria, and she was amazed that I knew as much as I do about arabic food and can cook! You two have opened up my palet to a whole new world of flavors!❤

[@raeperonneau4941]

Congratulations, Salma!!! That’s one huge accomplishment! I have tried a number of your recipes and they were amazing. You deserve millions of subs and I know you will get there.

[@brett8445]

I used to work at a lebanese restaurant and we used to make ladys finger lamb mince bahrat filo pastry pine nuts can add carrot whatever you want and wrapped in filo pastry. Online all the recipes are for fingers and i love them larger like a sausage roll. Add some yogurt and garlic sauce its heaven. The recipe i found online said to use pommegranat molassas. It litrally ruined it. Just keep it simple the flavour comes from the bahrat so good.

[@mrmouse7642]

You are a lovely couple. I love your channel. I love your dedication and your enthusiasm. IMO, you need to sell middle eastern food to British people as THE healthy and sustainable food - good meats (and you don't need a lot) and good vegan/vegetarian food that are wholesome and CHEAP. If you concentrate on the recipes that are quick and energy efficient so much the better. Our family are converts to this type of food through converting to Orthodox Christianity. I know you, personally, are not Christian, but it does not matter - the food transcends religion, if you get me.

[@LARKXHIN]

I was searching for Egyptian Spinach videos on there and came across an old video of the channels. Yall have improved so much!

[@austinfreeman7871]

This channel is awesome and I just wish we could be friends and hang out because you two just seem like super awesome people. This was the channel that KZbin needed. Thank you so much for putting these incredibly delicious recipes on the radar of many people who maybe could only experience food like this at restaurants that they're intimidated to try (or they don't have any restaurants around them).

[@theblackrose3130]

I've made your Arayes with Beyond Mince and it worked great. It actually binds unlike a lot of other mince replacements which makes turning it into Arayes a lot easier. I'm always pleasantly surprised how many vegetarian dishes you make on this channel anyway though so I've not even looked at trying some of the other meat dishes

[@sethtoybes9392]

Thank you both so much! Your videos and recipes have brought my middle eastern cooking not just to the next level but several levels up and inspired me to try more! Your recipes are also so approachable and you are both wonderful, thank you again and keep up the great work!

[@andreawalker7138]

Congrats on the 300K subs! And congrats to Salma on her impending PhD!! And thank you for taking the time to answer so many ??s, it was fun. P.S. Loved the bonus cat content, Maple is adorable 🥰

[@jaszicus]

Looking forward to the more complex dishes! Ive been cooking vege / vegan alternatives of your dishes for a while now and easily made great tasting alternatives, so thank you both for inspiring me to cook a lot more :)

[@sephestra.]

You guys rock so much! Your expertise has been invaluable for those of us who love Middle Eastern food, but weren't sure where to begin in our home kitchens. For instance, I didn't know loumi were even a thing before making the Ultimate Yellow Middle Eastern Rice (the first recipe I tried from your channel). Salma - good luck with your thesis and finishing your Phd!

[@LaLayla99]

Love your channel! Thanks for introducing me to so many different cuisines and ingredients I've never heard of!

[@Vamper946]

Thank you so much. It's always such a pleasure to watch you two and it's lovely to get a peak behind the camera. I can't wait to see more!

[@labany7421]

I LOVE YOU TOO. Thank you very much for representing our beautiful Egyptian and Near Eastern culture ❤

[@MurakamiTenshi]

I've made a few of the dishes on your videos, and I want to say thank you for opening the door to new flavors!

[@mohamadnadar9745]

That was very wholesome you guys. Made me smile when you said that you listen to Mashro3 Leila and Cairokee :)

[@KayLovesSUGAR]

Thank you both so much for your work

[@moriarty7589]

Love you two and your great videos! They are such high quality, well explained and come from the heart really. Thanks a lot and pls take care of yourself too!

[@mihail6446]

Congratulations on 300k and to Salma PHD. I love your channel. I grew upwith Greek food and i love ME food and all the similarities we share. ❤🎉

[@nikeA1512]

I use jute leaves as do many Nigerians. - frozen one is a godsend!

