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FOOD FOR THOUGHT By
Wanda A. Adams
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| • | Cooking en français |
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My new nickname is "Jin-jah."
That's because, during a recent lunch at Daniel Thiebaut restaurant in Waimea, on the Big Island, my brother and I got into a competition to see who could guess the ingredients in a delicious garlic poke we were eating. It was at brunch, and I kept running back to the buffet line to ask the chefs, "Is it this, is it that?" Eventually, I guessed all the ingredients except one.
You guessed it: Ginger.
My brother got it, and I don't think he'll ever let me forget it.
When I got home, I could not to wait to re-create this delicious dish. What makes it a little different from other poke is a LOT of garlic and crunchy roasted macadamia nuts, plus a garnish of furi-kake. You can vary the ingredients as much as you like.
My husband suggested that next time we try using macadamia nut oil to complement the toasted nuts, and he asked for more minced onion. If you don't care for raw garlic, you could water-saute the garlic before adding it, which tames the harshness.
Because I tested this recipe on a weeknight, I decided to do a Sam Choy and flash-fry it, serving it with hot rice for dinner. Broke da mout'!
GARLIC POKE A LA DANIEL THIEBAUT
Cut 'ahi into 3/4-inch chunks. Place in a medium bowl and combine with remaining ingredients. Taste and adjust seasonings and ingredients.
Makes 4 to 5 servings as a pupu; 2 to 3 as an entree.
* The best tool for grating ginger is (predictably) from Japan — a round porcelain grater equipped with sharp pointed teeth and a "moat" around the edge to catch the juice; it kind of looks like a weird ashtray. Or you can use a standard grater, a Microplane rasp or just mince the ginger very finely.
Send recipes and queries to Wanda A. Adams, Food Editor, Honolulu Advertiser, P.O. Box 3110, Honolulu, HI 96802. Fax: 525-8055. E-mail: wadams@honoluluadvertiser.com.
For more information about our 150th anniversary cookbook, call 535-8189 (message phone; your call will be returned). You can order the cookbook online.
