When I think of a hawaii luau, I think of large parties with families and friends of more than 500 people gathering to celebrate the 1st birthday of a child, a wedding party, the 50th anniversary of a couple, or the graduation of a high school Senior.
These events have become viable reasons for spending hours gathering food from our oceans and mountains. Timing the raising of a pig or two so it is ready to be slaughtered and prepped and put into the "imu" or underground oven to make "kalua pig". Of course, no luau is complete without a "kalua pig".
Writing invitations to friends and loved ones. Remember, if you invite one person, don't forget that their sisters, aunts, cousins, and friends (who might be visiting at the time) might appear at the party.
If you plan to crash a luau, find a local person to take you so you can sample real hawaiian food. Somehow, somewhere you may be related (calabash or as an acquiantence) to the person hosting the party anyway.
Make a Pineapple Palm Tree
Make your own attractive Pineapple Palm Tree with this great how to video.
My father, to me, was the best kalua pig maker I've ever known. Not to biased or anything. People would call him to be the head Kalua pig chef whenever it came to making luaus. He made kalua pig for all of our first birthdays (I saw photos), our high school graduation parties and our weddings, just to name a few. The tradition of cooking a pig in an underground oven has been handed down for generations, my great-grandfather, grandfather, father, and today my brother still practices this tradition.
I don't, I married a filipino guy, but am trying to persuade him to stand up to the challenge of making an "imu" in our backyard. I know how to make it, but it is a lot of laborous, back breaking, stone laying work.
In the future, I will have a breakdown on how to make an "imu". Many pacific islander cultures use this method to cook. In Fiji it is called an "emu" they make smaller versions of the Hawaiian "imu" and cook whole chicken or turkey or pork butt to make their feast.
You must have fish and poi at a hawaii luau. What is poi? Poi is derived from the Hawaiian's main staple, "kalo" or taro. The corm of the taro plant is pealed, boiled and mashed into a sticky like substance. It is purplish, gray in color and has a taste of it's own. I don't know how to describe it. You must acquire a liking for the taste of it or you'd think it was gross.
I grew up with a grandmother who loved her poi sour, so in turn I have learned to love poi the most after it has been fermented and turned a little "miko" or sour. I wouldn't want it any other way. Some people would throw it away, I'd say stop throwing away the gold. It cost lots of money nowdays since taro is hard to come by. Making poi is a tedious task.
