In response to the "Regrettable Tiki foods" thread, how about Tiki Food Staples ?
Naturally, alot of the original Tiki restaurants served Cantonese food with tropical garnish, to make it look Tiki....

But there were alot of backyard "Luau food" recipes in magazines like Better Homes and Gardens etc back in the day.....

A few I can think of....

Ribs with some kind of pineapple glaze - Staple for sure

Sweet and Sour shrimp, chicken, pork.....

Ambrosia salad

There were lots of others....anyone ?

Do you have your TIKIYAKI ORCHESTRA CD YET ?
http://www.tikiyakiorchestra.com

[ Edited by: tikiyaki 2008-01-16 18:07 ]

[ Edited by: tikiyaki 2008-01-16 18:07 ]

[ Edited by: tikiyaki 2008-01-16 18:08 ]

Bump

Maybe this belongs in the Regretable Food topic, but I like Hawaiian Potato Salad with pinapple and macadamia nuts.

Here's an idea I found in Sunset magazine sometime in the early 80's called Beggar's Chicken. You cover a chicken or ham in low-fire or air dry clay and then form the clay to look like a chicken or pig. I've made it as and entre a few times for a small Luau as a roasted pig. Most recently (a few weeks ago), I made some crockpot kalua pork and wrapped it several times in foil making a log. I balled up more foil to form the basic shape of a pig; legs, snout, etc. I used Amaco air dry modeling clay (available at Michael's) and covered the foil, sculpted in details like eyes and nostrils, then added ears and a tail. Since the meat was already cooked, I just needed to bake the clay and keep the meat warm, I baked it a 200F for a couple of hours. I made and baked it on an oven-safe platter. When you're ready to serve, you bust it open at the table with a hammer.

Decided to make 2 post instead of 1 long one. We hosted a Luau for about 70 people last year, wanted to do a whole kalua pig but decided it was too much to add to an already large task. Instead, I made kalua pork from pork meat (I have a pit in my back yard). To serve it, I sculpted a styrofoam pig head and butt to fit around a roaster oven. Fun and functional.

What incredibly clever pork ideas! Le Verandah would be throwing fresh leis if she had 'em...

Yes, there is a fine line between the regrettable and the edible, is there not?

As a staple, La Verandah would have to offer Spam, the mystery meat. Let's face it, the denizens of those lovely tropical isles are fond o' Spam, and so one would really be remiss in not including it. I would lightly grill slices of Spam with slices of fresh pineapple.

Carmine, serving Spam at a luau is always risky because not everyone know that Hawaii has the highest per capita consumption of Spam in the nation. However, to combine your idea and my idea, you could carve a pig out of blocks of Spam. They seem kinda sticky/slimy, I bet they would stick together :)

On 2008-04-05 11:42, MadDogMike wrote:
Carmine, serving Spam at a luau is always risky because not everyone know that Hawaii has the highest per capita consumption of Spam in the nation. However, to combine your idea and my idea, you could carve a pig out of blocks of Spam. They seem kinda sticky/slimy, I bet they would stick together :)

Spam is, indeed, excellent for re-shaping, MDM. But how about a Spam tiki? Freeze some blocks o' Spam prior to carving, let thaw in the fridge, brush with something to make it browner, then grill or bake.

La Verandah was just at an Asian restaurant where they presented garnishes of carved daikon like corsages. That sort of thing would like nice around a Spamaoai.

Can you mold Spam into tiki shapes instead of carving it? Spam-Tiki-Kabobs :)

Haven't tried this recipe, but it seems yummy. Mostly its a nice article about an old time Hawaii fan.
I found it folded into a Celebrity Cookbook compiled by Dinah Shore (nice in and of itself).

=========================================================================================
Memphis Press-Scimitar, Thursday, August 23, 1973
Use 6 Large Chicken Legs for Unusual Hawaiian Dish

by Johna Blinn

HOLLYWOOD. - "We go back to Hawaii at least once a year, and more often if we can,"
director-producer George Schaefer said during dinner here, savoring his favorite
cocktail, the Mai Tai. "I love everything about Hawaii; the food, the climate, and
especially the people. It's an ideal place, where I hope to retire one day. I don't
dare go near the kitchen - my wife Mildred is such an excellent cook-but I'm very
big at the bar," he said, with a rippling laugh. "I credit my way of making Mais
Tais to Beulah Bondi, who made the greatest drinks in the world. In fact, hers kind
of spoiled you for any others!"

