Kaua'i - Hawaii - page 1081

Snacks & Sweets
Pupu is the local term used for all kinds of snacks, munchies, appetizers or 'grazing'
foods. Much more than just cheese and crackers, pupu represent the ethnic diversity of
the islands, for example, boiled peanuts flavored with Chinese star anise or salted Japan-
ese edamame (boiled fresh soybeans in the pod). Not to be missed is poke , a savory dish
of bite-sized, cubed raw fish seasoned with shōyu , sesame oil, green onion, chili-pepper
flakes, sea salt, ogo (seaweed) and/or ʻinamona , a Hawaiian condiment made of roasted,
ground kukui (candlenut). Poke comes in many flavor varieties - ahi (yellowfin or bigeye
tuna) is particularly popular.
Nowadays island kids veer toward mainland candy and gum to satisfy sweet teeth, but
the traditional local treat is mouth-watering Chinese crack seed. It's preserved fruit (typ-
ically plum, cherry, mango or lemon) that, like Coca-Cola or curry, is impossible to de-
scribe. It can be sweet, sour, salty or licorice-spicy. Sold prepackaged at supermarkets,
convenience stores and pharmacies like Longs Drugs or dished out by the pound at spe-
cialty shops, crack seed is mouthwatering and addictive.
On a hot day, nothing beats shave ice. It's not just a snow cone: the ice is shaved as
fine as powdery snow, packed into a paper cup and drenched with sweet flavored syrups
in an eye-popping rainbow of hues. For decadence, add a scoop of ice cream, sweet red
azuki beans or soft mochi (Japanese pounded-rice cakes) underneath, or maybe haupia
coconut cream or a dusting of powdered li hing mui (salty dried plums) on top.
Hawaiian Traditions
With its earthy flavors and Polynesian ingredients, Hawaiian cooking is like no other.
Kalua pig is traditionally roasted whole underground in an imu, a pit of red-hot stones
layered with banana and ti leaves. Cooked this way, the pork is smoky, salty and succu-
lent. Nowadays kalua pork is typically oven-roasted and seasoned with salt and liquid
smoke. At commercial luau, a pig placed in an imu is usually only for show (it couldn't
feed 300-plus guests).
Poi - a purplish paste made of pounded taro root, often steamed and fermented - was
sacred to ancient Hawaiians. Taro is highly nutritious, low in calories, easily digestible
and versatile to prepare. Tasting bland to mildly tart or even sour, poi is usually not eaten
by itself, but as a starchy counterpoint to strongly flavored dishes such as lomilomi sal-
mon (minced, salted salmon with diced tomato and green onion).
A common main dish is laulau, a bundle of pork or chicken and salted butterfish
wrapped in taro or ti leaves and steamed until it has a soft spinach-like texture. Other tra-
ditional Hawaiian fare includes baked ʻulu (breadfruit), with a mouthfeel similar to a