A Cornucopia of Ethnic Foods in
Hawai'i 
The Polynesians, who miraculously found their way navigating by the stars to the Hawaiian archipelago around 450 A.D. had a diet that consisted mainly of poi, a white fleshed sweet potato, sea foods, pig, and dog. Yes, I said dog. They were a well developed and healthy people and sophisticated in their approach to preserving and drying their foods with sea salt. Centuries later, when the New England missionaries arrived in Hawai’i, they brought with them many of their own foods that have remained in the Hawaiian diet today such as corned beef and beef stew. I won’t mention the other undesirable things the missionaries brought to the Hawaiians. That’s another story -- this one is only about food.
Undoubtedly, current day visitors to Hawai’i find themselves attending one of the many commercial Lu’au feasts that are available at hotels i Waikiki and on the neighbor islands as well. Of course, it must be noted that the foods served at these commercial Lu’au’s are not always authentic Hawaiian Lu’au foods such as Chicken Long Rice, Poke, Haupia, ‘Opihi, and Lomilomi salmon. One of the main dishes served at a commercial and at an authentic Lu’au is the underground roasting/steaming method for cooking a pig. The underground oven is called an ‘IMU (pronounced e-moo) Here is the method if you care to try it in your backyard.
1. Dig a hole about 3 feet deep and 4 feet in diameter.
2. Add kiawe wood and kindling
3. Place porous stones (lava rock is best) on top of the wood. Light the fire.
4. When the stones are red hot, cover them with a layer of crushed banana stalks.
5. Layer a bunch of ti leaves on top of the banana stalks.
6. Place the whole cleaned pua’a (pig) weighing about 100 pounds, salted and wrapped in coconut cloth on a sheet of wire mesh over the ti leaves.
7. Shovel the soil from digging the hole on top.
8. Let pig cook for approximately 6 hours or until done.
Okay, so you’re not going to dig a hole in your backyard or buy a whole pig for that matter. So here’s a version of Kalua Pig for the Mainland using just part of a pig!
8 lbs. Pork Butt
4 Tbls. Sea Salt
3 garlic cloves, peeled
3-inch piece of fresh ginger
6 Tbls. Liquid Smoke*
6 or 8 ti leaves**
Heat oven to 500 degrees. Rub sea salt and liquid smoke over pork. Add garlic and ginger and wrap pork in leaves and then in heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake in a covered roasting pan for ½ hour. Reduce heat to 325 degrees and cook for an additional 3½ - 4 hours.
Remove pork to a carving board. Remove wrappings and with a fork, shred pork into pieces and transfer to a serving platter. Baked sweet potatoes and corn on the cob are good accompaniments. Yield: 20 servings
*Hickory liquid smoke can be found in supermarkets with other barbecue sauces but use Mesquite if available
**check with your florist to see if ti leaves are available. If not, use fresh collard leaves.
The other ethnic groups that have greatly added to Hawai’i’s unique mixed plate of foods are the Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, Puerto Ricans, Koreans, Filipinos, Samoans and Southeast Asians. With the exception of Samoans and Southeast Asians, all of the other groups were brought here at different times to work the sugar and pineapple plantations. Eventually, the traditions, foods and recipes they brought with them from their native countries made their way into the multi-cultural landscape of Hawai’i.
On your next visit to Hawai’i, take a walking tour of Honolulu’s Chinatown and see the varied array of Chinese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese and Filipino foods available. There are several good eateries in Chinatown too; try The Sea Fortune Restaurant on North King Street for a good selection of Dim Sum.
Here is a recipe from each of the ethnic groups mentioned above. Recipes and information are from "Ethnic Foods of Hawai’i" by Ann Kondo Corum. ISBN Number: 0-935848-21-5.
Chinese
1½ lbs. Won bok (celery cabbage a.k.a. Chinese
cabbage)
½ lb. Ground pork
2 Tbls. Chopped green onion (scallion)
small piece ginger, crushed
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 tsp. Sherry
2 tsp. Salt
2 cans chicken broth
1 can sliced mushrooms
Cut won bok into 2-inch pieces. Combine pork, green onion, egg, ginger, sherry and ½ tsp salt. Shape pork into 1-inch balls. Heat stock, add pork balls; simmer 20 minutes, covered. Add won bok, mushrooms, and remaining salt. Simmer 5 minutes. Serves 4.