Schaefer often harks back to his love for Hawaiian fare and people, which dates from
the time he spent as a member of the entertainment section of the army. "Back in the
war years, we used to go to some real luaus - not like the touristy ones held in big
hotels today. The thing you have to do is to start off with a drink before dinner -
a little saki or even rum; anything will do until you get that pleasant glow. And
then you sit down on the ground and face the poi. I'm not crazy about poi (cooked,
fermented taro root, mashed to a paste and eaten with the fingers), but then they
bring on that huge delicious pig that's been cooking down in the coals. The flavor
is really exciting, especially with all the wonderful side dishes they bring on."

Mildred's love for Hawaiian food gives that "Schaefer touch" to her choice of salads
and fresh fruit desserts. Her favorite Polynesian salad is easy to create. She
combines canned boneless chicken with slivered water chestnuts, bamboo shoots,
mushrooms, pineapple tidbits and mandarin oranges. "I like a fruity dressing, made
with the juices from the fruits mixed with a dash of fresh orange juice, Cointreau
and fresh lime juice."

Her recipe for Coconut Chicken Hawaiian will make anyone walk to the kitchen to
prepare the different and delightful dish. The recipe follows:

COCONUT CHICKEN HAWAIIAN
(6 servings)

6 large chicken legs with thighs attached (or 3 large chicken breasts, split)
2 lemons
1 lime
Seasoning for chicken: seasoned salt, ground pepper, paprika, poultry seasoning,
ground ginger, coriander, thyme and rosemary
6 large mushroom caps (fresh or canned)
Basting sauce
Romaine lettuce
Hawaiian coconut chips (available in most supermarkets or health stores)

Wash, pat dry chicken parts; place skin side down in large, lightly greased baking
dish. Squeeze juice of one lemon and one-half lime over chicken. Sprinkle chicken
with seasoned salt, pepper, paprika and poultry seasoning. Turn over and squeeze
remaining lemon and lime juices and season again with the same seasonings. Place
mushroom caps (lightly saute fresh caps in butter, or use drained canned mushroom
caps) on top of chicken, stem side down. Bake uncovered in preheated 400 degrees F.
oven about 30 min., basting several times during cooking. Serve on platter lined
with Romaine leaves. Garnish with coconut chips. Lovely for summer dining.

BASTING SAUCE
One 6-oz. can unsweetened pineapple juice
One 4-oz. can banana-orange juice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup sherry
1/2 tsp. soy sauce
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1 dash white rum (or Cointreau)
Combine all ingredients. Shake well.

[ Edited by: Xndr du Sauvage 2008-04-17 10:24 ]

Maybe this crosses the line in the sand between Hawaiian and Asian, but Costco has some great Chinese BBQ pork ribs. Just like the pork you find in Stir-Fried Rice, but on a rib bone. Sweet, artificially red, and rich in anise flavor. Cut them in half on the tablesaw (?!) and they would make great appetisers

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16446982

Here is a link to something Charles Phoenix did. A Tiki Alternative to Thanksgiving

It has a funny video of him making his dishes, which include a Moai Meatloaf.

The recipes are actually pretty tasty looking.

Too funny!

Not strictly Polynesian or tiki themed, but it is a fun place to see some "retro" recipes. You may already be familiar with the site.

http://retro-food.com/

BUMP

This is actually a Cuban dish, but it contains tropical fruit and Chinese ingredients - seems like a perfect luau dessert. Tasty, easy to make, and it's finger food.

Mix equal parts of quava paste and softened cream cheese together. Place in a wonton or egg roll wrapper. Wrap it in your favorite shape (egg roll, triangle, etc) and seal with egg white or water. Deep fry and sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.

When I turned 50, I had a full blown Luau in our back yard- Imu pig, fresh lei's from Maui, hula dancers, the whole 9 yards...

2 of the favorite things we served we ahi poke, a raw tuna dish ( you can usually find frozen sashimi grade ahi in a lot of bigger groceries), made with a soy sauce and sesame oil marinade, I like to add some extra spices, like chili sauce, or Shichimi togarashi, a Japanese red pepper and sesame seed mix.
http://gohawaii.about.com/od/luaurecipes/r/ahi_poke.htm
Very good served with Taro chips!
and butter mochi, chewy brownie like dessert made with coconut milk and a fine rice flour called mochiko.
http://www.dianasdesserts.com/index.cfm/fuseaction/recipes.recipeListing/filter/dianas/recipeID/3420/Recipe.cfm
Both of these are traditional local Hawaiian foods, and really yummy!

[ Edited by: palapala 2009-07-23 10:17 ]

[ Edited by: palapala 2009-07-23 10:18 ]