Only from Hilo: Butt Laulau

Mauna Kea sunset

Whenever I travel, which is hardly ever, I am always glad to return home.  As most people know, I hate flying, and I hate everything about it. . .the getting to the airport, the checking in, the waiting, and the air time.  I HATE IT ALL!!!  I'm not sure about everyone else, but I've been on the plane with a shitload of idiots.  On my return flight, there was a guy who spent more time digging in the overhead bin instead of sitting in his seat.  Then there was the old lady who kept walking in the aisles (all while the plane was still loading) and screwing up other passengers, as she invariably stood in someone else's seat.  There was also a handful of people who tried to cram a carry-on roller suitcase into the overhead bin when it clearly wouldn't fit (or fits only one way and they spent 5 minutes trying to MAKE it fit the wrong way).  Some dude a few rows in front of me opened the overhead bin above him and left it open til someone else came by and closed it.  What a dumbass.  And don't even get me started on airplane food. . .

Anyway, Seattle/Victoria was fun, and I'm waiting for The Help to "process" the pics so I can get my grubby, seafood-smelling fingers on them.  I must've eaten at least 2 dozen oysters while there. . .raw, smoked, cooked.  I love oysters, and I can't imagine why I don't eat them more often at home.

The Ds return from their vacation this evening.  Mr. Dependable doesn't think much of public education, and to him, its not a big deal that his kids miss school.  He refused to pay the ransom to change their return flight.  His traveling partner, who at first seemed concerned about the kids missing the first day of school back from fall break, took the low road and didn't make a big deal out of it, especially since her child didn't go with them and, thus, wouldn't miss any school. 

Since returning home, The Help and I have been gorging on white rice and "local" food.  Neither of us had rice on the trip (no, I'm not counting paella and risotto), so we were both jonesing for it.  With just the two of us, its easy to pick up food, but with the imminent return of the Ds, I'm feeling like they will be grateful for some "local" food.

If you grew up in Hilo, you know that FF's Oven Ready Butt (brined/seasoned pork butt/shoulder) is TRUE Hilo food.  Its the moonyagi (omiyage) people from Hilo take to friends and relatives on neighbor islands.  It is also what other islanders bring home for family/friends when visiting Hilo.  Now, thanks to KTA, FF is not the only show in town for Oven Ready Butt.  Mountain Apple brand makes their own, and it is usually a little cheaper than FF.  I can't tell the difference in taste, so I buy whichever happens to be cheaper (on sale, FF is cheaper).

When I was away in college, I prepared Oven Ready Butt in the same fashion you'd prepare a corned beef brisket (or how I imagine you'd do it...I don't eat corned beef brisket myself).  Cook the chunk of meat in some water until its fairly soft, then add cabbage wedges and cook until done.  I think I've heard that called "boiled dinner".  I had no choice because back then, there was nowhere in Seattle to get fresh taro leaves.

Now that I live in Hilo, I prepare Oven Ready Butt my favorite way. . .a gigantic laulau which takes minimal effort to make.  The trickiest part is finding the taro leaves, but recently, that hasn't been very difficult.  I can usually find taro leaves at the supermarket (sold in 2 lb bags) or the farmer's market.  In fact, AJanice has some growing in her back yard.  I actually should plant some where the pool pump discharges because the weekly flooding (along with Hilo rain) makes it a good place for growing taro.

click on recipe title for printable recipe

Oven-Ready Butt Laulau

     1 large piece Oven-Ready Butt

     2 lbs taro leaves, washed and larger veins shaved down

Wrap butt with taro leaves, completely encasing butt.  Wrap tightly with heavy duty aluminum foil, completely encasing taro leaves.  Place in crock pot/slow cooker.  Cook on low for 7 hours or more.  Remove from crock pot.  Carefully remove butt from foil.  Slice and serve.

On occasion, when I can't find a large piece of Oven-Ready Butt, I have bought 2 smaller pieces and wrapped them up.  I usually do the wrapping the night before and store it in the crock in the refrigerator overnight.  Then I just place the crock in the heating element before I leave for work.  This reheats well too, in spite of it not being very photogenic.

