Island Manapua Factory of Manoa Valley

So I recently returned from a quick trip home to the islands of Hawai'i. My Grandma lives up in the Manoa valley and I have so many childhood memories of the area. I'll never forget the comfort I feel thinking of these places or how so many of my memories are linked to local food!!! And since Countryside Aloha is all about good eats, why not give you all a little taste of the islands too?! Here's a favorite of mine that is just down the road from my Grandma's house, in the Manoa Marketplace,... the ISLAND MANAPUA FACTORY!!!

Island Manapua Factory in Manoa Marketplace

The Island Manapua Factory is a little hole-in-the-wall that serves regular lunchtime crowds that far exceed the borders of thier little shop. This place is a haven for crispy fried pork, peking duck, chinese style dim sum, plate lunches, sweets, and oh man, oh man, oh man... the manapua. Manapua is a white bun stuffed with this sweet shredded pork called "char siu". You can bake it a golden brown, but most often (and my favorite) is to have it steamed. The factory makes piles of these and I doubt there is ever a night when there are leftovers...

Steamed Char Siu Manapua

A box of manapua isn't complete without some dim sum. My favorties are the pork hash and half-moon ones! Pork hash is a seasoned dumpling of ground pork wrapped in a thin, wheat flour wrapper, and then steamed to succulent and juicy goodness. The half-moon dim sum is also steamed, and though I'm not sure exactly what it is, it tastes like a rice flour type dough wrapped around a filling of pork, onions, and chestnuts. Dipped in a shoyu (soy sauce) and mustard dipping sauce, you'll wonder what diets are really for when this is what you'd be missing...

Pork Hash and Half-Moon Dim Sum

You didn't think I'd end the post without a sweet treat now did you...? The Island Manpua Factory offers quite a few sweets, but my favorites are the rice cakes. One version of it involves layers of sweet sticky rice cake stacked on top of each other, topped with a final layer of a brown rice cake, almost carmelized in flavor. Eat with a bite all the way through the sweet stack, or enjoy my mom's favorite way with one layer at a time. My favorite rice cake there is light and spongy in texture. Not sure how they do it, but when the rice cake cools, all these little bubbles form in the cake, so when you break it open or take a bite, the texture on your tounge from the caverns hidden within make the sweet treat a multi-sensory experience. So who's up for a trip to the Manoa Valley?

Sweet Spongy Rice Cake

Mixed Greens with Grilled Chicken and Vegetables dressed with Blueberry Balsamic Reduction

After a long day, grocery stores are a welcome respite from the day for me. I like to find produce on the cheap and see what develops from there. Here's a quickie, feel healthy dinner sparked from fresh blueberries on sale. Again, all measurements for ingredients are about right, but since I never really keep track, just be sure to taste as you go along.

Mixed Greens with Grilled Chicken and Vegetables

dressed with Blueberry Balsamic Reduction

For Salad:
2 chicken breasts
2 vine ripe tomatoes
1 red pepper
1 package mini bella mushrooms
olive oil for glazing
salt and pepper
enough mixed greens for salad servings

For Reduction:
1 small container of blueberries
2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
1/8 c balsamic vinegar
1/2 lemon, juiced and zested
1 Tbsp honey
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil

Glaze the chicken and grilling vegetables with oil and season with salt and pepper. Throw on grill with medium high heat until done. For reduction, add blueberries, vinegar, and lemon juice to saucepan on medium high heat. Reduce to about half. Mix in brown sugar, honey, and lemon zest. Remove from heat and let cool. Emulsify with oil until desired consistency for dressing salad. Slice chicken for presentation and assemble salad. Glaze salad with the reduction.

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Using the previous hummus post as a starting point, I've tried some variations to see what new flavors come up! Here's the first spin ...

Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

1 can garbanzo beans (chick peas), drained and rinsed
2 to 3 cloves of garlic
1/2 lemon, zested and juiced
1/4 c roasted red peppers
1/4 c orange juice
1/4 c tahini (sesame seed paste)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Extra virgin olive oil as needed for desired consistency

Add all ingredients to a food processor or blender and puree, adding olive oil until desired consistency. Garnish with olive oil and parsley.

Cut pita bread into wedges, brush with olive oil (salt optional) and toast for some fantastic and easy pita chips. Try also with fresh vegetables using this hummus as a dip; baby carrots provide a great change in texture.

Hummus

So I've been on this hummus kick lately, taking store bought stuff to work for lunch in an attempt to eat healthier, with no sacrifice of tasty good eats. One drawback ... I've also been hooked on these crispy pita chips that come bagged at the local grocery store, but what is going on with the miniscule handfuls of the stuff that they include in the bag?! It's almost robbery! So here's my protest recipe; homemade hummus (all we can eat) and pita chips galore. Unite fellow foodies! We deserve more pita chips in life!

