laulau

Today's dinner is laulau, with Itoen vegetable juice. Mmm mmm. Healthilicious.

It's a Hawaiian dish consisting of fish and pork wrapped in taro leaves. This whole thing is then steamed (under the ground, traditionally, I think) in ti leaves. It's possible to find it in most any supermarket here in Hawaii, including the Mainland chains like Safeway, which is where I bought this. Three sets for about $8 or $9 with a Safeway membership card.

Of course, the salt content is through the roof (about 35% of your RDA of sodium). The fat isn't so low, either, but you can eliminate a lot of that by not eating the piece of fat that comes with it. Clever, that.

This is one of those things I would miss if I stayed on the Mainland or back in Korea for too long. I like possam (보쌈), but this is a bit different.

If you're ever in Hawaii and you want to get some good laulau and other Hawaiian specialties, I highly recommend you visit Ono's Hawaiian Restaurant on Kapahulu, about a mile north of Waikiki.

It's a local fixture that gets rave reviews from everyone who lives here, and when I've taken Japanese and Korean visitors there, they loved it. The place looks like a hole in the wall kinda joint and it has the neatness factor of an old punshikchŏm (분식점) in Korea, but it's worth the trip. The owners are friendly and if you tell them you're a first timer, they will recommend an affordable feast that touches all the bases.

Heck, if I'm here, I might just go along with you.