Kalua Pig in a Crock Pot from Allrecipes

Happy Presidents Day!  I love a 3-day weekend.  Actually, this was a 5-day weekend for me because I fell ill for a few days last week.  From the office mongers gossip, I missed some action at the work place.  Actually, I'm glad I missed the action, but I wasn't having a picnic either.  What began as the "cold nose syndrome" morphed into sore throat/runny nose/stuffy nose.  Yuck.  Thanks to Nyquil, I slept right through Valentines Day. 

Well, now that's not entirely true.  Mr. Dependable texted on Valentines Day, asking if I already owned a Garmin.  I texted back that I already owned one so he didn't need to get one for me but thanks anyway.  He responded with, "no, I wasn't gonna get you one.  I want to borrow yours."  This convo proves I didn't sleep through Valentines Day.  Kalamai.  Mea culpa.  Sumimasen.

Right now is the dead of winter where I am.  Yes, I am in Hawaii, but what many people don't realize is that parts of Hawaii get cold during the winter.  The high altitude areas can get down into the 30s during the winter (at night or early morning).  This is hardly BBQ weather!

Traditional Hawaiian-style barbecue entails digging an imu (pit) in the yard for the long, slow and smoky cooking of foods.  This is our version of the famed barbecue pits in the southern parts of the United States.

Practically any meat or starch can be cooked in an imu, but while beef brisket may be king in Texas (go ask the dudes at the Salt Lick), pork reigns supreme in Hawaii.  Meats cooked in an imu are normally referred to as "kalua".

Kalua pig is standard fare at any luau.  Once the meat comes out of the imu, it is shredded (pulled. . .to you mainlanders) and salted.  No self-respecting luau is complete without kalua pig.  Kalua pig can be served with rice or poi.  In an effort to be cost-conscious or health-conscious, it can be sauteed with cabbage chunks (known locally as kalua pig and cabbage).  I have also used it to stuff steamed buns (scroll way below to see a picture).  Its great as an enchilada filling too.  Some local families will cook a turkey in the imu for Thanksgiving.  Kalua turkey is used the same way as kalua pig.

Most people don't have the time nor gumption to go digging a hole in the backyard.  And some people don't have a backyard either.  I get that.  For usual smoking, I use a charcoal kamado, but its a lot of work to get the charcoal going and maintain the temperature all day, which is how long it would take to cook a chunk of pig.  I'll do it for special occasions, but not for a weeknight meal.  And if I'm going to put in that much effort, I would make sure I cooked a massive amount for freezing or giving away.

For normal home consumption, the best way to replicate the taste of kalua pig, even in the dead of winter, is with a crock pot (it could be made in the oven, but my thinking is that a crock pot uses less electricity than an oven).  Back in the beginning of the new millennium, I posted a recipe on allrecipes.com.  I didn't realize what a hit it would become.  It even found its way into the allrecipes.com cookbook (no, I didn't buy the cookbook).   When I last checked the allrecipes site, there were over 30 pictures of this dish.  Click here for a link to the recipe on the allrecipes.com site.

The picture to the left is one way that I like to serve kalua pig:  a handful of it on steamed bread with a barbecue sauce smear.  The recipes for steamed bread and my favorite bbq sauce will be upcoming features on this blog, so please check back soon.  Right now I need to look for my Garmin to hand off to Mr. Dependable.

In an attempt to join the ranks of the living/walking, I ventured out of the house this past weekend to get the talons sharpened.  While I was with Tiffany, The Help was up to no good.  By the time I was done, he had a burning desire to go to Costco to acquire a new camera body for his collection.  He insisted he HAD to own it, giving excuses about how its meant for action shots, how he might need it for taking sports actions photos soon, etc.  Appealing to the pake, he spoke of what a great deal he'd be getting by buying the Costco kit.  Deciding to indulge him (he also dangled a sushi dinner in front of me), I agreed to accompany him on the 2 hour drive.  I came back with a box of daytime/nighttime cold medicine and this picture.  I snapped it in a parking lot.  It left me speechless.

If any of you are contemplating a manual-transmission vehicle (but perhaps may not be a confident stick shift operator), you may want to consider a recent model year BMW.  They are equipped with a hill assist function, which would eliminate the rear end advertising.