Boven Soos
‘Those spices are a year past their sell-by date’
Door Remco van Veluwen
By Remco van Veluwen
Tortillas à la Boven Soos
For 4 people
500 grams of beef mince
300 grams of sweet corn in a can
400 grams of kidney beans in a can
400 grams of diced tomatoes in a can
1 red bell pepper, diced
Mexican spice mix
8 tortillas
Grated cheese
Brown the beef mince in a frying pan. Add the diced bell pepper and let sit for a few minutes. Rinse the sweet corn and kidney beans and add them to the pan. Add the diced tomatoes and Mexican spices to taste. Let the whole thing simmer for a few minutes.
Put the tortillas on a plate and heat them in the microwave according to the instructions on the package.
Put a large dollop of sauce on each tortilla, add some grated cheese, and fold the tortilla closed.
‘You want a couch? Or rather, part of a couch?’ asks house eldest Thomas when we walk in. ‘Ivan only wanted half of it for his room, the little bitch.’ Part of a large grey sectional stands at the top of the stairs in student house Boven Soos.
The guys have dinner together every Monday. Today, Christian will be cooking for his roommates for the first time ever. ‘He’s a little nervous’, Thomas teases. He’s been around a lot longer than Christian and Ivan, who moved into the house in September and October, respectively. Christiaan (with two a’s) has lived here since July.
Thomas still has trouble telling the two Chrises apart. ‘I usually just call them number one and number two. So it’s one, two, Ivan. Or number one, number two, and fresher!’ he laughs. But while Ivan may be new to the house, he’s a third-year student.
Noise
The four guys live above the Christian student association GSV’s club house. They’re all member there. The noise of parties in the ballroom isn’t too bad, says Thomas. ‘They key is to be at the party itself. If you ever get sick of it, you’ll just have to move.’
As the house youngest, Ivan is tasked with heating up the wraps, while Christiaan helps out and stirs the sauce. ‘I’m actually a third-year, but it’s okay’, says Christiaan. ‘Do you like our sweaters?’ chef Christian asks, showing off the year club sweaters he and his similarly named roommates are wearing. ‘They’re brand new, so you’ve got the scoop.’
The three young residents huddle over a drawer full of spices, looking for the correct ones. ‘This one’s a year past its sell-by date, dude’, Ivan says to Christian, referring to a jar of Mexican spice mix. ‘Yeah, so?’ Christian responds. ‘Eva says that’s fine when it comes to spices’, he says, referring to a former roommate. ‘Oh man, it’s all gunked up inside’, Ivan grumbles. ‘But sure, throw it in I guess.’
Ivan says he wants the article to say that this was a decision by the chef. ‘Maybe we should mix it with shawarma spices’, he says. Christian looks at him in surprise. ‘Write that down for UKrant, too!’
Microwave
The banter and misfortune continue at the microwave. ‘It’s not working’, Ivan yells. ‘You just need to have the right touch’, Thomas says helpfully. ‘Apparently I’m the only person in this house who knows how to work a microwave’, the sixth-year student says. ‘Apparently my roommates aren’t prepared to learn.’
Ivan grins. ‘I’m simply not very good with ovens. Seriously: I once fully burnt an apple pie during an association weekend. But’, he hastens to add, ‘that was Sem’s fault.’
From a corner of the kitchen, Christian the head chef looks on in satisfaction as the other guys cook. ‘You have to know how to take on a leadership role’, he says, grinning. ‘Can I taste what you guys are doing?’
‘You’d think wraps would be difficult to mess up’, says Christian. Nevertheless, he thinks the sauce is a little thin and suggests pouring some of it down the drain. Ivan thinks that would be a waste. ‘If I drink it, can I get an anytimer on you?’
Junk table
Time to eat. But the kitchen table is still covered in stuff. Do they ever even eat at it? ‘Never’, says Thomas. ‘It’s a junk table. Usually when we eat together, we eat in my room’, says Christiaan. His room is right next to the kitchen and above the ballroom.
‘I love the drinks at Boven Soos’, says Christiaan. Christian feels the same about the weekly club nights. ‘What’s so great about it is that all we have to do is walk downstairs.’ Christiaan: ‘There’s basically no excuse not to go.’
The guys are enjoying the wraps. For dessert, Christiaan serves hedgehog slices. ‘I bet your mother made these’, Ivan accuses as he devours his dessert. ‘No man, I made it myself!’ ‘Okay, tell us how this is made then’, Ivan says, suspicious. Christian decides to help out his roommate: ‘I’ve cooked things once or twice.’ Ivan stares at him in surprise. ‘You cooked?!’
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