Yesterday, we marked the day that the country’s founding fathers started off on a journey towards what is still a wholly imperfect independence and freedom for the original 13 American colonies. Today, July 5, is the day we honor welcoming our 50th state into the union.If you’ve been—I don’t know—not in a coma for the last year and a half, you might have noticed that things are not exactly going super-smoothly here in America, and a lot of us came up short on reasons to celebrate yesterday other than “Fuck it, I just want a hotdog.” But today? Today we can all agree that Hawaii is hella worth celebrating, and is, without a doubt, one of the best damn things to happen to these United States. (Admittedly, joining the US was not always a great thing for Hawaii. Nineteenth-century imperialists did some fucked up shit for pineapples and sugar cane—let's not forget that.)Hawaii was officially granted statehood on August 21, 1959. The state has given us the hauntingly beautiful voice of Israel Kamakawiwo’ole, the bubbly 60’s pop stylings of Don Ho, and everyone’s favorite killed-off Game of Thrones heart throb Jason Momoa. On those tiny islands way out in the middle of the Pacific, a hodgepodge of cultures come together to create some truly tasty and iconic dishes that epitomize what it means to be American. Here are a few of our favorite Hawaiian-inspired recipes to celebrate our youngest but arguably tastiest state in the union.Let’s start with the basics, shall we? Coconuts are intrinsic to the indigenous Hawaiian cuisine, and yes we might have learned that from Moana, but Wikipedia also backed it up. So if you’re going to be using coconut milk, you ought to do it the right—albeit difficult—way with the fresh grated and strained stuff.
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Inspired by the 1961 Elvis Presley movie of the same name filmed on the island of Oahu, this cocktail combines rum, blue curacao, and fresh pineapple juice for an easy summer sipping drink.Tiki cocktail culture has become almost synonymous with Hawaii, even though there is some fraught history between the two. This cocktail is inspired by the classic Mai Tai, the iconic yet controversial tiki drink of yesteryear, with slightly more bitter notes from Ramazotti and a bit of raw cacao.
Pineapple is not, in fact, native to Hawaii, although it thrives there now. Get super Pinterest-y with your presentation and serve this up scorpion bowl-style with plenty of straws and cocktail umbrellas for sharing.
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To garnish, skewer three maraschino cherries ("dots") and a pineapple chunk (the "dash") on a cocktail pick.Yellowfin tuna is a staple in Hawaiian cuisine, and with the influence of Japanese immigrants and their cuisine’s tendency to savor fish in its raw form, poke as we know it today became an iconic Hawaiian dish all its own.
For a veggie-forward riff on the iconic dish, Action Bronson used the same basic poke building blocks, but subbed in sweet, tender golden beets instead of tuna in this vegetarian version.This thing right here… this is America. Spam—the commodity surplus canned meat sent in mass quantities to Hawaii during World War II that Hawaiians have come to unironically love—combined with sticky rice and seaweed, temaki-style, wrapped around the rest of America’s favorite tubular meat, the hot dog. It’s truly a beautiful thing.
Sort of like the South’s beloved “meat and three” tradition, Hawaii’s “plate lunch” includes a meat of your choice, two scoops of rice, and a heaping pile of macaroni salad.
Guisados are more closely associated with Puerto Rican cuisine, but with a large influence from Puerto Rican immigrants arriving as early as 1900 to Hawaii, a Spam-centric version of the spicy stew was bound to happen.Happy #NationalHawaiiDay. See you on the beach.