Hawaii Cooks: A Filipino Kitchen, Traditional Recipes with an Island Twist

Born on Lana‘i, Chef Adam Tabura grew up far from the influences of fast food and supermarkets. He learned to appreciate wholesome foods and traditional styles of cooking, often based on ingredients he gathered himself from the garden or the ocean.  As a kid, he may have yearned for McDonald’s burgers, but today, he calls his upbringing a blessing that taught him about food at its most basic level and which formed the basis of his creativity as a chef. A Filipino Kitchen reflects Adam’s favorite childhood meals, cooked by his grandfather or shared by neighbors and friends. It is also influenced by Adam’s travels to the Philippines, which taught him much about the roots of the foods he grew up with.  Filipino cooking is rising in popularity across the U.S., where both the size and number of Filipino communities is increasing dramatically. (Filipinos represent Hawai‘i’s largest ethnic group.) Filipino food can be enjoyed everywhere—food trucks, fast-food establishments, malls, supermarkets and family restaurants. And with more restaurants headed by Filipino chefs, the cuisine is making an appearance on more upscale menus.  These 100-plus recipes encompass all aspects of Filipino cooking in Hawai‘i today. Many of Adam’s island-style recipes, influenced by Hawai‘i’s plantation heritage, show new twists on traditional dishes. His Kare-Kare puts tripe in the traditional oxtail stew, and he replaces the customary peanut butter with ground macadamia nuts; his Filipino Spaghetti adds Portuguese sausage. Plantation-style dishes are given a Filipino touch—Pork Tofu with Watercress and Braised Beef Brisket Curry Stew with Ube—and Filipino dishes are given a tropical flavor—Coconut-Passion Fruit Flan. He has also adapted dishes to include ingredients found on Lana‘i—Venison Embutido and Venison Caldereta. And many Hawai’i chefs share their contemporary recipes as well as versions of traditional dishes.  Chef Adam’s easy-to-follow recipes show the diverse richness of colors, tastes and flavors that define Filipino cooking. They will appeal to those who already cook Filipino food, and serve as a great introduction to the cuisine for non-Filipinos who are curious or want to learn more. Noted food writer, Betty Shimabukuro of the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, and cookbook author, Muriel Miura, have teamed up to present Hawai‘i Cooks, a series of cookbooks featuring the island’s influential cuisines including Korean, Portuguese, Okinawan, Chinese, and now, Filipino cooking. Like all the books in the Hawai‘i Cooks series, A Filipino Kitchen provides dozens of recipes exploring a traditional cuisine as it has evolved to become part of our local mixed plate.  Baca / Beef Bulalo / Beef Shank Soup Filipino Spaghetti Beef Steak & Onions Beef Tomato Caldereta Braised Short Rib Stew with Taro & Hawaiian Chili Pepper Kalbi-Style Short Ribs Kare Kare / Oxtail / Tripe Stew Giniling Beef Guisado / Ground Beef Stew Mini Empanada Tapsilog / Marinated Beef with Garlic Fried Rice and Egg Braised Beef Brisket Curry Stew with Ube Manok / Chicken Chicken Parilla / Chicken with Bitter Melon Chicken Tinola / Chicken with Papaya Arroz Caldo / Chicken and Rice Soup Chicken Afritada Chicken Wing Adobo Adobo Fried Chicken Chicken