Elijah Choi, Office of Intercultural Programs office manager, hopes to convey the beauty of Taylor University’s diversity through a cookbook.
“We have foods from Southeast Asia to Eastern Europe, to Central Africa, to South America, to the U.S.,” he said.
Choi said this cookbook will not just show how Taylor’s student body is diverse in culture, but how different in interests the students are, embracing individuality.
“I think it’s often overlooked because the OIP is kind of this room in the Stu that not many people get to see,” Choi said.
He hopes people will bring the cookbook with them wherever they go to cook and enjoy good food. That will show how diverse the Taylor student body is.
The cookbook includes recipes and also the stories behind the dishes. One recipe shared the story of a student’s grandma who used to make the dish in the countryside with locally sourced ingredients. However, in the U.S., it’s harder to source those ingredients, but when the dish is cooked, it evokes fond memories of their home country.
“Being able to read some of these people’s histories about their relationship with this one dish, what makes it special to them, why they wanted to put it into the OIP cookbook, it’s incredible,” he said.
Choi loves to cook and aspires to be a chef. He loves exploring different foods and dishes, but always returns to the behind the food, their stories and what makes people special.
Choi said the most exciting thing for him is exactly that: getting to learn more about people and their backgrounds.
There’s a lot of work that goes into putting this cookbook together. People submit their recipes, then the food must be cooked and approved, a photo must be taken of the food and the pages need to be designed.
“The cookbook may not be released until summer,” he said.
The cookbook will be available for sale online, and Choi hopes to hold a launch party for the book in May. Updates on the release and progress of the cookbook will be posted to Choi’s Instagram: @taekham_etc.
Submissions for the OIP cookbook have officially closed, with a multitude of people submitting entries and various dishes.
