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Laulau
Steamed pork and fish bundles
Pork and fish steamed in taro and ti leaf bundles
Laulau is one of the oldest dishes of Native Hawaiian cooking: fatty pork and salted butterfish are wrapped in young taro (lūʻau) leaves, tied in a ti-leaf parcel and steamed for hours until the leaves turn soft as cooked spinach and the pork is meltingly tender. It is the centrepiece of a plate with poi, lomi lomi salmon and haupia at lūʻau and family celebrations. Taro leaves must be cooked a long time, as they irritate the throat when undercooked; if you can't find them, use large spinach leaves and wrap in banana leaves or foil. Chef's tip: steam the bundles for the full four hours; shortcutting leaves the taro leaves scratchy.
- Total time
- 280 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 2 lb pork shoulder (pork butt), fat onin 6 chunks
- 7 oz salted black cod (butterfish) or salted white fishin 6 pieces
- 36 young taro (lūʻau) leavesstems and thick ribs removed, or 500 g large spinach leaves
- 12 ti leaves or banana leavesrinsed, or foil squares
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Rub the 2 lb pork shoulder (pork butt), fat on with the 2 tsp Hawaiian or coarse sea salt, cover and chill in the fridge for 1 hour.
60 minStep 2: For each bundle stack 5–6 36 young taro (lūʻau) leaves into a cup in your palm. Add a chunk of pork and a piece of 7 oz salted black cod (butterfish) or salted white fish, then fold the leaves tightly over to make a ball.
15 minStep 3: Lay two 12 ti leaves or banana leaves in a cross, set the bundle in the middle, pull the leaves up and tie them tightly with string or the split leaf stems. Or wrap tightly in foil.
15 minStep 4: Set the bundles in a steamer over boiling water, cover tightly and steam for 4 hours, topping up with boiling water every 45 minutes. A common mistake is letting the pan boil dry.
240 minStep 5: They are done when the pork is falling-apart tender (far above 160°F) and the taro leaves are soft, dark and silky with no sharpness. Open one to check, and serve with rice or poi.
2 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 420 kcal
- Protein
- 32 g
- Carbs
- 4 g
- Fat
- 30 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does laulau take?
- About 280 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 240 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
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