Inasal / Tangy Grilled Chicken Chicken Long Rice with Fresh Ginger Chicken Curry with Coconut Milk Chicken Mongo Beans & Marungay Baboy / Pork Lechon Kawali / Roast Pork Belly Pork & Shrimp Lumpia / Spring Rolls Pork Guisantes with Potatoes and Green Beans / Pork and Peas Bicol Express / Spicy Pork Belly in Coconut Milk Adobo Fried Rice Loco Moco Dinuguan / Pork Blood Stew Pork Tofu with Watercress Homemade Chicharon / Fried Pork Rinds Chicharon Popcorn Spam® & Garden Beans Ampalaya Stir-Fry / Bitter Melon and Pork Stir-Fry Pulutan Pork Barbecue Sticks Spare Rib Sinigang / Spare Rib Soup Fried Pork Chops with Spicy Tomatis Sizzling Sisig / Sizzling Pork Head and Ears Simple Sisig / Tangy Pork Tocino Omelet / Marinated Pork Omelet Crispy Pata / Fried Pork Shank Grandma & Grandpa’s Garden Green Papaya and Green Mango Salad with Calamansi Dressing Ginisang Sitaw / Sautéed String Beans Fresh Vegetable Pancit / Noodles with Vegetables Garden Salad with Calamansi Vinaigrette Atcharang Papaya / Pickled Papaya Gabi Stir-Fry / Taro Stir-Fry Adobong Sili Paxil / Green Pepper Side Dish Laing / Filipino-Style Taro Leaf Stew Pinakbet at My House / Mixed Vegetables Spicy Pickled Mango From the Reef to the Buoy Shrimp Kilawin / Shrimp Ceviche Escabeche / Sweet–Sour Whole Fish 7-Up™ Shrimp Lobster Miki Shrimp Okoy Sari Sari Arroz Valenciana (Paella) Steamed Bangus (Milkfish) Chili Garlic Crab of Boracay Nocos / Squid Adobo Adobong Pusit / Squid with Adobong Peppers Snapper Sinigang with Tamarind / Snapper Soup Deep-Fried Tilapia Living Lana‘i Huli Guava-Glazed Game Hens Venison Chili Venison Caldereta / Filipino Stew Venison Embutido / Filipino Meatloaf Humba / Braised Wild Boar Kalo-Crab Cakes with Garlic Remoulade Spaghettini Spiny Lobster Salad Stuffed Uhu Garlic Turkey Tail Adobo Up-Country Short Ribs   Chef Adam & Friends Chef Adam’s Shrimp & Lobster Watercress Salad Chef Adam’s Lechon Liempo / Rolled Pork Belly Roast Chef Adam’s Crispy Skin Moi with Watercress Salad Chef Ippy Aiona’s Pork Adobo with Coconut Milk Chef Joey Macadangdang’s Dinakdakan / Grilled Pork Offal Chef Joey Macadangdang’s Kalderetang Kanding / Goat Stewed in Tomato Sauce Chef Kaimana Chee’s Ube Halaya / Sweet Potato Jam Chef Kaimana Chee’s Suman / Rice Cake in Coconut Milk Chef Sheldon Simeon’s Chow Funn with Lechon and Pipinola Shoot Salad Elena’s Restaurant’s Sari Sari Elena’s Restaurant’s Shrimp Sarciado L&L Hawaiian Barbecue’s Vegetable Lumpia Grandma’s Chicken Adobo Chef Paul Rivera’s Shrimp Lumpia with Banana Dipping Sauce / Spring Roll with Shrimp Chef Tylun Pang’s Macadamia Nut Shrimp Kare Kare Chef Jake Belmonte’s Lamb Shank Kare Kare / Lamb Shank and Vegetable Stew in Savory Roasted Almond Sauce Roy’s Pork Belly with Tomato, Sweet Onion and Pea Shoot Salad Chef Alan Wong’s Vegan Pinakbet Alyssandra’s Lumpia Express’ Pork Guisantes Ryson Matias’ Pork Guisantes Chef Ron De Guzman’s Pork & Squash Crispy Pork Belly with Kabocha Purée Chef Guy Higa’s Lechon Pork Belly & Fern Shoots Julie Pavao’s Mini Puto Muffins Alyssandra’s Lumpia Express’ Banana Lumpia Ma Abraham’s Blueberry Cream Cheese Pie Helena’s Sweet Treats Cinnamon Biko / Sweet Rice with Cinnamon Halo Halo Popsicles Ma Abraham’s Ube Haupia Squares with Macadamia Shortbread Crust Kalo & Ube Fruit Salad Bitsu-Bitsu with Coconut Caramel / Fried Rice Flour Balls