I am not Hawaiian, but I was reading about Hawaiian native plants today (link for the curious: http://www.drylandforest.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/Rare_Unusual_PlantsSml.pdf) and it made me want to try making something resembling Hawaiian food. Key word: resembling. I’m sure actual Hawaiians would scoff at my imitations of their food.
This stuff, at least the way I made it, is a bit expensive and definitely more of a ‘sometimes’ option as opposed to something I would have regularly. I probably paid the same amount for each portion as I would’ve for a meal from a fast food drive through.
The first: kalua pork with cabbage, on rice.
You need already-cooked kalua pork. I use ‘Ono Ono’ brand that’s already prepared, purchased at a store called Tokyo Central here in Los Angeles county. If you can’t find it anywhere or don’t want to pay the surcharge for ‘premade’ there’s recipes online (e.g. https://playswellwithbutter.com/kalua-pork-recipe/). You also need a rice cooker with a steaming basket.
Add the rice and water as you normally would. In the steaming basket, alternate layers of raw cabbage and kalua pork (like this https://imgur.com/0K5Wyyb). Cook the rice with the pork and cabbage above it. The cabbage becomes steamed and infused with the fat / flavor of the pork. You eat the cabbage and pork on top of the rice. Some Japanese barbecue sauce on top of everything (e.g. Ebara Ohgon No Aji Mild Barbecue Sauce) makes it extra tasty.
The second: poke
I got 1.35 lbs of sushi grade tuna from the local Filipino grocery store. I chopped up red onion and seeded jalapeño into tiny bits and mixed it in. I then made a dressing with equal parts kewpie mayo / yuzu ponzu. I don’t eat it on rice, rather just as-is. Here’s what it looked like when it was done: https://imgur.com/paXL69H
Especially if you go light on the amount of rice for the pork dish, each of these makes for a filling low-calorie meal. Maybe 580 for the pork / cabbage / rice and maybe 380 for a nice serving of the poke. To know the exact calories keep track of the calories of each ingredient as you prepare each dish.
Dining and Cooking