Posts Tagged ‘manoa lettuce’
Cooking in Hawaii: Manoa Lettuce, My Favorite Salad Greens
Shredded Manoa Lettuce Next to a Head of Manoa Lettuce
NOTE: DoT has been posting from Honolulu since late July when she left California to help her mother through some medical procedures. She will be doing so until she can return to Orange County.
DoT’s Thot: Living in various places exposes to new foods, tastes, and enjoyment. I have enjoyed all the different exposure to Indian food, various Chinese cuisines, even Muslim Chinese cooking. Italian, French, Swedish food all give their own special experiences. Mexican food in California is varied and interesting. However, there are some things uniquely Hawaiian. One of these is the salad greens that are the ultimate for me — Manoa Lettuce.
Manoa Lettuce, a Tender, Crispy, and Refreshing Salad Green
I grew up eating Manoa lettuce and remember growing it off and on throughout my life. Manoa lettuce has a combination of tenderness and crispy, juicy texture that has been unmatched by all the other greens that I have eaten — mache is a special tender French salad green that has the tenderness, but not the combined crispy, juicy stem texture.
Iceberg is crispy, but does not have the tender green leafy quality of Manoa lettuce. Romaine lettuce is a lot hardier, but is a lot more to chew than Manoa Lettuce. I remember seeing this lettuce also labeled Green Mignonette and ordered some of those seeds, but have never grown “Manoa lettuce” from such seeds in California. Growing conditions are different and my lettuce was never as tender as that which Mom and I grew back home in Hawaii.
Ahi Sahimi On a Bed of Manoa Lettuce
Manoa Lettuce is a Bonus for the Elderly Who Still Enjoy a Raw Salad
I prize this lettuce now, especially, because at 92, my mother does not chew as well as she used to. With Manoa lettuce, she can munch her way through a salad like she has always done before and thoroughly enjoy it. Just about any oriental dressing (ume dressing, sesame dressing, even somen dressing for noodles works) makes for a delicious green Manoa Lettuce salad.
Any of your favorite salad fixings would enhance the salad. I also use Manoa lettuce as a shredded bed for her sashimi and she can eat the lettuce along with her sashimi, another added nutritional bonus. These are the reasons that Manoa lettuce is my very favorite salad greens. I have only been able to buy it here in Hawaii and always try to eat my fill of Manoa lettuce salad before going back to California. If I am here at the right time of year, I have planted seedlings for my mother to enjoy after I leave. I love this lettuce that much.
Aloha, DoT
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Cooking in Hawaii: Ahi Sashimi with Shiso, Chili Pepper, and Shoyu
Shiso, Ahi, and Manoa Lettuce
NOTE: DoT has been posting from Honolulu since late July when she left California to help her mother through some medical procedures. She will be doing so until she can return to Orange County.
DoT’s Thot: Like fish and poi, laulau and lomi salmon, sashimi and shoyu are staple items that many islanders love. Here is one of my mother’s favorite dishes, ahi sashimi.
Plate of Ahi Sashimi with Shredded Manoa Lettuce and Shiso, Garnished with Shiso or Red Perilla Leaves
Mom Loves Ahi Sashimi with Chili Pepper and Shoyu (Soy Sauce)
At 92, Mom eats whatever is not too hard or crunchy (dentures don’t always allow for all foods). One of her favorite foods is raw fish and ahi sashimi is one that she loves. One day we were eating lunch alone together, so I stiopped at the market and got some ahi and took it home along with some Manoa lettuce. In the garden, Mom has some red perilla or shiso growing.
In addition, there are always some red chili peppers in the yard. Instead of the green wasabi that most people are familiar with at restaurants and sushi bars, one of our favorite ways of eating sashimi is with soy sauce and bird’s eye or tiny red chili peppers.
Chili Peppers and Shoyu for the Ahi Sashimi, Noe the Small Red Chili Next to the Bowl
Preparing the Ahi Sashimi with Chili Peppers and Shoyu
Once you are able to buy a nice block of ahi for sashimi, preparing this dish is simplicity itself. Shred some manoa lettuce or other tender lettuce leaves and scatter on a plate. Shred some shiso or red perilla leaves and sprinkle those on top of the manoa lettuce. Reserve some shiso or red perilla leaves for garnishing the dish. Slice the ahi sashimi and place them on the shredded Manoa lettuce and shiso. Garnish with the reserved shiso leaves.
For the chili peppers and shoyu, use light soy sauce and some small hot chile peppers. If the little island chilis are not available, you may use other varieties that appeal to you, such as Thai hot chili peppers or jalepenos. Break or chop the chili peppers into the soy sauce or shoyu and just be careful with the seeds. Some will want to eat the seeds for the extra zip; some will want to avoid them. Our family happens to like the flavor of chili peppers and shoyu better than that of wasabi and soy sauce.
We enjoyed this so very much.
Aloha, DoT
Related References and Articles
Related Posts
- Vegetarian Recipes: Star Anise Flavored Boiled Peanuts
- In My Mother’s Garden: Neem Tree; Miracle Herb from India
- Scene in Hawaii: View from My Mother’s Hospital Room
- Scene In Hawaii: Rooster at the Shopping Center
- In My Mother’s Garden: Pakalana, One of My Favorite Fragrant Vining Flowers
- Cooking in Hawaii: Manoa Lettuce, My Favorite Salad Greens
- In My Mother’s Garden: the White Hibiscus Dad Gave Mom
- Cooking in Hawaii: Ginger Oil Chicken
- In My Mother’s Garden: Shell Ginger Hidden Among the Red Ginger
- In My Mother’s Garden: Red Ginger in Hawaii
- Scene in Hawaii: Hawaiian Kiawe Tree Revisited
- Scene in Hawaii: Monarch Butterfly Caterpiller in a Supermarket Garden Shop
- Scene in Hawaii: Hawaiian Bougainvillea “Dragons”
- Scene in Hawaii: Hawaiian Snowflakes, Rainbow Shower Tree Haiku
- A Note on Monarch Butterflies in Hawaii
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