Hawaii Food and Recipe Blog

If you ask someone right off the street what sort of food they would expect to find in Hawaii, chances are good the first thing they will think of is pineapple. (Try it yourself and you’ll see what I mean!) When I visited Hawaii, I took every chance I could to get some fresh pineapple - right until my mouth started burning. turns out this highly acidic fruit is great - in moderation! Of course, I’m going to be providing PLENTY of pineapple recipes on the blog, and here’s a good one to start with Use it on fish, pork, or just about anything you can think of. It provides a tropical taste to darn near anything.

Sweet and Hot Pineapple Salsa Recipe

1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained
2 tablespoons orange marmalade
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
2 teaspoons seeded and finely chopped jalapeño - fresh, but be careful not to touch your face or eyes while chopping! Best bet is to wear gloves or put ziploc bags over your hands.
2 teaspoons lime juice - again, fresh is best.
generous pinch of salt

In a medium bowl combine all ingredients well. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve cold or at room temperature.

If you’ve visited Hawaii, you’re probably smacking your lips right now. If you haven’t yet, then Haupia is a coconut dessert. Not a pudding exactly - it’s more solid than a pudding. More like a creamy jello but made with coconut milk and thickened with cornstarch (so it’s still kind of transparent.) One of my favorite desserts - there’s alway a little room “in the cracks” for Haupia!

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups coconut milk
• 1 cup whole milk
• 7 tablespoons sugar (you can use less, but I like mine sweet)
• 5 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp vanilla

PREPARATION:

Pour one cup of coconut milk and the dash of Vanilla extract into a saucepan. Combine sugar and cornstarch stirring into coconut milk. Heat over low stirring constantly until slightly thickened. I can’t stress the stirring part enough - like any milk recipe, if you don’t keep stirring it will burn and/or form a skin!

Add remainder of coconut milk and whole milk and continue to heat until thickened again. Pour the mixture into an 8 inch square pan and chill until firm. Wasn’t that easy?

I first heard of chicken long rice from my mother. When she got stranded in Hawaii during the 60’s airline strike with low funds it was the food of choice - cheap, filling and readily available. Although I haven’t developed as big a taste for it as my mom, this Chinese food is yummy and a staple at any luau. You can find it at many world food stores, but it goes by the name of “cellophane noodles”. To serve chicken long rice you will need:

• 3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken cut into small, equal sized pieces

For the marinade:

• 5 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger (it’s cheap, and no, dry ginger spice isn’t the same!)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1½ teaspoons sugar
• dash of pepper

Stir-fry Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 6-8 oz. sliced mushrooms
• 2-4 chopped green onions
• 10 oz. long rice (cellophane noodles)
• 8 oz chicken broth

Combine the 2 tablespoons soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, sugar and pepper to create a marinade. Add the chicken and refrigerate at least 1 hour. While the chicken is marinating,unwrap the long rice and soak it in cold water for a half hour. Then cut it into equal lengths - some recipes call for cutting the noodles in fourths, some for eighths. Decide on how much you want to “slurp” when you eat and cut the noodles accordingly

OK now it’s time to get “wokkin”. Place a large skillet or wok over high heat. When it’s hot, add vegetable oil and the pieces of marinated chicken. Stir-fry until chicken no longer is pink, turning often. Reduce heat and add mushrooms, green onions, long rice, chicken broth and the remainder of the soy sauce. Simmer until hot, stirring often - about 3 minutes. DON’T OVERCOOK, long rice soaks up the sauce fast and turns into a nasty, gummy mess if you simmer it too long.

That’s it - serve and enjoy!