ENTERTAINING
Super Bowl parties a time for abundant eats

By Kaui Philpotts

Home-made chicken chili makes a great Super Bowl party food. Of course, if you don't have the time to make it yourself, you can always buy a tub of it at Zippy's. Deborah Booker • The Honolulu Advertiser

Whether you plan a gathering at your place for 4 or 24, you will want to keep it fun and relatively simple to manage. The food should be "guy food," meaning: make it hearty, straightforward and loaded with punch.

The ideas that follow are just to get you in the mood. I suggest you take what you like and leave the rest. Some people love going all out on days like this, while others just want to keep it simple with a couple of close friends. Whatever your style, have fun.

Setting up

If you have a gang, set up every TV you own in every room you allow guests. Arrange the chairs and couches for comfy viewing and bring in floor pillows if necessary. If wives and girlfriends who aren't in the least interested in the game come along too, they love gathering in another part of the house or on the lanai for gossip and a good time.

• Plan on having about 1 pound of ice for each grown-up. We are talking about several hours of eating and drinking.
• Set up a separate table for beverages. Keep your offerings simple. Beer, white wine and Bloody Marys along with soft drinks and bottled water should be enough.
• Plan on serving pupu during the pregame and the first half, serve a hefty buffet on your kitchen counter or dining table during halftime, and offer plates of chocolate chunk cookies during the second half to those with a sweet tooth.
• Disperse pupu around the house and close to all your TV seating areas. There's no need to be ultra-fancy. Bowls of popcorn, salted nuts, pretzels, and arare can fill in between the crisp crackers, hot crab dip and spicy slices of pipikaula. This is a pupu kind of event.
• If you plan to go whole-hog with the New Orleans theme, remember the Mardi Gras colors — gold, purple and green. Visit a party store such as Party City at Waikele Center. They stock lots of Mardi Gras novelties such as beads, masks and noisemakers. Use these to decorate your tables.
• Be sure to play upbeat music before the game when your friends start arriving.
• Make sure there are easily available trash cans and lots of plastic garbage bags on hand.

Advance preparations

• Clean out the refrigerator of anything dead or dying, and make room for your party food. The same goes for the dishwasher. Empty it. You may want to be doing several loads during the course of the day.
• Plan on using paper or plastic plates, napkins and utensils. This is no time for the family china. You will want to have lots of paper towels on hand, too.
• Pull out platters and bowls, and have them ready for last-minute filling.

The Menu

• Spicy Indonesian Peanut Dip with shrimp or fresh vegetables.
• Jiffy Kamaboko Dip with crackers.
• Chicken Chili with condiments.
• Green Salad with Vinaigrette.
• Chocolate Chunk Cookies and Ice Cream Bars.

Fill in the bowls of packaged snacks with a really good peanut dip and fresh shrimp (or vegetables if your budget doesn't allow). Local-style kamaboko dip is great on crackers, too.

If you want a hot pupu, defrost chicken drumettes, marinate in your favorite bottled barbecue or teriyaki sauce, and place in a shallow baking pan. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake the chicken pieces for about 30 minutes. Serve immediately.

Nobody is saying you can't just go to Zippy's and pick up a tub of chili. In fact, if you are not into cooking, that's just what you can do. But why not try a robust Chicken Chili filled with plum tomatoes, bell peppers and served with grated cheese, chopped onions and avocados and sour cream? Serve it with a green salad and your favorite homemade or store-bought dressing.

You could really go with the New Orleans theme and make a warm bread pudding with whiskey sauce for dessert, but if you aren't so inclined, or don't have the time, just make or buy big chocolate chunk cookies, or ice cream bars, and pass them around during the last half of the game.

If your crowd is a coffee-drinking one, that would be the time to put on a fresh pot.

Spicy Indonesian Peanut Dip

• 2/3 cup unsweetened coconut milk, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup chunky peanut butter, at room temperature
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 tablespoons lime juice
• 1 tablespoon shoyu
• 1/2 teaspoon hot chili oil
• 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
• 1/4 teaspoon grated lime zest

Place all the ingredients in a food processor or blender and process to a smooth paste. Transfer to a bowl and serve with large cooked shrimp or vegetable crudites. Makes 1 cup.

Jiffy Kamaboko Dip

• 1 block kamaboko, chopped
• 8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
• 8 oz. sour cream
• 3 tablespoons mayonnaise
• 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Sriracha chili sauce
• 2 tablespoons green onions, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chives, chopped
• 1/2 round onion, chopped
• 1/2 packet Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Place all the ingredients in a bowl and blend together by hand or in a food processor. Serve with your favorite crackers. This can be made a day ahead and refrigerated.

Chicken Chili for 12

• 6 yellow onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 8 cloves garlic, chopped
• 4 red bell peppers, cored, seeded and diced
• 4 yellow bell peppers, cored, seeded and diced
• 2 or more teaspoons chili powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon (or more) red pepper flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 4 teaspoons sea salt
• 4 28-oz. cans whole plum tomatoes
• 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
• 8 split chicken breasts with the bone in and skin on
• Pepper to taste

In a stock pot, cook the onions in the olive oil until translucent. Add the garlic and continue for another minute. Add the bell peppers, chili powder, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne and salt. Cook for another minute. Smash the tomatoes with your hands in batches and add to the chili. Add the chopped basil. Bring to a boil, reduce and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes or so.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken pieces on a baking sheet and rub with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 35 to 40 minutes. Cool slightly and separate meat from the bones and skin. Cut into chunks and add to the chili. Continue to simmer, uncovered for 20 minutes. Serve with grated cheese, chopped green onions, chunks of avocado, sour cream and anything else you love on chili. This can be made a day ahead and reheated for the party. Serve in bowls.