Kalua Pig & Cabbage

Kalua pig, or pork, literally meaning "to cook in an underground oven" or imu, sometimes misspelled as Kahlua (like the liqueur). One of the most famous and popular Hawaiian Luau food, almost ubiquitous when traveling around the Hawaiian islands, but so difficult to find here on the mainland. In fact, good Hawaiian food is hard to find in general.

I was looking back on some pictures from my most recent trip to the Big Island, and came upon some pictures I took of the Lau Lau's and Kalua Pig from one of my new island favorite: Kaaloa's Super Js. I remember how amazing the Lau Lau's and Kalua Pig & Cabbage were from there, how clear and warm the beaches and ocean was, and really wished I was back on the island. So this is an attempt at bringing home some of that island nostalgia.

Okay, enough ranting. On with the cooking. Because I don't have the luxury or the talent to make a proper imu or roast an entire pig, we're going to settle for slow cooker and a chunk of pork butt. I know, not the same, but it's the best I can do as a mainlander.

This recipe is actually very easy, surprisingly easy considering the end product. Trust me, you'll be amazed.

Arrowroot Beef Stew

Arrowroot, arrowhead, Chinese potato... you know 慈菇. These round tubers with pointy sprout at the tip. They have a texture of a potato, only crispier with a distinct tang that distinguishes it from the common potato. I remember having these when I was little and honestly didn't think I'd find them in the U.S. but here they are! So of course I'm going to cook them. Even if they are a bit of a pain in the ass to prep...

New Year New Recipes

Did I mention I'm really bad at updating my blogs? Because it's 2015 and I have not been keeping up with everything I should. So much to do, so little time, as the saying goes. Partly, I have all but abandoned cooking my own meals because I just couldn't find the time to do it with school, extracurricular, work, project, endlessthingsthatneedmyattention, etc... And boy, did it cost me. Eating out most of the time is expensive! Not to mention generally unhealthy. In the last few weeks or so, I've been trying to get back to home-cooking, partly because I miss having a decent home-made meal, and partly because my student-loan repayment kicked in and now I have to do some much needed budget trimming. :(

I have recently been documenting some of my recipes. They are nothing fancy, just some simple things. So since it's a new year, I will have some new recipes, as well as revisiting/revising some of my old ones... and to be honest it still kind of surprises me that these pages get a few hits every few days or so. People are actually reading this shit? Well thank you, and good for you.

On with it.