This pork belly bau is one of the images for a listing in our restaurant guide. Daniel Lane photo

Tasting Kauai on Hawaii Public Radio

This morning, I was interviewed on Hawaii Public Radio for our new book, Tasting Kauai: Restaurants. I share poolside lunch bargains, little known dining options as well as food trends on Kauai. Here is a link: Tasty Finds on the Garden Isle.
If you listen to HPR, here is when it will run today:
KHPR ~ 4:30 p.m.
KIPO at 12:30 or 1:30 p.m. Exact timing inside the news programming is subject to change.
KHPR ~ Fine Arts & Classical Music

• KHPR 88.1 Honolulu (Oahu and Kaua’i)
• KKUA 90.7 Wailuku (Maui) heard on Maui, Moloka’i, Lana’i & West Hawai’i
• KANO 91.1 Hilo (Hawai’i Island)
• K234AN 94.7 Waimea (Hawai’i Island)

KIPO ~ News and Information, Jazz, Blues, & Hawaiian Music

• KIPO 89.3 Honolulu (Oahu and Kauai)
• KIPM 89.7 Waikapu (Maui) heard on Maui, Moloka’i, Lana’i and West Hawai’i
• KIPH 88.3 Hana

All stations are FM and below 92.0 FM on the dial.
As an aside, this will be the last blog post until we return from vacation on June 17. We are happy to be hosting my  mother and father who are both 83-years-old. They are making the journey all the way from Colorado and bringing their dear friend Susan to help. Dan and I have spent the whole month of May preparing, so we won’t have to do any work while they are here. A couple of jobs will have to be done, but not much. The Tasting Kauai Facebook page will still be active, as I will post pictures of all the wonderful places we take them to, including Josselin’s Tapas Bar & Grill for our 14th wedding anniversary on June 5. Our next Pau Hana Friday blog post will be on June 21. If anything comes up before then, I will Facebook and Tweet about it.

Aunty Lilikoi’s Passion Fruit Wasabi Dressing won a gold medal at the 2013 World-Wide Mustard Competition. Aunty Lilikoi photo

Aunty Lilikoi

Kauai-based Aunty Lilikoi  won a gold medal at the 19th Annual World-Wide Mustard Competition held recently at the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wisconsin. Aunty Lilikoi’s Passion Fruit Wasabi Dressing beat nearly 300 world-wide entries including some from New Zealand, Japan and Sweden competed in 16 flavor categories. More than eighty judges, including chefs and food writers, tasted and scored the mustards over a three-week period, selecting Gold, Silver and Bronze winners in each category.
This is the 11th medal Aunty Lilikoi has brought home. In 2005, Aunty Lilikoi’s Passion Fruit Wasabi Mustard was named Grand Champion, having been chosen as the best of the best from all of the gold medal winners that year. Aunty Lilikoi’s Passion Fruit Wasabi Dressing has earned medals each year since 2009.
Since 1995, mustard makers from around the world have been competing for medals at the World-Wide Mustard Competition. Held under the direction of Barry Levenson, Curator of the National Mustard Museum, this prestigious international competition explores the many facets and flavors of the world’s most versatile condiment. The National Mustard Museum holds the world’s largest collection of mustards and mustard memorabilia and has been an important part of the Wisconsin food and tourism scene since 1992.
To see a list of all of the medal winners, visit the Mustard Museum website.

Koloa Deli

Koloa Deli is looking for a “mature and experienced” baker. Call owner Ron McGrin at 808-652-9733.
EVENTS:
Friday, May 31 and Saturday, June, 1

Winemaker Weekend

The Cliffs at Princeville is hosting a winemaker weekend on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific ocean. Join winemaker Jon Phillips of Inspiration Vineyards, located in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, will be here for this two part event. A four-course meal will be prepared by the chefs of Nanea at Westin Princeville. All the proceeds go to the Hanalei Bay Rotary Club.
Wine Tasting with winemaker Jon Phillips, Friday, May 31 at 5:30 p.m.
Plated Dinner with winemaker Jon Phillips, Saturday, June 1, at 5:30 p.m.
Four-Course Menu:
Upon arrival, guests will be served a glass of 2011 Chardonnay, Estate Reserve ~ Russian River Valley

• 1st course: Ahi Poke Nachos with Wasabi Aioli and Citrus Ponzu ~ 2010 Viognier, Russian River Valley
• 2nd course: Hamakua Mushroom Risotto with White Truffle Oil and Kailani Farms Arugula ~ 2009 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley
• 3rd course: Garlic Seared Monchong with Yukon Mash, Kauai Seasonal Vegetables and Cabernet Butter Sauce ~ 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, Dry Creek Valley
• 4th course: Macadamia Nut Fudge Cake with Raspberry Sauce and Vanilla Whipped Cream ~ 2010 Zinfandel, Alexander Valley

Both events take place at The Cliffs at Princeville Resort, 3811 Edward Road, on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean. $95.00 per person for both events. Call 826-6219 for more information and reservations.
Sunday, June 2

Taste of Hawaii is held at the gorgeous Smith’s Tropical Paradise. Daniel Lane photo

Taste of Hawaii

Smith’s Tropical Paradise, Wailua, 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., $100
The annual Taste of Hawaii at Smith’s Tropical Paradise in Wailua is a fundraiser for Kapaa Rotary Club. This year, they celebrate 25-years with statewide chefs beverage vendors and music. There are 35 food participants, and 40 food booths. Many vendors have more than one dish and some will offer vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options. There are five stages with live entertainment eight beverage booths: three water, one juice, one hot coffee, two tea, one lemonade, one soda, six beer booths and four wine booths. Five vendors are Kauai Grown members and three are featured on our monthly culinary tours. They are the Kauai Marriott Resort, The Feral Pig and Nani Moon Mead. Stop by their booth and enjoy a tasting Kauai! Click here to find out what they’re serving. Last week, Dave Power of The Feral Pig tested his recipe for a spit-roasted whole, local hog that he’ll be serving on Sunday. We were lucky enough to sample some, and it was delicious!

