Want to try more Authentic Hawaiian? Kaitlyn shares how to make SPAM Musubi.

Loco Moco: Authentic Hawaiian

Our friend and fellow foodie Kaitlyn came to visit TnF Farms and wanted to cook Hawaiian for us tonight. We really love her visits because Kaitlyn always makes us amazing comfort foods. She grew up in Hawai’i then relocated to Florida with her husband. Being a resident of Hawai’i is nothing like being a tourist. Tim and I thought all the Hawaiian food was sweet and covered in pineapple. Kaitlyn chuckled and told us no, that’s just for the tourists. Authentic Hawaiian is sometimes sweet but typically salty and carby.

Tonight she wanted to make us a favorite comfort food called Loco Moco. Tim and I were intrigued. Loco Moco is a unique fusion of American, Asian, and Hawaiian flavors. It is a staple in Hawaiian cuisine and there are a lot of variations. The dish is enjoyed for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

The origins of Loco Moco are somewhat debated

It is widely believed to have originated in the 1940s in Hawai’i. One popular version of the story attributes its creation to a restaurant in Hilo, Hawai’i. The story goes a group of teenagers requested something filling and inexpensive. The restaurant cook improvised the dish with the ingredients available.

With dinner plans covered, Kaitlyn sent Tim to Porterhouse to pick up some ground chuck and a red onion. She then went to go select the perfect, non-GMO, farm fresh eggs freshly laid from our flock. It was a treat knowing I did not have to cook and only be a spectator.

Let’s start cooking

Loco Moco starts with a bed of sticky rice. She broke out our rice cooker and added rinsed white rice and water at a 1:1 ratio. Kaitlyn says you can substitute instant white rice, but it won’t be sticky.

   

Put a large skillet on the stove set to medium heat. Kaitlyn pattied the ground chuck into 1/3 pound burgers. Once the skillet was hot, the patties went in.

   

Once the patties released some fat, she sliced a red onion and started frying the onions with the burgers. After the first round of burgers were cooked, the next round of burgers were cooked with the onions still frying.

   

Burgers and onions finished cooking and were set aside. The rice cooker beeped that it was done. Kaitlyn then started a packet of instant brown gravy simmering in a small pot.

     

Time for some farm fresh eggs. With the skillet still hot and full of burger grease, she started frying eggs. 1 egg per patty. She asked us how done we wanted our eggs and spooned hot grease over frying eggs to get the yolks to the perfect amount of doneness.

Let’s eat

With all the great smells from cooking and working outside all day, we are starving! Kaitlyn starts the assembly of Loco Moco. Put a bed of sticky rice on your plate. A burger goes on the rice with an egg on top. Then add cooked onion and a ladle of brown gravy. You can season however you like. Salt and Pepper, Lawry’s seasoned salt, even creole seasoning.

Want to try more Authentic Hawaiian? Kaitlyn shares how to make SPAM Musubi.