Cooking for Kerith

Wednesday, July 25

Today I was on the cooking team.  We were going to prepare a feast for the children and staff at Kerith's Children's House and give their a staff a day off.  Sounded simple enough when we were planning.  Turns out there is nothing simple in Africa.  We started by making a list and going to the market.  What would have taken me 15 minutes to round up in the supermarket at home took us nearly two hours.  Much negotiation is involved.  Luckily we had our bus driver Abas and Lloyd from Kerith's to help us.  One lady would not even sell to us either because we were white or non-Muslim.  Getting meat was the strangest.  We wanted fresh meat but were late in arriving.  We spotted fresh goat hanging from a hook.  We knew it was fresh because the head and hooves were displayed and it was dripping blood.  We encountered many stares and children followed us everywhere.

Once we had all the supplies the real work began.  Pealing 100+ potatoes with a dull knife. 

Sorting rocks out of the rice.

Cutting the meat with a dull knife.  We wanted to cut off the fat and gristle, but we're told the children will eat everything.  

We added Cajun spices (all the Southerners choice) carrots, onions, and garlic.  This all had to be cooked over a charcoal fire in the outdoor cookhouse (all our preparations were done outside on one small table or our laps).  Two ladies spent 4+ hours making chapattis (an African tortilla).  We sliced tomatoes and cut 20 pineapples, which are very cheap here.  We were exhausted.  We began at 9:30 and the meal was finally ready around 3:00.  The children ate well (we also bought them sodas, a real treat), and the staff was very appreciative.

Liz spent the entire day holding a little girl who could not walk due to a severe burn on her leg.  She never complained although her back hurt a lot the next day.