Having been born and raised in Hawaii, Hawaiian food is at the top of my list. In fact, whenever I go home to visit my family, number one on my “local foods I must consume” list is Hawaiian food. Give me a big bowl of poi, kalua pig, and lomi salmon – and I am one happy girl.
Each year I sell several luau meals for 8 as an auction item at my big gala. I’ve gotten several inquiries from people who want to do their own luau and ask for tips on recipes, etc. Here are some of the recipes I use when preparing a luau for 8 (though really for more because I always make sure I have leftovers – it’s a lot of work and you might as well reap the benefits by saving some for yourself!).
PUPUS
MINI SPAM MUSUBIS
Ingredients: Rice (calrose), nori, spam, small bowl of water
Tools: Mini musubi mold (or nigiri mold)
Directions: Cook rice. Cut spam into slices. Fry spam. When kind of crispy on both sides, remove from frying pan, arrange slices horizontally, and cut into thirds. Take nori and use scissors to cut into strips, approx. 1.5″ wide. Trim off about a third of the length of nori strips and discard. Put rice into musubi or nigiri mold to get small rectangles of rice. Use more rice than you think – the more dense they are, the better they stay together. Put mini spam slices on top of rice, wrap trimmed nori around rice + spam, dip your finger in a bowl of water and run it along where nori ends to “seal”.
AHI POKE
Ingredients: 1 lb. fresh ahi (sashimi grade or similar), poke seasoning pack (can be found at Marukai or other Japanese markets), sesame oil, shoyu (soy sauce), ½ c green onions (chopped).
Directions: Slice ahi into chunks about 3/4″ x 3/4″. Follow directions on poke seasoning pack (soak limu or seaweed in water for a few minutes, then chop). Add limu and poke seasonings to ahi and toss together with hands. Add a teaspoon or two of sesame oil, splash with shoyu, add in chopped green onions. Mix again with hands.
SIDE DISHES
PINEAPPLE
Ingredients: Pineapple
Directions: Cut into chunks or spears.
STEAMED RICE
Ingredients: Calrose rice, water
Directions: Use rice cooker or pot to cook rice. Calorse rice is best (Japanese rice) because it’s stickier. I usually make 6 cups of rice for a large party.
LOMI SALMON
Ingredients: 1/2 lb. salted salmon, 5 large ripe tomatoes (diced), 1 c chopped green onion, 1 medium onion (finely chopped).
Directions: Soak salmon in water for 3-4 hours; rinse well. Remove skin and bones; shred salmon into a bowl. Add tomatoes and onions; lomi or knead until mixed well. Chill thoroughly. Taste test before serving – might need to add some extra salt and mix in.
Tip: To make your own salted salmon, sprinkle a piece of raw salmon with sea salt. Lomi salt into the fish and refrigerate overnight. Fish will cure and take on salt flavor. Lox may be substituted for salted salmon in a bind.
ENTREES
KALUA PIG WITH CABBAGE (in a slow cooker)
Ingredients: 6 lb port butt (shoulder) roast, 1.5 T Hawaiian sea salt, 1 T liquid smoke flavoring, shredded cabbage (1 bag pre-shredded or a small head)
Directions: Pierce pork all over with carving fork. Rub salt then liquid smoke all over meat. Place roast in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 16-20 hours, turning once during cooking time. When done, shred meat, put in shredded cabbage (quantity to your liking). Remove meat and cabbage from slow cooker, adding drippings as needed to moisten.
GUAVA CHICKEN*
Ingredients: 1/4 t five spice seasoning, ½ c ketchup, ½ c shoe, ½ c sugar, ½ c oyster sauce, 1 6oz. can guava concentrate, 1 clove garlic (crushed), 5 lbs. chicken thighs
Directions: Mix all ingredients and marinade overnight. Bake, fry, or grill chicken until done.
*not a traditional luau dish, but a good addition if there are pickier eaters who might not like some of the other entree options.
SHOYU CHICKEN
Ingredients: 5 lbs. chicken thighs (boneless, skinless), 1 c shoyu, 6 T brown sugar, 1 whole dried star anise, 2 t fresh ginger root (crushed), 1 T dry sherry, Chinese parsley (cilantro), green onions (chopped)
Directions: In large pan or pot, place chicken with shoyu, brown sugar, star anise, ginger, sherry, and ½ c water. Bring to a boil, cover and simmer over a low flame, stirring occasionally to make sure that chicken pieces are all evenly exposed to seasoning sauce. If you use Chinese parsley, cook a few stalks with the chicken. Garnish with chopped green onions. To thicken sauce, remove 1 T of cooking sauce to bowl and stir in 1 t cornstarch. Add to cooking liquid after chicken is removed. Then pour thickened sauce over chicken.
CHICKEN LONG RICE
Ingredients: 2 lbs. chicken tenderloins or boneless + skinless thighs, several tablespoons oil, 2 packages long rice, 3-4 cans chicken broth, 2-3 cloves garlic, 3 1-inch pieces of ginger (peeled), 1 bunch green onions (chopped), 1 T shoyu (or more to taste), salt to taste if needed
Directions: Soak long rice in a pot of warm water for at least 30 minutes. In large skillet, brown chicken pieces in a little oil. Salt lightly. While cooking chicken, add crushed garlic to skillet. Crush pieces of ginger in garlic press and add to chicken. When slightly brown, add chicken broth and long rice. Let long rice and chicken cool. Long rice will continue to absorb the liquid, so keeping adding broth as necessary. Season with a little shoyu and salt to taste, if needed. About 5 minutes before serving, add green onions.
DESSERT
OKINAWAN SWEET POTATO & HAUPIA PIE
Crust –
Ingredients: 2 c flour, 1.5 sticks of butter (softened), 3 T powdered sugar
Directions: Mix and form into 9×13 pan. Put plastic wrap over dough and smooth out with hands. Bake at 350-375 degrees until light brown. Don’t over bake. Cool.
Filling –
Ingredients: 2 lbs. Okinawan (purple) sweet potatoes, 1 stick butter, 1 can sweetened condensed milk
Directions: Steam sweet potatoes. Peel skin off and mash well (you can use mixer or food processor). Blend in 1 stick butter and ½ can sweetened condensed milk (you may need slightly more for right consistency). Pour onto cooled crust and smooth out (again use plastic wrap).
Haupia –
Ingredients: 2 cans coconut milk, 1 c sugar, 1/3 c cornstarch (mixed with some of the coconut milk)
Directions: Add all haupia ingredients to pot and heat to boiling. Turn down heat to simmer and stir continuously until haupia is thickened. Pour over potato layer. Refrigerate.
BUTTER MOCHI
Ingredients: 1 lb. box mochiko flour, 2.5 c sugar, 1 t baking powder, 5 eggs, 3 c milk, ½ c butter (melted), 1 t vanilla, 1 c shredded coconut
Directions: In large bowl, mix mochiko flour, sugar, and baking powder together. In separate bowl, beat eggs and add milk, vanilla, and butter. Pour milk mixture into bowl with flour and mix well. Pour batter into 9×13″ baking pan. Heat over to 350 degrees and bake for 1 hour, until golden brown on top.