More creative expressions of this recipe are in the works so expect to see some future posts on adventures with hummus!

Hummus

1 can garbanzo beans (chick peas), drained and liquid reserved

2 to 3 cloves of garlic
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1/4 c extra virgin olive oil
1/3 c tahini (sesame seed paste)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp cayenne pepper
pinch of salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
pinch of paprika for garnish
1 bag of pita bread

Finely dice garlic cloves and with a little salt as an abrasive, use a mortar and pestle to make a garlic paste (pre-bottled garlic paste can save time). Add beans and half of the reserved liquid to a food processor or blender and begin to process to a smooth consistency. While processing, add the olive oil, tahini, cumin, cayenne pepper, black pepper, lemon zest and lemon juice. Keep processing and adding additional olive oil if necessary, until desired consistency. Garnish with olive oil and paprika.

Cut pita bread into wedges, brush with olive oil (salt optional) and toast for some fantastic and easy pita chips.

Red Miso Grilled Eggplant

My girlfriend and I wanted to eat light tonight, so we thought a dish of grilled eggplant with a red miso paste glaze would hit the spot, and the weather was perfect to knock the dust off my outdoor gas grill.

We are a big fan of this dish, ... quick, easy, and so flavorful with the sweetness of the eggplant paired perfectly with the bold flavors of the miso paste. Miso paste comes in a large variety, with the main two types generally categorized as white or red miso. I find the red variety to be much more bold in flavor and is my preference for this recipe.

Red Miso Grilled Eggplant

3-4 small eggplants
2 Tbsp red miso paste
3 Tbsp sake
3 Tbsp mirin (seasoned vinegar)
3 Tbsp water
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 Tbsp soy sauce

Cut the stem portion off of the eggplants and cut in half. Place the eggplant halves into a large bowl of salted water and soak for 5 to 10 minutes to leach out some of the bitterness. In a bowl, mix together all the miso ingredients and combine until smooth. Add additional water if miso paste is too salty, but remember to keep the paste with a bold flavor; the grilling will mellow the miso flavor. Drain and pat dry the eggplants and place on high heat grill, flesh side down. Grill over medium heat for 4-5 minutes and turn over. Glaze the flesh side with miso paste mixture and continue to cook other side for an additional 4-5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve with hot steamed rice and tea.

Epicurian Squirrel Bait

So I was the iron-fisted landlord and had to come down hard on this moochin' free-loader the other day. I had a guest who stayed long past welcome, didn't pay rent, and spent the days gnawing on my attic rafters ... Anyone else here sympathetic to infuriating squirrel woes?

Several weeks ago I wake up to the pitter patter of small feet (no mom, you can relax, it’s not a secret love-child) and come to find a squirrel running around in my attic. Just out of reach, I could barely see his hiding place, and my repeated attempts of banging my hockey stick around and yelling only seemed to provide amusement and opportunity for mocking of which my furry friend took full advantage of.

Determined to reclaim my house, I bought a live animal trap, and set it with a lump of peanut butter though over a week passed with apparently no interest. I almost gave up but one last ditch attempt with new bait caught the bugger in a day or so. Turns out my guest had some very fancy tastes that just couldn’t resist a bit of epicurean flair.

Here’s the secret recipe.

Epicurian Squirrel Bait

1 Hawaiian-style Flatbread Lavosh Cracker (with toasted poppy/sesame seeds)
1 Tbsp Creamy Peanut Butter
5-6 Dry Roasted Unsalted Peanuts

Break off a small piece of cracker. Spoon the peanut butter onto the cracker side without the seeds. Garnish with peanuts into the peanut butter. Place in center of bait pan of live trap. Recipe for squirrel not included.

A L O H A !!!

E komo mai!!! Welcome to the launch of Countryside Aloha! Sparked from an interest in playing with food, find here the playground and a taste of the random interests of one long time displaced kama'aina, searching for balance in life, from the streets of Washington D.C., to the tranquil solace of the Appalachia backcountry in Virginia.

Come back often to see what new kitchen adventures I've enjoyed, stories from my 'ohana, hidden hiking spots in my beloved Blue Ridge Mountains, and what new hole-in-the-wall gems my friends and I have found to satisfy our eager tastebuds ...

So sit back and smile, close your eyes, and enjoy the breeze ... life is too short to do otherwise.

Mahalo and enjoy your visit!