Sampling seasonal fruit at Kilohana Plantation. Daniel Lane photo

A Culinary Romp Through Paradise

Various locations in Kapaa, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., $130
Tasting Kauai’s Culinary Tour offers an intimate glimpse into the Garden Island’s culinary scene. We start with a farm tour and learn about exotic fruit grown on Kauai. At the Kauai Marriott Resort, we join executive chef Guy Higa for an outdoor cooking demonstration and gourmet, four-course lunch made with Kauai grown ingredients. Our last stop is at Nani Moon Mead, where we’ll get an exclusive tour of Hawaii’s only meadery, and sample all five honey wines in the Nani Moon Mead collection. Ticket price includes a bottle of mead. You can read what LandingStanding said about this tour, or visit our Kauai Culinary Tours page. We have a Facebook photo album that shows how much fun the tour is, and our 5-Star TripAdvisor reviews. Chef Higa donates proceeds from his portion of the tour to the Salvation Army Soup Kitchen. For a complete list of 2013 dates, check out our Kauai Culinary Tours Calendar. Call 808-635-0257 to make a reservation.

A Taste of Old Kauai includes lunch at Hanalei Bay. Marta Lane photo

A Taste of Old Kauai

Waipa, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., $115
Tasting Kauai’s north shore tour is part agritourism and part ecotourism. We visit Waipa, one of 67 watersheds homesteaded by the first Polynesians, which remains undeveloped. This one-of-a-kind experience was designed by Tasting Kauai and the Waipa Foundation especially for those who wish to learn about traditional agriculture systems, endangered wildlife, and enjoy real Hawaiian food saturated in Kauai’s rugged beauty.
Tucked in a valley and surrounded by towering mountain ranges, our guests learn about Hawaii’s culture and food. Waipa is nestled in the Hanalei Valley which is an is a Wildlife Refuge and endangered birds flourish here. We explore a vast loi (taro garden) fed by auwai, or irrigation system, that supplies water from mountain streams.
At the “Poi Garage” we learn about Hawaii’s staff of life: taro, or kalo as it’s called here, and guests sample cooked taro corms, poi and kulolo, a traditional dessert made with coconut.
We tour the farm and learn how Waipa teaches kids about the circle of life through farm animals and gardens. Continuing through the property, we’ll learn the difference between native, canoe and introduced plants, while we walk to the Halulu Fishpond.
Lunch, prepared by Waipa’s chef, changes seasonally and is made with vegetables grown in on site gardens, locally sourced meat or fish, and mamaki tea with lemongrass and mint. Guests eat ohana (family) style while enjoying the beauty and breezes of Hanalei Bay. Proceeds from this tour go to restore native plants and to preserve and perpetuate Hawaiian culture through education. For more information, visit A Taste of Old Kauai, or visit check out our Facebook photo album. To make reservations, call 808-635-0257.

Ron Miller, executive chef and Hukilau Lanai owner, at the Red Clay Jazz Festival. Daniel Lane photo

Red Clay Jazz Festival

National and local jazz and blues artists play at the 5th Annual Red Clay Jazz Festival, in an ocean-view outdoor setting at Kauai Lagoons, featuring Miss E.C. Scott and the Venissa Santi Sextet. The four-day event offers local evening jam sessions on Wednesday and Thursday, an invitational “Meet the Artists” party at Common Ground in Kilauea on Friday and the main concert late afternoon and evening on Saturday. Taste locally grown foods and wine. Enjoy a full line up of top blues and jazz artists. For more information visit the Red Clay Jazz Festival website or read the article I wrote, “A Smokin’ Red Clay Jazz Festival” in MidWeek Kauai.
Saturday, June 29

Kauai Nursery & Landscaping

9:05 to 10:05 a.m., free, Nursery Conference Room
Learn all how to select palm trees for residential landscaping as well as how to care for them. Call 808-245-7747 for more information.
ONGOING:

Sunshine Farmers Market in Kapaa. Daniel Lane photo

Farmers Market Class

Wednesdays, 3 to 4 p.m., $30
Meet local farmers, learn how to select perfect produce as well as when it’s in season and how to cook with it during Tasting Kauai’s one-hour farmers market class. I saw friends at the farmers market who were visiting from Colorado. As we hugged and said hello, I saw a table full of near-rotten mangos. It was still snowing in Denver and my friends were excited about the big, beautiful tomatoes they just bought. Their faces fell when I told them they were not grown on Kauai. I felt bad for them, and was inspired to offer this class.
Farmers markets are an affordable way to immerse yourself in local culture and the best place to buy produce that’s so fresh, it was harvested that morning. But buying at the farmers market doesn’t always insure that it was grown on Kauai. It happens all over the world. In Hawaii, customers want mangos year-round. In Colorado, they want tomatoes in May. To make that sale, vendors buy imported mangoes or tomatoes and sell them as their own. Customers unfamiliar with the seasons can insure their dollars are spent on local products by learning how to identify locally grown produce.
There’s a whole world of delicious produce that many people never try. Let’s face it, some of it looks like it came from another planet. Once unfamiliar produce is demystified and cooking tips are shared, it may become a regular at dinner table. Many factors can make exotic produce expensive and the last thing you want to do is buy a pineapple that isn’t at peak perfection. This class will also teach you how to tell when produce is ripe as well as how to store it for best results. For reservations, call 808-635-0257.