Hire or find someone to play the ukulele for entertainment.
Breakout the tiki torches and leis for a backyard luau your friends won't soon forget. Luaus, traditionally a Hawaiian celebration that includes roasting a pig in an underground pit, are easily adaptable to a simple backyard party. Play traditional Hawaiian music, set up a tiki bar and give everyone a plastic lei for an inexpensive good time. For food, save time by serving the simplest traditional luau foods and other easy tropical-themed food. Add this to my Recipe Box.
Ham and Pineapple Skewers
To represent the whole roasted pig at traditional luaus, alternate smoked ham chunks with pineapples on skewers. Glaze the skewers with an orange marmalade before heating on the grill, since pork is often served with a sweet sauce. Grill for about six to eight minutes, turning the skewers often so that each side gets slightly browned.
Lomi Lomi Salmon
For this traditional luau dish, salt salmon is traditionally used, but that requires hours of soaking to minimize the salt, so fresh raw or canned salmon diced up can be used depending on your preference. Place the diced salmon into a bowl with six tomatoes, skinned and diced, and half of a white onion, finely chopped. Toss the ingredients together and chill in the coldest part of the refrigerator. For fast chilling just before serving, place in the freezer for 15 minutes.
Poi
Poi, a staple food in Hawaii, is simply pounded taro root and water eaten with other dishes such as rice and meat dishes. Poi can have a thin or thick consistency depending upon preference. Save time peeling poi by purchasing frozen taro root chunks already peeled. Steam the taro root by placing it a steamer basket over a pot of water until tender. Place in a large wooden bowl and add water 1 tbsp. at a time. Pound the taro with the water, adding more water as needed to reach your desired consistency. Season with salt to taste.
Haupia
For this simple and traditional Hawaiian dessert, combine 6 oz. of cornstarch with 2 cups of water in a bowl. Combine 32 oz. of coconut milk with 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water in a saucepan and bring to a boil on the stove. Stir in the cornstarch and water mixture with a wire whisk, cooking until it's thickened. Pour the mixture onto a clean baking sheet and leave out to cool. Chill in the refrigerator once cooled and cut into 1-inch squares to serve.
Tags: taro root, traditional Hawaiian, traditional luau