Japanese
2-3 Japanese Cucumbers
¼ cup rice vinegar
1 tsp. Ginger, minced
¼ cup sugar
¼ tsp. Salt
To prepare cucumbers: Slice cucumbers in half; remove seeds if using regular cucumbers. Slice in thin diagonal slices. Sprinkle with salt and let stand 20 minutes. Rinse, drain and squeeze out excess water by putting cucumbers in a thin dish cloth or cheese cloth. Combine sugar, vinegar, salt and ginger. Pour over cucumbers and chill. Variation: thinly sliced raw carrots or celery may be added.
Portuguese
Kale Soup
lb. Dried white beans, soaked in water overnight
8 cups boiling water
salt and pepper to taste
6 Tbls. Olive oil
3 onions, cut into thin wedges
1 lb. Kale
¾ lb. Chuck beef, cut into small cubes
10 oz. Mild Linguica (Portuguese sausage) cut into ½-inch slices
Rinse and drain soaked beans. Heat oil in a large pot and add onions. Cook until the onions are golden. Add half the boiling water and salt to taste. Bring mixture to a boil and add beef, linguica and beans. Simmer for 1 hour, skimming the surface to remove any scum.
Remove tough stems from kale and shred finely. Add remaining boiling water and the greens to the pot and simmer for 1½ hours. Taste for seasoning. Serves 6.
Puerto Rican
¼ cup butter, softened
1 clove garlic, mashed
2 medium plantains, peeled and grated
oil for frying
Mix butter and garlic in a small bowl. Set aside. In a medium sized heavy saucepan heat oil for frying to 375 degrees. While oil is heating, make small patties out of the grated plantains, using about ¼ cup at a time. Press firmly together. Using a slotted spoon, gently slip 2 or 3 patties into the hot oil. Fry until golden brown and turn once. Drain on paper towels. Repeat until all patties are cooked. Brush one side of the patties gently with the garlic butter before serving. Serve as a side dish or pupu.
Korean
6 cups water
2 Tbls. Salt
1 Tbls. Oil
2 tsp sesame seeds
2 pkg. Bean sprouts
2 tsp. Sesame seed oil
2 stalks green onion, chopped
Bring water and salt to a boil and add sprouts. Cook for 1 minute. Rinse and drain well in a colander. Squeeze out water. Add all seasonings, mix well, and chill, Sprinkle with red pepper flakes before serving. Variation: Sauté ½ lb. Lean ground beef. Add raw bean sprouts and seasonings. Cook until sprouts are done but still crisp.
Filipino
2 bay leaves
½ cup wine vinegar
10 whole peppercorns
3 Tbls. Oil
3 lbs Chicken or pork, cut up
salt and pepper to taste
½ cup white wine or beer
1 clove garlic, minced
Season chicken or pork pieces with salt and pepper. Place in a large saucepan. Mix together all other ingredients, except oil and pour over the chicken or pork. Bring to a boil. Simmer with cover slightly off until meat is tender and all liquid has evaporated. Add oil to the pan and sauté meat until all sides are brown. Serves 4
Samoan
Salt
1 cup Coconut Cream
1 mild flavored fish, cleaned with head and tail on approx 3-4 lbs.
ti leaves
Rub inside of cleaned fish with salt. Line a baking dish with clean ti leaves. Place fish on the leaves and pour coconut cream over it. Cover with more ti leaves and bake in a 350 degree oven for 1 hour or until fish is tender. Serves 4
Southeast Asian
¼ lb. Ground pork
¼ lb. Raw shrimp or crab
2 carrots
½ tsp salt and pepper
¼ lb. Chop suey yam (jicama)
2 stalks Green onion, chopped
oil for frying
triangle or round rice paper wrappers
Shred chop suey yam and carrots into match stick pieces. Remove shell from crab or shrimp Mash crab or shrimp with ground pork; season with salt and pepper. Mix in carrots, chop suey yam, and green onion. Separate sheets of rice paper wrappers and place approximately 1 Tbls. Of filling in the center. Fold left and right sides over the mixture and then roll into a small, cylindrical package. Deep fry in hot oil until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve hot with leaf lettuce, with or without sauce.
Sauce
2 Tbls water
2 Tbls vinegar
1 Tbls sugar
2-3 Tbls Nam Pla (fish sauce)
1 clove garlic, finely minced
½ tsp red chili pepper, finely chopped
Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Use as a dipping sauce for Spring Rolls.
Copyright © 2006 Ann Hall Every, CCP
