Hawaii is one of those places that everyone should visit at least once in their life. The views are phenomenal, the people are kind and filled with wisdom, and the food is absolutely amazing! A big part of the Hawaiian diet is made up of fish. They love to add plenty of flavor to all dishes, and most come with a side of white rice. This article will delve into the food dishes that are absolute symbols of Hawaii.
1. Huli Huli Chicken
Hawaiians love BBQ with a side of pineapple.
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This Hawaiian BBQ dish is some of the best BBQ in the world! Huli Huli is grilled chicken breast with a teriyaki glaze. It was first introduced by poultry farmer Ernest Morgado. Huli means to turn in Hawai, and that’s exactly what’s done to keep this chicken cooking perfectly on the grill. This creates a crunchy and amazingly sweet glaze on the chicken.
2. Saimin Soup
Noodles also play a bit of a role in Hawaiian dishes.
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Saimin soup is a fine, thick, wheat noodle soup traditionally eaten with chopsticks. It is a culturally-themed Hawaiian food dish containing many elements of the traditional Hawaiian diet, all thrown together in a tasty soup. It contains a mixture of ham, fish cake, and chives as a topping. The base of the soup is fish broth, a Hawaiian comfort food.
3. Poke
Poke bowls have gained popularity in the U.S. in recent years.
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Many Americans are familiar with poke bowls making an appearance on sushi restaurant menus. They are a staple in Hawaiian diets. It sometimes starts with a base of white rice, then salmon, sliced cucumber, radish, and seaweed. There can also be many types of raw fish in sesame oil with seaweed, Maui onions, avocado, tobiko, spicy mayo, or avocado. One of the more popular versions is the wasabi-flavored octopus.
4. Lomi Lomi Salmon
Lomi Lomi is a dish that does not require cooking.
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This delightful side dish is a Hawaiian staple featuring salted fish, onions, and tomato. It is a bit similar to ceviche. It is a popular side to choose from with lunch platters. Lomi Lomi means to massage in Hawaiian. It has been a popular dish since the 1700s.
5. Lau Lau
Lau lau is also a way of cooking, which involves wrapping taro (lu’au) around food and then steaming it for hours.
This Polynesian-based dish is another popular item in Hawaii. It begins with taro leaves wrapped around fatty pork pieces or salted butterfish. Some recipes call for ti leaves to be wrapped on the outside of the taro (lu’au) leaves, though they are not eaten. Only the taro leaves are eaten. Then, it is steamed over an “imu,” which is an underground fire. It can also be served with any protein or made vegan and then steamed in the oven. Lau Lau is a Hawaiian food dish that rivals our inland comfort food; deliciously enough, they are compared to tamales.
6. Chocolate Haupia Cream Pie
A meal is incomplete without a slice of the traditional Chocolate Haupia cream pie.
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The traditional Hawaiian Haupia cream pie is a bit of a hit, especially with children. This no-cook pie is similar to a coconut cream pie inland. The recipe calls for coconut milk to give it some sweetness and can contain macadamia nuts, cocoa powder, or pineapple. It has the texture of pudding, and the most popular flavor is chocolate.
7. Kalua Pork
Pork cooked in an imu has a very distinctive and delicious flavor.
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This Hawaiian food dish involves slow-cooking a pig over an imu. Using a hardwood, underground oven, stones are heated for up to three hours, then covered with crushed banana leaves and finally with a layer of ti leaves on the outside of the banana leaves. The pig is lowered inside to begin cooking. Stones on the inside of the pig help cook it evenly. It creates very tender pork meat with a distinctive smoky flavor. What makes the meat have an extra special flavor is the flavor it takes on from the soil, banana leaves, and ti leaves it is wrapped in. The leaves are used to wrap the meat but are not eaten.
8. Spam Musubi
To some, anything made with spam is disgusting.
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Spam isn’t as hated in Hawaii as it is inland. This is Hawaii’s favorite handheld dish. It might look a bit like enormous sushi, but it is far from it. The white rice serves as the base with a slice of spam on top, and then seaweed holds it all together. Doesn’t that sound appetizing? It can also be eaten at room temperature, making it not exactly sound even better.
9. Loco Moco
Loco moco is another important piece of Hawaiian food heritage.
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This protein-rich snack or meal has breakfast written all over it, but Hawaiians enjoy it whenever they need that extra kick. The base of this tasty meal is white rice, then comes the hamburger patty main course that comes with two eggs sunny side up on top, making it look like a breakfast staple.
10. Malasadas
Just looking at this picture is enough to make your mouth water.
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These delicious donut-type pastries originally got their start in Portugal. They contain a bit more egg than the typical donut and are generously rolled in loose sugar, giving them that extra yummy and calorie-rich donut that Hawaiians love. These tasty treats can be compared to our inland donuts sans the hole in the center. They are more like donut holes. Naturally, they go wonderfully with haupia! These Hawaiian “donut holes” are one of the most amazing Hawaiian food dishes!
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