Building a Curated Menu
I have been working on a good menu for Pau Hana these past several months. I wanted to offer the right mix of items and I think we have settled in on an offering that is going to work for now. We will make adjustments based on feedback from our guests. Using the best ingredients is important to me. I like to cook with locally and seasonally sourced ingredients. We don’t have very many organic farms in the state of Hawaii so it’s hard to have local and organic. For anything that isn’t local, I definitely source it organically. I wanted to build a menu on items that are easy to eat on a boat and showcase some foods that we do well in Hawaii.
Charcuterie Board - The board is made of three artisanal and/or local cheeses, three cured meats, scratch made sourdough olive oil crackers, pickled onion, spicy local tomato jam, fresh fruit, local and roasted mac nuts, chili mango, olives and additional cracker selection.
The fun thing about a charcuterie board is that you can change items up. So this is the board for now and I’ll update as I come across new and fun additions.
Vegetable Mezze Board - Roasted Cauliflower, Eggplant Caponata, Hummus, Green Tahini, fruit, local and roasted mac nuts, olives, fresh garnish and artisanal crackers and scratch made za'atar flatbread. I find vegetables that have been prepared well very exciting. Eggplant grows exceptionally well in Hawaii and you will find it in so many dishes here on the island. This mezze board is a nice mix of flavors sans meat and dairy.
Dips and chips and crudités are an easy snack platter. I rotate through a variety of dips such as hummus, black bean hummus, guacamole, spicy lentil, eggplant caponata. There are so many great options. Guacamole will always be an option as avocado grows so well here in Hawaii.
Fruit is so refreshing to eat when you come back on the boat after a swim. It’s hydrating and sweet and so tropically delicious. I created a local fruit info sheet to share with guests when they are on board. We have so many unique fruits here that you may not have seen before. The growing season in Hawaii is also very unique. So while you might want mangoes, if you come in January, it’s just not the right time. Hawaii is an amazing place to sample citrus. It’s in season in the winter months and amazing - grapefruit, tangerines, oranges, lilikoi, lemons and limes are all abundant and not to be missed. This platter has rambutan included. A delicious sweet fruit with a crazy red spiky exterior.
As much as I like to cook, we also have some really wonderful and popular food items here that you won’t see often in other places. Hawaii is a melting pot of so many different cultures and so foods have stayed true to where they came from and others have merged with the Hawaiian culture to created new food categories. There is a bahn mi shop on island that makes their own baguettes and their sandwiches are delicious!! Hawaii is also known for musubis and if you haven’t tried one before they are worth checking out. We have a selection to offer.
