Hawaiian Roast Pig

Moist. Delicious. Smoky.

Traditional roast pig is a luau dish. The pig is wrapped in lualua (taro) leaves, lowered into a pit and slow barbecued for hours. Nowadays the pig is more often roasted in a crock pot for 6-8 hours, even so, it remains an island delight. It is traditionally served with long rice, poi, and/or sweet potatoes. Hawaiians don't believe in eating until they're full, they believe in eating until they are tired!

My first taste of Kalua Pig was heavenly and that was all I got -- a taste. One bite just isn't enough. I determined to research the recipe, but before I had a chance I wandered near a wedding party in the Kapolei Park and they offered me a plate of Kalua Pig for a small price. I paid.

It's a bit salty, but definately yummy. If you're in Hawaii this is a "must taste" item.

Local Flavor

Every Saturday morning the aroma drifts into my home from the neighbor's place. It's almost enough to make me want to go knock on their door and invite myself to breakfast. Fortunately, for the sake of my pride, I always keep a chub of Portuguese Brand Sausage in the freezer so that if my will power deserts me I don't have to go begging.

Despite its name, Portuguese Brand Sausage is made in Hawaii. It is also on the menu of many of the local restaurants, but don't get it in the restaurant. They'll only serve you three or four little slices. Go to the grocery store and pay about a $1.25 for a 5 ounce chub.


Portuguese Brand Sausage comes fully cooked with spicy ratings from mild, to medium, to hot. I buy the hot sausage because I have found that Hawaiian spices are much more mild then Mexican spices -- however, that doesn't mean their foods lack flavor or savor.

Try it. If you can't find any in your local supermarket pop on over to Hawaii and check the meat counter in most any store. It's certain to be on the shelf.


Btw, this is NOT a paid advertisement.

Exotic Fruit

Scientists call it Carambola. To the rest of us it is known as Star Fruit, and it is easy to see why. Star Fruit is sweet, yet tart and very crisp in texture. It ripens from green to yellow, but can be eaten in either state.

Star Fruit came to Hawaii by way of Asia. People grow the fruit trees in their yards for both food and ornamental purposes. If you would like a star fruit tree, they also grow well in containers. Buy yourself a star fruit, plant the seeds and there you are.

Star fruit trees do not like being too wet, but they also don't like being too dry. They are a subtropical plant and they don't mind cool nights, but even a light frost will kill them.

Because they are members of the family Oxalidaceae, and therefore a source of oxalic acid, Star Fruit should be eaten in moderation. Persons with kidney disorders should not eat them at all.

They do make a lovely garnish, however. And if you're in good health, a star fruit every now and then will do you no harm.

Celebrating 70 Years of Aloha

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear Spam,
Happy birthday to you!

Yep, you heard me correctly. Today is the 70th Birthday of Spam canned luncheon meat. OC called me from work to tell me he'd read about it on the front page of the paper during his morning commute. I teased him a bit and promised him I would go to the store and get him some Spam for dinner. He demurred, but encouraged me to read his post.

Me being me -- upon being told the tribute to Spam never made it online -- I of course had to check. I did not find the birthday tribute, but I did discover that Hawaii leads the nation in per capita Spam consumption! Well, that did it. I had to go to the store and buy a can of Spam. I haven't had the stuff since I was a teen, maybe in the last several (okay, several dozen) years or so, it has gotten tastier.

Once in the store I was shocked to discover that Spam is no longer a single entity, but has grown into a whole family of products! The second shock was the number of people crammed into the canned lunch-meat isle. They were all buying Spam. One woman told me she was making Spam Chili. Another woman -- this one in line with me at the check-out counter -- told me that the 25% less sodium Spam, which I was purchasing, had 75% less taste. She said that once she took a can of it home and neither her husband nor the dog would eat it.

Since I have neither husband nor dog, I haven't quite decided what I am doing with the can of Spam sitting on my kitchen counter. Perhaps I will do what another shopper in the cash register line said she was going to do and put the Spam in my cupboard to save it for the 100 year anniversary. "By then," she said, "I might be senile enough to actually eat it."

Breakfast On The Lanai

We ate many of our meals at the Makaha Resort. I especially enjoyed breakfast on the lanai. My favorite breakfast consisted of fruit juice, Portuguese sausage, pancakes, warm coconut syrup -- and Brazilian Cardinals.

No, the cardinals weren't for eating, they were for feeding -- or at least that's what they wanted us to believe.

This one came right to the table and sat down with us. It hopped from the back of the chair, to the table, to the top of the teapot. It had it's eye on the Portuguese sausage, but settled for a bit of pancake eaten from my partner's hand.

The cardinal wasn't in the least bit shy about asking for seconds -- and thirds. And he was quite spunky about letting his preferences be known.

"Hey, big guy, you're a bit stingy there with that coconut syrup, aren't you?"