Dubbed the Pacific Pearl, Hawaii has always been the paradise of the resort with blue sea, white sand, sunshine and unique culture. There is a unique ecosystem with each row of coconut sucking eyes, pineapple sweet pineapple, and sea fishing struggling, so that Hawaiian cuisine brings bold tropical colors unique.
Let's take a look at a range of traditional Hawaiian dishes that every traveler must try when visiting this beautiful island.
POI: with a pretty name, Poi is one of the oldest traditional dishes in Hawaii.
Poi's main ingredient is taro, steamed to soften and then peeled, pesto for pounding. Potatoes will be as fine as bread flour. Then, put all the taro flour into a large bucket and add water and then hand stuffed to a mixture of sweet potato and still plastic.
Poi is fat, slightly sweet and slightly sour should be like no sugar yogurt. Most visitors to Hawaii initially do not like this dish, but after a few times will "addicted" them as native. Traditionally, when enjoying Poi Hawaiian will dip fingers and put them into the mouth, but today to ensure hygiene, spoons are used instead. Poi is considered as the main starch in the diet and is sometimes used as a sauce for other dishes.
LOMI LOMI: another dish named "cute", Lomi Lomi is actually a salmon salad with fresh tomatoes. Since it is the island, Hawaii's main food is sea fish and Lomi Lomi is also popular in the summer due to its coolness. Fresh salads are finely chopped, marinated with salt, mixed with tomatoes, onions, green onions, chili powder and ice, mixed well and you have a delicious orange and orange salad bowl very natural.
LAULAU: Taro grows a lot on Hawaii and is an important part of life as well as culture and cuisine of the people here. Laulau is meat, be it pork, chicken or beef, small fish is seasoned, wrapped in taro leaves and steamed. Laulau is often eaten with starch like rice or pasta. The process is not unique, but the taro leaves have brought new flavors for this dish.
KALUA PORK: Kalua pork is one of the oldest traditional Hawaiian dishes. After a slaughter, all the pigs will be salted and placed in a buried underground (called Ima), surrounded by hot rocks from volcanic lava. Then, they will cover the leaves of banana and a type of indigenous leaves called "Ti".
It takes 16 - 20 hours to finish the pork. This dish has a very strange taste due to the smell of banana leaves, forest leaves, moist soil and very soft due to slow cooked for a long time. Kalua pork is usually served with rice, noodles.
POKE: Poke in the Hawaiian dialect means "little by little". This is the live version of sashimi fish in Hawaii. However, unlike sashimi that are sliced or rolled into sushi, Hawaiian fish are small cubes, mixed with other ingredients in the same bowl.
A Poke bowl usually consists of 4 parts. The first is the "base", you can choose between white rice, brown rice or salad. Followed by fresh seafood such as salmon, tuna, squid, octopus, scallops. The third part is the sauce. Sauces that are familiar with sushi such as soy sauce, wasabi, teriyaki sauce will be poured onto the Poke bowl to absorb into the rice and fish. The last part is topping, you can choose corn, onion, seaweed, sesame, egg ... to his Poke bowl more deliciously beautiful. In a nutshell, Poke is a sashimi that mixes in your own comfortable style.
LOCO MOCO: Loco Moco is one of the most popular dishes at Hawaiian family meals. Loco Moco consists of a plate full of white rice, grilled beef, omelet and a delicious meat sauce. It's simple, but a Moco Loco is enough and full of nutrients for your lunch. Loco Moco is attractive because of the beautiful colors and the harmonious combination of ordinary food with the unique flavor of this island.
HAUPIA: Coconuts grow on the island of Hawaii so they are also present in many dishes of the island people and Hauptian is one of them. Haupias are traditional Hawaiian desserts, made from coconut milk, sugar, salt, cooked with cornstarch until the mixture is thick and cold for the cake. Eating Hauptia properly will have to slice the cake and place it on the banana leaves or green leaves, which can be sprinkled a little more coconut. Haupia has a sweet taste, coconut flavor.
Haupia has been a rare and rare dish, serving only the elders of the tribe in meetings. However, since the 1940s, with the popularity of refrigerators and gelatine, Hauptia has become popular throughout the island. To this day, Haupia is still an indispensable dessert in every Hawaiian wedding.