how to cook for fifty people?

how many tomatoes do i need to cook for 50 people? asked my friend rocio perez last week.

together with friends she organized a latin american dinner sponsored by the first united method church of athens on friday, april 25, 2008. infected by her enthusiasm i promised to help chopping, which i enjoy anyway.

rocio is chopping her way through roughly a dozen chicken breast.

among other recipes at the dinner rocio prepared what she often cooks for guests at her house: lomo soltado, a dish from her home country peru with french fries, diced chicken, tomatoes, and onions in a vinegar sauce.

wesley student center international intern xiaoli (stepan) wang tackles the onions...

...while huge cookie sheets of baked french fries already wait for veggies and meat. (everything in that kitchen is huge: pots, sinks, knives etc.)

the chicken is still sizzling in the pan and the cooks are debating when they are done. while jerone (right) argues for a short time approach, rocio favors frying them really well.

meanwhile in the rest of the church's kitchen other dishes are prepared: rice, salad, and...

patacones pisados, a yummy snack from plantains that is eaten in ecuador and colombia.

for the patacones pisados, josé fries plantain slices in a pan until they are golden brown

...and adds salt afterwards.

mmmh! i never had patacones pisados before; i really like the chewy fresh warm salty taste of them.

you have to break an egg to make an omelet (german: wo gehobelt wird, da fallen spaene).

the youth group of the church, the wesley student center, holds an international dinner once a quarter according to youth group intern laura coombs (right). she and wesley student center international intern xiaoli (stephan) wang from china were in charge of the event and helped out with finding cutting boards, supplying lemonade, coffee and cake for dessert.

ohio university junior laura coombs said the dinner is sponsored partially by the student action committee, which gives about $70, while the church adds the rest so that the cooks have $150 for buying ingredients.


ready to eat!

unfortunately the camera ran out of battery before the food was served. the buffet also featured sour cabbage, beef, and rice from the korean community, which worships in the first united method church. laura coombs said her group will probably have pictures of the event on its website.