Ka Wai Ola - Office of Hawaiian Affairs, Volume 30, Number 7, 1 July 2013 — ʻAhaʻaina preparations, past and present [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

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ʻAhaʻaina preparations, past and present

By Claire Ku'uleilani Hughes, Dr. PH„ R.D. Excitement and hard work is always part of family 'aha'aina (banquet). A Puna woman wrote childhood memories of her family's meal preparations in the mid-1970s. Her recollections mirror mine from 30 years earlier on Kaua'i. The Puna family raised a few pigs, whieh always responded to her mother's banging on the feed bucket. While the pigs were eating, one or two were selected and taken to be prepared for the event. In my memories, a Kōke'e pig hunt pro-

vided the main course. On Kaua'i, women gathered and cleaned limu and fishermen fished and gathered shellfish for the event. The pig was cleaned, dressed and placed on a table, before boiling water was poured over its skin. A large 'opihi shell was used to scrape hair off the pig's skin. By this time, the imu was ready. Hours before this, at the bottom of the imu, 'ōhi'a or guava wood was laid and elean, smooth river rocks were placed on the top. More wood was added on top and the wood was set afire. Guava wood imparted a flavor to the pig that the Puna mother preferred. I remember kiawe ( Algaroba) being used. Onee the rocks were red-hot, the pig was held by its legs and pushed to and fro over the hot rocks to singe the outer skin. Then, hot rocks were placed into the cavity of the pig and its legs tied together with tl. Unburned wood was removed

from the imu, and a thick layer of tl was laid over the rocks, then split hanana tree stumps covered the tl, providing steam and keeping the pig from burning. This layer was called po'i. The pig, wrapped in a wire basket, was lowered into the

pit onto the po'i and red-hot rocks. Another thick layer of po'i covered the pig. Then a layer of canvas or burlap covered the po'i. Finally, a thick layer of dirt was shoveled on top, to hold the steam in the imu. In my day, there was no canvas, thus, burlap provided the cover. Kūpuna judged when the food was fully cooked. Opening the imu was an event. The dirt was carefully shoveled off and the burlap carefully pulled back, keeping any dirt from falling into the imu. The cooked meat was quickly prepared and served. Kūlolo was a Puna favorite, likewise on Kaua'i. Kūlolo required many days of preparation by women and children. Large, square tin cans were washed and dried. Dry eoeonuts and firewood were collected. Coconut husks were removed and discarded. Adults harvested kalo from upland lo'i and cleaned it.

Early morning, on kūlolo-making day, the coconut meat was removed and grated; then coconut cream was squeezed from the gratings and set aside. The raw taro's outer skin was peeled, and the taro grated. Taro graters rubbed their hands with coconut pulp to reduce itchiness. Kāne (men) mixed the coconut cream and grated taro with honey, while wāhine (women) lined the tin cans with cleaned, ribbed tl leaves. The kūlolo mixture was poured into tl-lined cans and tl covered the top. The imu was prepared as it is for kālua pig, with hot rocks covered with po 'i. Only experienced kūpuna knew when the kūlolo was done. The imu was opened carefully, cans were removed and cooled. After a day, the kūlolo was removed and any adhering tl-lining was gently peeled away. And, the kūlolo was cut into serving pieces. Over the decades, little has changedabout the family 'aha'aina, except food sources and costs, and, the helpfulness of keiki. Thankfully, the joy-filledresult continues. ■

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Imu preparation atthe Celebration of the Arts Festival hosted by the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua. - Photo: Courtesy of īony tlovak-Clifford