[@sbaumgartner9848]

It's so disappointing to hear England doesn't feel the same anymore including safe. I hear this from other people living there. I think Egyptian lamb fatta is fantastic. When you find out the ingredients and how it's made it sounds a bit unappealing. But made by someone who really knows how to cook Egyptian food it's fantastic. And I love the intense taste of lots of vinegar and garlic with it. 'll never forget when it came into my life.

[@selmaunsley6683]

Personally I’ve found seitan works very well with Middle Eastern Food, I add baharrat and zattar to it but make sure it’s got a good amount of oil in it ( tinned harissa paste is a good one also) but experiment until you find what you like

[@jaxonshephrim]

They are such a beautiful couple!

[@meriamalojipan6932]

hi i've always watching your videos it helps me a lot i learned how to cook different dishes ...watching u from Philippines

[@jeanniebrooks]

It’s complicated to experiment with a cuisine that you are not familiar with! Thanks for your help! I am interested in Moroccan dishes, and also Turkish & Lebanese, also Asian. I’ve experimented with Thai, Vietnamese, Burmese, Korean, but I do have reservations about many things I see on Mark Wiens vids, and the now deceased Anthony Bourdain’s vids. I’m just not interested in the offal! (No blood soup for me or tripe or intestines) So I need an “Americanized “ version?” I guess? I want to understand how to use the pomegranate molasses, the Sumac & Za’tar I have in my pantry, but have rarely used so far. I’ve made cous cous & lamb dishes with dried fruits like raisons, apricots, green olives, saffron, oranges….and have loved them! I watch Marcus Samuelson on no Passport Required, and that’s helpful (but not for actual recipes) but, for an American it is rather all so very confusing. I like that he studies immigrant populations in America, like Armenian culture in Glendale CA, so much of it would be of interest to American tastebuds. I liked the use of nuts, ground walnuts & almonds, bulgur, raisons, dolmas and cabbage rolls and lamb….so anything you could do in this department would be much appreciated!

[@ter8330]

What a pretty wife you have! Love her hair... and LOVE your channel!

[@sinanaladdin1380]

Loved it! Full disclosure, I wanna see the philo dough made for the fateer so I can make other things with it LOL! All the congratulations on the channel and Salma's PhD!

[@davidfleb]

Considering that you don't like pasta that much, what do you think of Koshari?

[@ter8330]

Really lovely video!

[@TilmanBaumann]

100% for more Moroccan dishes. I understand the language barrier. But it's not so bad and there are english sources too. Come and visit. I will show you around Morocco. ;)

[@kimberleyrumburg9472]

It's super easy to veganize your dishes. That's what I do and the food is delicious!

[@decemberclouds]

I'd love to know more about the 1930s music! That sounds really interesting. I don't listen to a lot of 1930s music, but every now and then, I find myself humming "Minnie the Moocher" (from the Blue Brothers) which originally came out in 1930s.

[@Enne-]

I agree with everythinf said about ingredients needed in ME cooking, and while you kept mentioning onions you guys forgot garlic! I feel most of our dishes have garlic in them

[@HamdiAKATmac]

Great channel. A traditionel dish we need to see is فسيخ Fesikh

[@teamdivine5651]

Not 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@crumbtember]

omg yall r cute hehe! love ur recipes, channel and vibes

[@minehearp3041]

Beautiful brilliant couple love your respect for one another and partnership wonderful role models and thank you for your frequent inclusion of Turkish food I appreciate as a person residing far away from home. Visiting Dubai is definitely on my bucket list too

[@goat666db]

Wait, so we can only see the second part on patreon? I saw my question on the screen for a second 😵 Either way, keep up the good work both of you 👍

[@okie_outlaw]

Tried your recipes and they are delicious. Could you do more Lebanese dishes?

