Manapua; Kal Bi

Bapopik at AOL.COM Bapopik at AOL.COM
Tue Feb 19 09:01:27 UTC 2002


   I spent all day today at the Polynesian Cultural Center.  It's well worth the visit.  Tomorrow, I'll visit the State Library, make another try for Hawaiian menus, and leave on a midnight flight to New Zealand.

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MANAPUA

   Not in the OED.
   The tour bus today drove past Leonard's Bakery, and I saw "malasada" on the sign.  No "manapua," no "malasada" in the revised OED?  Jesse, take a trip to Hawaii, will you?  No OED editor in Hawaii would miss these!
   From THINGS HAWAIIAN: A POCKET GUIDE TO THE ISLANDS--FOOD AND FLAVORS (Island Heritage Publishing, 44 pages, 1998), pg. 40:

   Manapua is the island name for char siu bao, China's equivalent of the hot dog.  The Chinese snack features roast pork (char siu) enclosed in a bun (bao).
   Manapua is a contraction of the Hawaiian words: _mea 'ono pua'a_, meaning "delicious pork thing" or "pork cake."  A quickie way of preparing manapua follows, using commercially prepared biscuit dough, found in the refrigerator section of supermarkets.  Although fast, the recipe still makes "delicious pork things."
   QUICKIE MANAPUA
1 pound lean boneless pork
3 tablespoons finely chopped mushrooms
2 teaspoons finely chopped cilantro
1 stalk green onion (green part only), finely sliced
2 containers refrigerator biscuit dough
Red food coloring

("Char siu," seen all over Hawaii, is not in the OED, either--ed.)

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KAL BI

   Hawaii has loads of Japanese.  Go figure.
   Hawaii also has loads of Koreans.  "Kal Bi" was seen all over.  Again, it's not in the OED.
   (No, I didn't try it yesterday.  There was a Vietnamese restaurant in the area--who could pass up that Hawaiian favorite?)
   From ISLAND COOKS: A COLLECTION OF FAVORITE RECIPES (Island Heritage, www.islandheritage.com, 2001), pg. 104:

_Kal Bi_
4-5 pounds beef short ribs cut Korean style
3-4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted and crushed
2 finely chopped green onions
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 cups shoyu
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup oil
   Put short ribs in a bowl.  Combine all other ingredients and pour over the meat.  Toss the ribs in the marinade to coat each rib well.  Cover and let stand at room temperature for two hours.  Broil over charcoal or under an oven broiler turning and basting with marinade until the meat is just cooked.  This will only take a few minutes--watch carefully.  Serves 4-6.  Several restaurants specialize in these wonderful Korean ribs.  The sauce is also delicious with chicken or pork.

(Also Kalbi?--ed.)



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