Traditional Hawaiian Food
Many traditional Hawaiian foods are dishes originally brought over from Pacific Polynesian islands.
Though now the islands of Hawaii include a diverse demographic of ethnicities all adding their own flavors, there still remains a vibrant following of traditional favorites – the true tastes of Hawaii.
Let’s just dive straight into these really tasty 7 traditional Hawaiian foods. Be sure to sample all of them when you visit Hawaii!
Poi - Traditional Hawaiian Staple Dish
1. Poi
The staple and traditional filler starch dish in Hawaiian cuisine is something known as poi.
Poi is a thick paste made from taro root (similar to a yam or potato but with a starchy-er flavor) that is either steamed or baked and pounded. While pounding, water is added to the mixture to create a pudding like consistency.
Poi has a unique flavor, starchy and slightly sour from the light fermentation in the preparation process. I personally can’t get enough poi while I’m in Hawaii, but I can understand that the flavor and texture does get some getting used to. I like to add a little lomi-lomi salmon (see below) to my bowl of poi!
Hawaiian Laulau
2. Laulau
Traditional Hawaiian food would not be complete without a dish known as laulau.
Taro is a well respected plant, not only in Hawaii, but also throughout Polynesia and the Pacific islands. While poi is made from the taro root, laulau is made from the leaves.
Traditionally laulau is made with pork wrapped in layers of taro leaves and cooked in an underground hot rock oven for hours until it turns soft and smoky flavored. The meat is tender and juicy while the leaves turn to a spinach like consistency.
Nowadays you can easily find fish, chicken or pork laulau in Hawaii.
Kalua Pig
3. Kalua Pig
Another giant of Hawaiian cuisine is the famous pork dish known as Kalua Pig.
Cooked in an underground oven (known as an imu), the pork slow roasts so it becomes extremely tender and retains a remarkable smoky flavor.
Kalua pig is similar to southern American pulled pork, but instead of the tangy barbecue sauce it has a pungent wood smoke flavor. In my opinion, kalua pig goes great with a nice big pile of rice!
Poke and Tako
4. Poke
Poke is the Hawaiian version of Japanese sashimi (raw fish) - and for myself, it doesn’t get much better than poke – I’m in love and addicted.
Instead of slicing the fish thin like the Japanese, Hawaiian poke is served in bite sized hearty cubes. The most common type of fish is ahi (tuna), but a number of other kinds of fresh saltwater fish are used.
After the raw fish is cut into chunks it’s most commonly seasoned with a splash of soy sauce, Hawaiian sea salt, sweet Maui onions, and perhaps some limu (seaweed type of plant).
One of the latest and greatest inventions is the poke bowl, a bowl of rice topped with a heap of poke. If you ever go to the North Shore of Oahu, check out Kahuku Superette (it’s mandatory).
Note: Also pictured is tako, octopus made in a similar way as poke.
Lomi Salmon
5. Lomi Salmon (lomi-lomi salmon)
Lomi salmon is not originally native to Hawaii but was brought over from other Pacific islands. The dish is now part of most traditional Hawaiian meals and makes a great addition to poi.
Raw salmon is cured with salt and diced up along with tomatoes, onions, and normally some chili peppers. The result is what I’d call a salmon infused Hawaiian style salsa garnish.
The salty flavor of the salmon paired with the acidic tomatoes and pungent onions is a flavor to cherish.
Chicken Long Rice
6. Chicken Long Rice
Chicken long rice is not a traditional Hawaiian food recipe, but it has weaved its way into becoming a norm at many Hawaiian luaus and meals.
Originally a Chinese food inspired dish, chicken long rice is a combination of clear mung bean noodles cooked in chicken soup. The result is a slurpy stew with clear noodles, chunks of chicken and often a pleasant gingery flavor.
7. Fruit (like Pineapple)
Topping off a great Hawaiian meal, it’s a necessity to down some freshly grown Hawaiian fruit! The islands are famous for pineapple and it comes juicy and bursting with sweet flavor.
There you have 7 traditional Hawaiian food favorites to enjoy when you’re in Hawaii. Though modern developed Hawaiian plate lunches and SPAM musubi are so popular, Hawaii still holds on dearly to its heritage of cuisine.
The Hawaiians certainly know their way around pork dishes, and you can’t get better fruit or seafood, but poi? I couldn’t force myself to gag down a second bite. We were told by a local that it is like “bread”. I have no idea in what way.
