They have a shopping list that’s four feet long.
And before International Night begins in the EMU at 5 p.m. Sunday, heads of the food committee Ilona Widjojo from Indonesia and Rakesh Tolani from India will have their hands full of grocery bags.
With recipes from more than 18 countries around the world, Widjojo, Tolani and a team of others will set out to create a feast for about 200 volunteers and the more than 600 people expected to attend this year’s celebration. Dining times are at 5 p.m., 5:40 p.m. and 6:20 p.m., and the performance begins at 7:30 p.m. in EMU Ballroom.
During the course of two days, the co-committee heads, five assistants and some international student volunteers will embark on a $4,000 shopping spree that will take them to United Grocers, Costco, Safeway, Sunrise Oriental Market, Yi-Shen and WinCo Foods.
Each dish on the menu for International Night will take about four hours to prepare, and the duo said they won’t be able to squeeze more than 20 people in the kitchen at one time. Volunteers will cook today from 3 p.m. until midnight, Saturday from 8 a.m. until midnight and Sunday from 8 a.m. until show time.
Widjojo and Tolani had the task of taking the best of the recipes submitted by international students and converting the ingredients to feed more than 800 people. Widjojo said even the slightest glitch in the calculations can be devastating when it comes time to cook. If a recipe reads pounds instead of ounces, or a dash of salt really means a teaspoon, the recipe won’t turn out right.
While Widjojo stared at pages of conversion tables and substitutions, she said patience and organization are the key elements that will help her and the others get through the extensive cooking process.
Widjojo is no rookie when it comes to serving a large amount of people. For the last three years, she has helped in the kitchen to prepare the International Night feasts. Because Widjojo knows how difficult it can be pulling together so many meals for one night, she chose a simple recipe to contribute this year: a Mexican dish known as ceviche, which is a fresh salsa appetizer served with cocktail shrimp on crispy tostadas.
“It doesn’t need a stove, so we won’t fight over pots,” Widjojo said.
Ying-Che Chensubmitted two of the recipes on the International Night menu — three cups chicken, a typical Taiwanese dish, and Mayan hot chocolate from Central America.
The hot chocolate was featured in the Miramax film “Chocolat,” starring Juliette Binoche and Judi Dench, Chen said. And while Chen was visiting his host family in Hood River, he learned the recipe for the drink.
Chen said the drink, which can be traced to both Aztec and Mayan cultures and today can be found throughout Central America, is spicy, sweet and warms the whole body.
“The secret is hot chili pepper topped with whipped cream,” Chen said, adding that the word chocolate comes from the Mayan beverage.
Chen said that in the movie, the hot chocolate surprises those who drink it, and it surprises them that the “drink of passion” contains hot chili pepper.
To make sure their own version was just right, ISA members experimented with different types of chocolate while making the beverage earlier this month.
Tolani, who has been studying at the University for two years, said he wants people to leave International Night not only full of good food, but more aware of the diversity on this campus. Presenting the richness of international culture to the University is a rewarding experience, Tolani added.
But the night doesn’t end after the food has been served. During the performances in the ballroom, the audience will be in for a taste of salsa dancing that is typically seen in Cuba. Salsa became internationally recognized in the 1930s when Cuban immigrants brought their tradition to cities such as New York and Miami.
Highlights of the evening also include everything from a fast-paced Balinese dance to a Karate demonstration.International Night Director Ozzy Greven, a senior international studies major, said all the committees working on International Night have been efficient so far in making sure the night runs smoothly. “I find that international students and students as a whole are supportive of each other,” Greven said. “I have complete faith in everybody
involved.”
Even though he’s a first generation American, Greven said he enjoys working with the ISA and also serves as the office manager for the International Resource Center.
“I am doing this in an effort to bring people together,” Greven said.
“Everyone from everywhere has something to offer and sometimes we need a forum to share it — and that’s International Night.”
Tickets for International Night are available at the University Ticket Office.