April 19, 2014

Garlic Chicken

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Garlic Chicken (Local Hawaiian Style)

Garlic Chicken

April 19: National Garlic Day

Garlic chicken (local Hawaiian style) is one of the dishes that Islander and her brother look forward to eating when they visit their parents back on Oahu. They usually order the entrée from En Fuego Restaurant in Kapolei and Side Street Inn on Kapahulu Avenue, although other eateries have their own version of crispy chicken pieces tossed in a distinctive, tasty-garlicky-sweet-soy-sauce. Onolicious!

Islander learned how to make garlic chicken for her family and local friends on the mainland who were craving this flavorful dish from their Hawaii home. Garlic chicken is great to serve at get-togethers with ‘ohana as well as on National Garlic Day.

Recipe

(Adapted from Foodland)

For the garlic marinade and sauce

  • ½ cup garlic, chopped
  • ¼ cup green onion, sliced
  • 1 cup soy sauce (we used Aloha Shoyu)
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Directions

Chop the garlic. Slice the green onions, reserving a few pieces for garnishing the finished dish. In a saucepan, combine the soy sauce and sugar. Stir and bring to a boil.

Garlic Chicken

Lower the heat and add the garlic and green onion. Add the sesame oil and red pepper flakes. Mix well. Simmer for 5-10 minutes until thickened. Remove from the stovetop and cool for 30 minutes.

Garlic Chicken

For the crispy chicken

  • Garlic marinade (ingredients above)
  • 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
  • ¾ cup flour
  • ¼ cup cornstarch
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • oil for frying

Directions

Cut the chicken into bite size pieces. Place the chicken in a large bowl. Strain the cooled marinade over the chicken. Let stand for 15 minutes. Reserve about ½ cup of marinade for the finishing sauce. Discard the marinade in which the chicken was soaked. In a shallow dish, combine the flour and cornstarch. Sprinkle salt and pepper. Mix well. Dredge the chicken pieces in the mixture, making sure they are well coated.

Garlic Chicken

Deep fry the chicken in batches until crisp and golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Place the chicken in a bowl and toss with the remaining sauce. Dish out and garnish with green onions.

Garlic Chicken

Notes

  • For a stronger flavor, mince a clove of fresh garlic and mix it into the sauce before tossing it with fried chicken pieces.
  • Get more garlic recipes by searching our blog.
 

April 15, 2014

Lilikoi Butter

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Lilikoi Butter (Passion Fruit Curd)

Lilikoi Butter

April 15: St. Damien Day (Hawaii)

Hawaii has a lot of aloha/love for St. Damien of Molokai. He is honored in the 50th state twice—on April 15, his death day, and on May 10, his universal feast day. The Belgian priest was comPASSIONate towards Hawaii’s “outcasts” (those afflicted with Hansen’s disease/leprosy) in the late 19th century. His sacrifice earned him canonization on October 11, 2009.

In celebration of St. Damien’s passion and devotion to his ministry, we made passion fruit curd, also known as lilikoi butter in Hawaii. The recipe below is adapted from a cook book that Islander bought at the Damien and Marianne Heritage Center in Waikiki, Oahu, Hawaii. Proceeds from the sales of this cook book and other items at the heritage center go toward the museum and preservation of the history of St. Damien and Blessed Marianne Cope.

Prepare passion fruit curd/lilikoi butter in observance of St. Damien Day. Aloha!

Recipe

(Adapted from Molokai Catholic Community Cook Book)

Ingredients

  • ½ cup (1 stick) butter
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 1 ½ cup passion fruit pulp, purée or juice
  • 4 eggs

Directions

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter slowly (do not brown or burn). Add the sugar and the passion fruit liquid.

Lilikoi Butter

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs. Add a drop of the passion fruit liquid mix to the eggs, stirring constantly, to temper them. Slowly pour the beaten eggs into the saucepan and keep stirring. Bring to a boil and cook for 10 minutes to thicken, stirring slowly and patiently. Strain any egg residue into clean jars. Cool to room temperature then refrigerate. Serve with toast or crackers.

Lilikoi Butter

Notes

  • Other recipes include the passion seeds from the fresh fruit to give the curd a nice crunch.
  • Learn more about the religious symbolism of the passion fruit flower at the Passion Flower Shop website.
  • Make Molokai-Mainland Sweet Potato Palau as another recipe on St. Damien Day today or on his feast day on May 10.
 

April 11, 2014

Our 4th Blog-o-versary

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HI Cookery is 4!

We can honestly admit that it is getting harder each year for us to continue maintaining a blog. But here we are, on our 4th blog-o-versary, still with our initial intent of completing the goal of cooking our way through the calendar year, albeit at a much slower pace.

Highlander got a promotion at his job this past year but works long hours and sometimes on Saturdays, too.  He still goes on many out-of-town business trips so he cannot help Islander as much with HI Cookery.

Islander faced major health issues late last summer and fall, having to drop out of school for basic web certification, and prioritize her health. It saddened her to stop some basic activities, including cooking and blogging, for a month and a half last year, to spend time at doctors’ offices for tests and treatments. She is feeling better now, although not 100%, and wants to continue posting recipes for HI Cookery whenever she is able.

Thank God she was blessed with an “apprentice” at her brother’s student ministry for which we frequently donate desserts (most of these recipes have been or will be posted on our blog). Islander is showing him how to decorate cakes, cookies and pies so he can help her make these goodies for prayer meetings and church socials. He can also use his newfound skills when he enters a Catholic novitiate (similar to seminary) in a few months and share what he has learned from us with others.

This exemplifies the spirit of HI Cookery. Through our stories and photo tutorials, we hope to enlighten others about food holidays and feast days as well as our cooking processes (please learn from our mistakes!) so they, too, can “pay it forward.”

We appreciate all those who have supported HI Cookery during these past four years. Whether eating our experiments, reading our blog, becoming a subscriber, “pinning” and “liking” our posts, being a guest chef, giving us creative cooking ideas or trying the recipes in their own kitchens, we thank everyone for sustaining us for another year.

Tapadh leat! Mahalo! Thanks!

Highlander and Islander

 

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