Laulau makers take
top honors

For the love of laulau, contestants carried their ti-leaf-wrapped creations to the Waialua Taro Festival and submitted them for judgment.

A fairly traditional pork-and-fish combination scored the top prize of a neighbor-island trip, but second and third prizes went to Asian-inspired bundles (prizes at those levels were dinners at Sam Choy's Diamond Head and Haleiwa Joe's Seafood Grill).

The taro festival was Sept. 18. The winners:

EMMA'S ONOLICIOUS LAULAU

First place: Emmaline Causey

5 ounces Frank Food Oven-Ready Pork Butt, in chunks
2 ounces salted salmon
2 ounces butterfish
8 luau leaves

Wrap first three ingredients in luau leaves, then wrap the bundle in ti leaves and steam 4 hours.

Note: Frank Pork Butt comes from Hilo and is available fresh or frozen at Daiei and Foodland stores.

ORIENTAL LAULAU

Second place: Beverly Wong

2 chicken thighs
1/2 cup shiitake mushrooms, soaked, squeezed dry and sliced
1/4 cup chopped onion
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
6 luau leaves

Wrap first four ingredients in luau leaves, then wrap the bundle in ti leaves and steam 4 hours.

ZESTY PAKE LAULAU

Third place: Hawaiian Academy class, Waialua Elementary School

1/3 cup yam, diced
1/3 cup Okinawan sweet potato, diced
5 pieces lup cheong (Chinese sausage), sliced
5 pieces konbu, soaked and squeezed
1/3 cup diced yellow bell pepper
1/3 cup diced red bell pepper
1/3 cup sliced mushrooms
6 luau leaves

Wrap in ti leaves and steam 3 hours. Serve with a salsa made of diced tomato, chopped cilantro and chopped Hawaiian chile peppers.

Nutritional information unavailable.

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