Kalua pork in the oven, your new Thanksgiving favorite.
Aloha, friends! Thanksgiving on Maui is a special time. Friends and ohana gather, bring their favorite sides and cook up some great stories. Yes, there's turkey. But next to it you'll find rice, mac salad, maybe some poke, and almost always a big pan of kalua pig.
Traditional kalua pig is cooked for hours in an imu, an underground oven lined with hot rocks and banana leaves. Most of us don't have one of those in the backyard. This oven version gets you remarkably close, with about 10 minutes of hands-on work.
What you'll need
4 to 5 lb pork butt (bone-in or boneless)
1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons Hawaiian sea salt (ʻalaea salt if you have it)
2 tablespoons liquid smoke
Ti leaves or banana leaves, if you can find them (optional, but they add flavor)
Heavy-duty foil
How to make it
Heat the oven to 325°F.
Pierce the pork all over with a fork or knife.
Rub the salt and liquid smoke into every side.
Wrap the pork in ti or banana leaves if you're using them, then wrap tightly in two layers of foil.
Set it in a roasting pan and cook for 4 to 5 hours, until it falls apart when you poke it.
Unwrap, shred with two forks, and stir in the juices from the pan. Taste and add a pinch more salt if needed.
Make-ahead tip: it's even better the next day, which frees up your oven for the turkey. Reheat covered with a splash of water.
Leftovers: kalua pig fried rice
If you liked my Cooking with Spam fried rice, swap the Spam for leftover kalua pig. Day-old rice, a little shoyu, green onions and an egg on top. It might be your favorite part of Thanksgiving weekend.
Not cooking this year?
No shame. Foodland usually has one hand. Order early, because the week of Thanksgiving gets busy.
Your turn
What's the one local dish that shows up on your Thanksgiving table every year? Hit me up and tell me. I'll share my favorite answers in the next Aloha Friday.
Happy Thanksgiving, and a hui hou, Kelly