Lane recently posted..Help, I Need A Taxi… Help, Not Just Any Taxi
Hey Lane, yes, poi is definitely a unique taste and texture – hmmm bread? Never heard of that before – maybe that it’s eaten as a staple? Fruit and seafood is so delicious in Hawaii!
i can tell you what ISN’T my favorite. Poi. I’ve eaten it a dozen different ways and I just can’t get a liking for it.
i love so many things – Poke, Spam Musubi, mochiko chicken, mac salad, malasadas and of course, the shave ice!!
jenjenk recently posted..Travel: Making travel more comfortable on long haul flights
Yes, Jen, great to hear that you also enjoy Hawaiian speciality dishes! Poi is a different kind of flavor – I really like it with lomi salmon mixed in.
mark: the poke sounds like another version of the sarawak Umai
sully86 recently posted..Water trick
Wow, I’ve never had that, but it sounds awesome – I’d love to try some Umai!
I would eat each and every one of those things right now. Except for salmon. I never could get a taste for it.
Ava Apollo recently posted..Coachella Recovery Tips
Cool to hear that Ava! Thanks for taking a look at this article.
Kailua pig is my hands down favorite. Yum.
Lisa recently posted..Moving Animals; Bringing Pets to Thailand
Kalua Pork is one of my favorites! Glad to see it made the list.
John | Travel Rinse Repeat recently posted..5 Pointz in New York City – A Warehouse Canvas of Color
Cool, it’s a really tasty way to cook pork!
I forgot to look up laulau before I ate it tonight, yep ate some leaves – kinda tastes like spinach.
Ayngelina recently posted..Who am I to judge?
Haha, yes it does sort of taste like spinach, but luckily if has more of a smokey and porky flavor!
That Hawaiian plate brings back so many memories. I’m part Hawaiian, so I was raised with family luaus. Before I became veggie- I LOVED kalua pig. Long rice, poi (with sugar)… as a child, that was it.
Poke and spam musubis, til today, they still tempt me. There are times in Hawaii, I’ll un-veggie myself.
Christine | Grrrl Traveler recently posted..Are you a street-smart traveler or just travel-jaded?
Cool to hear that you’re also hapa Christine! I’m half Chinese, and my mother is also from Hawaii so I’ve spent quite a bit of time there. Hawaii is where I truly become a food lover!
I’m another in the hapa club – half Japanese. =) Poke is just an island staple and I’ve got friends who fish, but a good lau lau and lomi salmon are more of a treat… Your photos are making my mouth water – I might have to go order lau lau today. Love your passion for Hawaii cuisine, Mark.
Malia Yoshioka recently posted..Things to Do in Honolulu: Eat the Street
Cool to hear that Malia and thanks for the comment. Hope you enjoyed your lau lau!
I tried to make to most out of the little time we had in Hawaii and try as many Hawaiian dishes as possible! From the list here, I see we did great!
Fruits and seafood are, of course, delicious and we couldn’t get enough of them! Loved everything: the lomi lomi salmon, kalua pig (we had some nachos with kalua pig, it was amazing!), laulau and really really LOVED the poke. And the poi was…well poi. Couldn’t eat it beyond the first bite, but still tried it!
Ahhh, this make me wish to be on an Hawaiian beach right now with some delicious food!
Hey Audrey, that’s great to hear. Hawaiian food is so comforting and I know what you mean, it makes you want to be on the beach! Good job for sampling poi as well!
This information is incorrect. These 7 dishes are very much “Local” favorites but they are a far cry from “Traditional” hawaiian food. Granted you started off on the right track, Poi, Laulau, and Kalua Pig are very much traditional. However, Poke, Lomilomi Salmon, and Pineapple are NOT traditionally hawaiian. Poke is Japanese meaning “cube/dice” which is why the fish is cubed. Lomilomi is hawaiian for massage but this refers to the technique of using your hands to message the salmon, tomoato, green onions, and yellow onions together. As for the pineapple it’s from the Philippines not Hawaiian. These 4 dishes were brought to hawaii by imigrents who came here to work on the sugar cane plantations. The workers would share their different lunches during their brake and over time each culture was represented in what we in hawaii now refer to and “mix plate.” If you are going to use such words as “Traditional” you should make sure that it is being used to discribe true “Traditional” items.
Hey Liana, great, thank you for all your input!