The weekend arrived, and on Saturday, Ketto and his group went to Hangang River Park as planned. That morning, Ketto's mother was busy preparing an elaborate breakfast. She boiled eggs, stir-fried rice noodles, made a pot of porridge, and steamed corn and sweet potatoes. She finished by frying a few omelets. She also prepared side dishes like kimchi and sweet and sour radishes. Her goal was to make a breakfast that was both abundant and impressive, like the kind one might find at a high-end buffet.
Ketto's mother was an excellent cook, and her specialty was fried rice noodles. For this dish, she prepared a wide array of ingredients, including meats such as shrimp, fish balls, sausage, and belly pork, as well as vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, carrots, bell peppers, and eggs. The exact quantities depended on how many people she was serving.
Her process was meticulous. First, she would chop the meat into small, uniform pieces and slice the vegetables into long strips. She would start cooking by frying the eggs and setting them aside in a bowl. Next, she stir-fried the meat over high heat until it was perfectly cooked, then added the sliced vegetables to the pan. Once everything was nearly ready, she added the pre-boiled rice noodles, which had gone from dry, stiff, and brittle to soft, to the wok. She combined all the ingredients for a final stir-fry. Just before taking the dish off the heat, she generously scattered chopped green onions over the surface. Finally, she would carry the wok to the kitchen table and serve her waiting family.