on thursday, december 7th, my 5th grade students were the envy of the school because rather than eat a regular lunch in the cafeteria, they got to have delicious grilled pork (삼겹살, samgyeopsal) for lunch. it was all organized through their teacher, i don't know if they were learning about cooking or if there was any good reason for it, maybe it was just a reward for being good or something. they brought in all the ingredients and set up shop in the basement science lab. within minutes, the delicious aromas of their feast climbed upward and into the envious noses of all the other students. i had already eaten in the cafeteria but went down to see how much fun they were having, and i'll admit i was hoping for perhaps a bite or two.

i expected the kids to be having a good time and enjoying themselves, which they were. what i didn't expect was their zealous desire to share their food with me. within moments of showing up there i had about three mouthfuls of pork forcefully shoved into my mouth, and three more ready to go before i could even chew or swallow what i already had. it was really delicious, and always it is nice to see how willing korean kids are to share their food, but it was too much of a good thing. plus i was already full from lunch. i guess i got what i deserved, i showed up looking to sneak a taste, and ended up with more than i could handle.

tagged: cooking food korean party pork samgyeopsal school students