Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 29, Number 9, 1 September 2012 — ʻUlu Tamales with Coleslaw and Salsa [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

ʻUlu Tamales with Coleslaw and Salsa

> 3 large or 4 medium 'ulu > 1 e. coconut oil > Any veggies or meat you want to add for the filling* Preparation time: About 2 hours. Yield: 15 servings Have all of your ingredients in prep bowls ready to fill the tamales. Soak the corn husks and have ready; you ean also use fresh corn husks, ti or hanana leaves. You will need raffia or cotton kitchen string to tie the tamale "packages" before steaming them. Steam the 'ulu and make into poi by pureeing while adding the coconut oil little by little to reach the consistency desired (Best if not too sticky. If too sticky, you might need to add a bit more oil.) When the 'ulu poi is ready, take two leaves andplace wide parts overlapping, start filling by spooning some of the poi, making a slight indentation in the poi. Add veggies of your choosing, goat cheese and meat (if desired), not too full. Wrap and tie. Steamthemfor 15 to 20 minutes if vegetarian. If adding meat, steam for 25 minutes. *Due to travel to the competition, the students chose to make vegetarian tamales adding red onion, goat feta, beet greens, red and yellow bell peppers, tomatoes and sea salt. The presentation included a side of green and purple coleslaw dressed with coconut oil mayo and sea salt and dry salsa made with pineapple, tomatoes, cilantro, liliko'i, red onions and Hawaiian ehili peppers. The students eook only with 100 percent locally grown foods. All ingredients are grown, produced or made in Hawai'i. More winning recipes are available online at http://bit.ly/ NenFVF.

A WINNING RECIPE Kua O Ka Lā charter school students and their culinary kumu Mariposa Blanco of Pahoa, Puna, won first plaee in the main dish/ entree category at the 2011 Breadfruit Festival cooking contest. This Hawaiian-Mexican-inspired entree also earned top honors for healthiest dish.

Kua 0 Ka Lfl students delivered buffet luneh meals to festivalgoers atthe Puna 'Ulu Festival, in March. The school's recipe, below, won honors atan earlierfestival, in 201 1 . - Photos: Courtesy Craig Elevitch Photography