[@sharmishthabanerjee6852]

awesome vlog chef , please show ARABIC AREEKHA recipe please

[@Hollis_has_questions]

Are y'all acquainted with Ron and Leetal Arazi of NY SHUK in Brooklyn? I believe that Ron is Moroccan (I forget where Leetal is from, sorry!). Y'all remind me of each other.

[@MrTinnedPeach]

24:20 you really hit the nail on the head. Larger creators often don't realize that they will be people's first exposure to a dish. They need to work harder to ensure that they aren't misrepresenting it and changing or altering the public perception. As an example, hummus: Many people think it's a name for any legume based dip, rather than just quite literally being chickpeas.

[@TundeEszlari]

Amazing video.

[@rohitpillai311]

Can you please show me how to make circassian chicken on this coming episode??

[@RoddieH]

I'm here for the Umm Kulthum discourse.

[@donovan3562]

shattered my world by notifying me that I can roast watermelon seeds....

[@robinartemis8695]

If you freeze tofu, it will have the texture of meat

[@KoalaKrafts]

More Libyan cuisine please

[@HFC786]

What’s your dream three course meal

[@dianajohnson83]

I'd love to see more Gulg dishes featured

[@CookinWithSquirrl]

Yay Maple!

[@ai7453]

Really difficult to think replacing meat!!...........

[@ter8330]

That is the ONE thing I cannot find.. good middle-eastern cookbooks.......!

[@jaydee5022]

Yes - we need a recipe book from you two

[@ter8330]

@@jaydee5022 100%

[@sbaumgartner9848]

I agree with you. I have lived in Egypt so I know what authentic delicious Egyptian food is. But most Middle Eastern, including Egyptian recipes, don't go into enough detail to nail an authentic and good taste.

[@iraqinadousha25]

I love u guys machallah may Allah put barakah into ur marriage and everything u do ❤😂🎉😊

[@jeanniebrooks]

You like noodle dishes and cous-cous, but not pasta. They are both made from semolina flour and are all “pasta!” Spaghetti is both pasta and noodles!

[@n1k01k0]

What a wonderful successful sweet pair, mashallah! Don’t want to jinx you 😉 If you are referencing John Mayer then socially, you are my cup of tea :)

[@omlunaq8141]

أحبكم مع بعض 😘 أتابعكم من الكويت 💕🌷🌸🇰🇼

[@Imus8]

Abu Dhabi is my recommended home base, not Dubai. 1 hr drive away so you wont be missing out. Amazing community of different cultures and especially plenty of good food and people. Shawarma tour in Abu Dhabi as a video that might be welcome. Thank you so much for your videos and look forward to the growth of your channel! ❤😊

[@ha231]

Cute couple! ❤

[@Mike_Greentea]

Wooo!

[@ithinkthat]

There are as many different pasta dishes (fish, seafood, meat, vegetables, cheese, red sauce, white sauce, rosé sauce, wine sauce, etc) as there are pasta shapes. If it's well prepared and not overcooked, pasta is amazing in all its forms. 🍝

[@AA-dy3qw]

"Pasta is overrated" 😮😮😮 But what about negresco

[@thepilgrimofinfinity4830]

I tried to cook a tajine with tofu... It was awful... Never again!

[@MiddleEats]

I can see why, I find tofu doesn't lend itself well to slow cooking, but most tagines need slow cooking. Maybe just do one with loads of veg, or large chunks of seitan.

[@jayj4705]

Maybe adding it near the end would be better

[@thesayerofing]

Fry or bake that tofu first. Extra superfirm. Seitan could also be good but it will be tricky to time it so it doesn't absorb too much liquid and become spongy. Another good way for delicate ingredients is after sauce is finished, pull some out and simmer protein until heated and add to tajine only when finished and keeping warm to marry the flavors.

[@TilmanBaumann]

The world cuisine has a lot of vegan or vegetarian dishes on offer. I would not use meat substitutes for meat dishes. Look at Indian food. Or Buddhist temple food. Ok, minced meat is easy to replace. Bur vegan steak is dumb.

[@anon4585]

This is a bit annoying :/ So she’s responsible for improving things only by 5%? I have a feeling she does more than that.