烹饪

A few weeks ago, I did something I never thought I'd ever (seriously, ever) do: I cooked a meal for a Chinese family. What?!? For those of you who know me, you know how rare of an occurrence this is - I don't even like cooking for myself, let alone other people. But, it happened, and I think I would even (surprisingly) call it a success! How did I get myself into this situation in the first place though? Let me tell you...

Call me Master Chef Olivia...

So, way back in November, Rachel and I were asked by a Chinese woman, Crystal, if we could do a lecture on America for her husband's university. Crystal was Rachel's graduate assistant last year and she helped us out a lot, so of course we told her we'd love to do the lecture! If you're wondering, our lecture was about American Line Dancing and it was a lot of fun, but telling more about it would deserve its own blog post. Anyway, after the lecture, Crystal and her husband and some colleagues (all Chinese) took Rachel and I to eat at a nearby Chinese restaurant. During dinner, Crystal and her husband asked us all kinds of questions about American food - how is it different from Chinese food? Do we like it better? Is it healthier? etc. We get asked these kinds of questions all the time, so answering them was nothing special. But it certainly must have sparked the interest of Crystal and her husband, because about a week later we received an e-mail from them that read something like this:

"Dear Rachel and Olivia,

Thank you so much for your wonderful lecture...blah blah blah. The students really enjoyed it, etc... And now, my husband and I would like to invite you to our house sometime. You will come to our house and you will cook us an American dinner. Please let us know which day will work for you.

                                                                                                                                                 Crystal"

When Rachel and I read this e-mail, our jaws dropped a little... especially because according to the e-mail, we had no choice. I mean, she practically ordered us to come cook for her! If only she knew who she was asking...

So, Rachel and I actually managed to avoid this subject for a while - we were too busy with schoolwork; out of town for the weekend; etc. Unfortunately, the time finally came when Crystal asked us yet again about our dinner date, and we finally had to give in. Rachel and I brainstormed things we had cooked successfully in the past and we decided on three dishes:

• Lemony Chicken Piccata (it's my mom's variation, which is delicious, but tastes almost nothing like actual chicken piccata)
• Mashed Potatoes
• Corn on the Cob

So, on Sunday night, we arrived at Crystal's apartment to cook for Crystal, her husband, her mother-in-law and her baby boy. A few days before, we had sent a list of things we needed to Crystal so that she could prepare them before we arrived. And, as usual, some of that was lost in translation:

•  Instead of 4 medium-sized chicken breasts, we got 2 huge frozen ones (at least they were boneless!)
•  Instead of vegetable oil, we got sunflower seed oil 
•  Instead of a frying pan, we had a wok
•  And instead of knives and forks, we had chopsticks! 

Fortunately, Rachel and I were able to get past these few setbacks and we actually made a decent meal - to both of our surprise! But, because of some of the miscommunications, it looked like it might not be enough food for everyone (not to mention, a big part of Chinese culture is to serve an outrageous amount of food - if your guests finish all the food on the table, then you didn't serve enough) so Crystal decided to whip up a little Chinese hot pot to accompany our "American" dishes. ("Hot Pot" is sort of like fondue - you have a pot of boiling broth in the middle of the table, usually with some herbs and spices, and it's surrounded by plates and bowls of raw veggies, meat and other food. Then, you just toss everything in, let it cook, and, Voila!, a meal!) This is how our "East-meets-West" meal turned out:

Crystal and Rachel preparing the Hot Pot

Our feast!

It ended up being pretty delicious! And we had a good time talking and laughing with Crystal and her family. Her baby boy is adorable! (I'm sorry I don't have a picture of him). We even got Crystal's super-traditional mother-in-law to eat some of our food (she didn't want to at first - she was fine with her bowl of rice, thank you very much). So even though Rachel and I were not really looking forward to this dinner, it ended up being a big success! And next time, I'm teaching Crystal how to back Chocolate Chip Cookies (something I know I can do!)

And now, I'm headed back to packing because I'm headed home tomorrow! (And I could not be more excited!) If only packing were easier...

Until next time, Zai Jian y'all!