We have been blessed, both this month and last, by being in ministry locations where a good portion of our meals have been cooked for us. The food has been amazing, but as someone who cooks at home, I have missed doing so… So we asked our hosts if we could cook for them. Not only did we want to cook, but we wanted to cook them an American meal. The young adults we are staying with agreed to let us!!
We decided to make them barbeque chicken, mashed potatoes and glazed carrots. The closer the day got, the more excited I got. I love to cook! I was a bit nervous about only having one gas-fueled camp stove top…Especially in regards to cooking barbeque chicken, but figured we’d wing it and make it work…
As for the young adults we were cooking for, they were just a little nervous at first… Then we told them that this meal would not include rice. If you ever want to confuse a Cambodian, tell them that their meal will not include rice… The looks of confusion (and horror) were highly entertaining!!
As we began the prep work, our housemates would stick their heads in the kitchen to see what we were doing and we would chat briefly and then shoo them off… After all, we are rarely allowed to help when they are cooking.
Several of them came in once we started cooking to look in the pots. Daniel, one of the older housemates, came in, looked at the pot of potatoes, and said, “Really? No rice… Potatoes? This is how you cook potatoes?… Do you…um…Do you know what you are doing?” I patted his arm and promised I’d done this before.
We finished preparing the meal and called everyone to the table. Since we were eating Western fare, we decided to have our housemates eat with a fork as well (they normally eat with a spoon). At first, we answered the question, “What is this meal called?” multiple times. Then they began to eat… End result, overall most of them liked all the dishes!! They really liked barbeque sauce and ended up adding more to the chicken (and everything else) and they really disliked using forks!!
As awesome as dinner turned out to be, I enjoyed after dinner the most. Usually, the young people we stay with eat superfast and then get up and leave before we’re done eating… This night, they finished eating…and stayed at the table!! We enjoyed talked and fellowship and worship. It was all in all a fantastic night!!
I hope that we get the opportunity again to cook for those we are working alongside because there’s something truly beautiful about sharing your world with them in theirs.
Until next time!!
P.S. A big thank you to Bethany Staton for allowing me to use her pictures here!!
