'Ahi: Bigeye, yellowfin or albacore tuna
Aku: Skipjack tuna
Akule: Scad mackerel
A'u: Marlin
Butterfish: Black cod
Crack seed: A popular local snack of preserved fruits, such as rock salt plum or dried mango
Ehu: Short-tailed red snapper
Hapu'upu'u: Grouper or sea bass
Haupia: Coconut pudding, traditionally made with pia, Polynesian arrowroot, instead of cornstarch
Hibachi: A small Japanese outdoor grill, commonly used in Hawaii
Imu: A traditional underground pit oven, lined with rocks and ti leaves (or banana leaves), for cooking meats such as chicken and pig 'Inamona: Roasted, ground and salted kukui nuts
Kalo: Taro, a starchy and nutritious tuber, commonly used to make poi
Kalua: Traditional method of cooking food in an imu
Kukui nut: Nuts from the candlenut tree
Laulau: Pork, beef, salted fish or taro leaves wrapped in ti leaves and cooked in an imu or steamed
Lawalu: Fish or meat wrapped in ti leaves for cooking
Liliko'i: Passion fruit
Limu: Seaweed; limu kohu, a soft, reddish-brown variety, is prized for its succulent flavor
Loco moco: A plate lunch featuring a fried hamburger patty and a couple of fried eggs stacked on white rice and topped with brown gravy
Lomi or lomilomi: To massage, knead or rub; lomi salmon is a popular lu'au dish
Lu'au: Taro leaves, often baked with coconut cream and chicken or octopus; the word eventually came to mean a Hawaiian feast, which is also known as 'aha'aina or pa'ina
Mahimahi: Dolphinfish or dorado; not related to the mammal dolphin
Manapua: Chinese bun filled with shredded barbecue pork; also known as mea 'ono pua'a
Moi: Pacific threadfin
Monchong: Also called big scale or sickle pomfret, because of its large scales and the shape of its fins
Nori: Paper-thin sheets of seasoned, dried seaweed
Ogo: A type of seaweed commonly used in poke and to flavor seafood dishes
Ono: Wahoo or large mackerel
'Ono: Delicious
Onaga: Long-tailed red snapper; also known as 'ula'ula
Opah: Moonfish
'Opakapaka: Pink snapper
'Opihi: Limpets, a prized delicacy
Pipikaula: Salted and dried beef
Plate lunch: A popular lunch option featuring two scoops of white rice, macaroni salad and a local-style meat or seafood dish
Poha berries: Cape gooseberries or ground cherries
Pohole: Fiddlehead fern
Poi: Mashed, cooked taro
Poke: A dish of sliced raw fish or seafood, seaweed, Hawaiian salt and chile peppers
Pulehu: To broil or barbecue
Pupu: Finger food; island-style appetizer
Saimin: Japanese noodle soup
Shave Ice: A popular local treat featuring shaved ice in a paper cone and flavored with colored fruit syrup
Shoyu: commonly used Japanese word for soy sauce
Shutome: Broadbill swordfish
Tako: Octopus
Ti leaves: Leaves of a Polynesian plant, used for cooking and decorative purposes
Uku: Gray snapper
'Ulu: Breadfruit
Ulua: Jack or jackfish, or Florida pompano
Wana: Sea urchin

Essential Ingredients | Kitchen Equipment

The Hawaiian pantry has grown to reflect the influence of Asian and European cultures.

Breads
Portuguese sweet bread (pao doce), sometimes labeled Hawaiian sweet bread, is a staple and good for making French toast. Mango and banana breads are popular treats and are usually homemade.

Coffee
While the most popular variety is Kona, coffee beans are also grown on the islands of Moloka'i and Maui. Available from online companies or specialty coffee stores.

Fish & Seafood
Much of the seafood used in Hawaiian cooking can be bought under its English name at any fish store (consult the glossary for definitions), but delicacies such as 'opihi, or limpets, can be difficult to obtain. If you need to substitute, try to choose fish with a similar flavor and texture. Always use sashimi-quality fish when making raw dishes such as poke. Salt salmon and salt butterfish should be soaked in cold water for several hours.

Fruits
Use fresh whenever possible. Pineapples, bananas, mangoes and watermelons are available in supermarkets, as are coconuts and coconut milk. Liliko'i (passion fruit) and papayas can be found in ethnic markets. Strawberry papayas, favored for their sweet red-orange flesh, can be purchased from online companies. Replace mountain apples with another mild-flavored apple. You can find lychees, calamansi and star fruit in Asian markets.

Meats & Poultry
Buy from a reliable butcher, especially if cooking a whole pig in an imu. Substitute Italian sausage for Portuguese sausage. Char siu (Chinese roast pork) and lup cheong (Chinese dried sausages), used often in local dishes, can be found at Asian markets.

Noodles
Commonly used noodles such as chow fun, bean thread noodles (sai fun or mung bean noodles), saimin (substitute quality ramen), pancit canton, soba and udon can be found in Asian markets.

Nuts
Macadamia nuts are widely available and can be bought roasted, flavored or coated in chocolate. Kukui nuts, from the candlenut tree, are difficult to find outside of the islands, and can be substituted with macadamia nuts.

Rice
Rice is a staple of the islands. Look for Calrose, a short-grain white rice which becomes sticky when cooked. Locals like to rinse their rice until the water is clear before cooking.

Seasonings and Sauces
Hawaiian sea salt, or alae salt, gets its reddish tinge from clay, but you can use kosher salt instead. Furikake, a Japanese blend of seasonings such as sesame seeds, seaweed, bonito and salt, can be found in Asian markets. For Hawaiian chile pepper water, substitute hot sauce.

Seaweed
There is no substitute for fresh seaweed such as ogo and limu kohu, but you'll find dried ogo in Asian markets, as well as nori (dried, pressed seaweed).

Taro
Also known as kalo, Hawaiian taro is the lehua variety. Substitute Chinese taro from Asian markets. The plant contains irritating calcium oxalate, so wear gloves when handling and cook thoroughly to remove the irritants. The leaves are eaten as a vegetable or wrapped around fish and meats (spinach is a good substitute). The root is cooked and pounded into poi. Poi can be bought fresh or "day-old," which allows a sour flavor to develop. Poi is labeled "one-finger," "two-finger" or "three-finger" to describe its consistency--the thicker the poi, the fewer fingers needed to scoop it up. There is no substitute for fresh poi, but you can purchase it from online stores.

Ti
The long, shiny leaves from the ti plant are used to wrap fish and meats for cooking. Substitute corn husks, foil or banana leaves, which can be found in Asian or Latin markets.

Vegetables
Buy seasonal produce in your area. Vidalia or Walla Walla varieties can substitute for Sweet Maui onions. Asparagus or green beans can be used in place of pohole, or fiddlehead ferns. 'Ulu-- breadfruit--is difficult to find and can be replaced by jackfruit or potatoes, though results will be different. For Hawaiian red chiles, substitute red serranos or red jalapenos. Other commonly used produce includes sweet potatoes, yams, tomatoes and Asian vegetables such as bok choy, napa cabbage, daikon, mizuna lettuce, bamboo shoots, Asian eggplant and shiitake mushrooms.

Kitchen Equipment
Imu
A traditional underground pit oven used to cook food, including kalua pig. Few Hawaiians actually have an imu in their yards, but they are sometimes built for celebrations and lu'aus.

Hibachi
This small Japanese outdoor grill is commonly used year-round to barbecue meats and fish.

Rice cooker
This handy tool makes it easy to cook rice and keep it warm. A rice paddle is essential to scoop the rice onto plates.

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