Steaming Lau Lau: How Long Should You Cook It?

Lau lau is a traditional Hawaiian dish that is considered the island's soul food. It is made by wrapping pork, chicken, and salted butterfish in taro leaves and ti leaves and steaming it for 3 to 4 hours. The ti leaves are not edible and are only used for wrapping and steaming the lau lau. The dish is then served with rice and other Hawaiian dishes.

How to make lau lau

Lau lau is a Hawaiian dish that is considered the island's soul food. It is a fatty meat, usually pork, wrapped in leaves and steamed for hours. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to make this delicious dish:

Ingredients:

To make lau lau, you will need the following ingredients:

• Lu'au leaves (from the taro plant)
• Ti leaves (these are not edible)
• Pork butt and/or pork belly, cut into small chunks
• Salted butterfish (also known as salted black cod), cut into small chunks
• Hawaiian sea salt
• Optional: purple Okinawan sweet potato, carrots, or other vegetables

Step 1: Prepare the Leaves

Start by washing the luau leaves thoroughly and chopping off the bottom stems. Chop the stems into small pieces and set them aside, as they will be used for the filling. For the ti leaves, wash and pat them dry. Remove the thickest vein from the centre of each leaf to make them more pliable and easier to fold.

Step 2: Assemble the Lau Lau

Stack 3-5 luau leaves on a clean work surface, with the biggest leaf at the bottom and the smallest on top. Place a few chunks of pork butt, butterfish, and any optional vegetables in the centre of the leaves. Add some chopped luau leaf stems and sprinkle liberally with Hawaiian sea salt. Use the luau leaves to wrap and secure the filling into a tight bundle.

Step 3: Wrap with Ti Leaves

Place two de-veined ti leaves in a cross shape on a flat surface. Put the luau leaf bundle in the centre and wrap the ti leaves around it. Use the ends of the ti leaves to tie a top knot, or kitchen twine if the ends are too short.

Step 4: Steam the Lau Lau

Arrange the wrapped lau lau bundles in a steamer. Steam for three to four hours until tender. The ti leaves will turn from bright green to a darker shade when finished. Unwrap and discard the ti leaves before serving.

Step 5: Serve

Lau lau is typically served with rice and poi, a traditional Hawaiian starch made from mashed taro root. Don't forget to add some chili pepper water for an extra kick!

What to serve with lau lau

Lau lau is a Hawaiian dish made of pork and butterfish wrapped in lu'au leaves and ti leaves. It is usually served with rice and poi. The ti leaves are not edible but are used to seal in flavour and moisture, and are removed before eating.

If you're serving lau lau, you might want to consider some other Hawaiian dishes to go with it. Here are some suggestions:

• Lomi salmon is a light dish made by mixing raw, salted, diced salmon with tomatoes, sweet Maui onions, and flakes of chilli pepper. It is typically served cold as a side dish to pork lau lau.
• Poi is a native Hawaiian dish made by mashing baked or steamed taro (a root vegetable) with a stone pestle and gradually adding water until it is thick, smooth and sticky. It has a mild, slightly sweet taste and is often used as a dipping sauce for pork lau lau.
• Squid luau is made by slow-cooking luau leaves and squid in coconut milk or cream, and adding salt and sugar to taste. It is a thick, creamy puree that is often served alongside pork lau lau and poi.
• Haupia is a traditional Hawaiian coconut milk-based dessert that is often served at luaus. It is made by mixing coconut milk with ground pia (Polynesian arrowroot), cooking it until smooth, and then chilling it. It has a gelatin-like consistency and is typically cut into blocks before serving.
• Kalua pork is a whole pig that is stuffed with hot rocks, covered in banana leaves, and cooked for several hours in an underground dirt pit called an imu. The meat is shredded before serving, allowing the melted fat to mix with the meat.
• Poke is typically made from cubed raw ahi (tuna) marinated in a mixture of shoyu, sesame oil, Hawaiian salt, and green onions. It is often served atop warm rice.

How to reheat lau lau

There are several ways to reheat lau lau, a Hawaiian dish made of pork and butterfish wrapped in lu'au leaves and ti leaves. Here is a guide on how to do it:

Using a Steamer

If you have a steamer basket for the stove, this can be a good way to reheat lau lau. Simply place the lau lau in the steamer basket and steam for around 30-45 minutes, or until heated through.

Using an Instant Pot

Place some water (about a cup) in the bottom of the Instant Pot and put the lau lau on a trivet. Cook for 1 minute at High Pressure, then do a few minutes of Natural Release before quick releasing. This method is reported to work well.

Using a Rice Cooker

If you have a rice cooker, you can place the lau lau in with the uncooked rice on a tray and cook as normal. The steam from the rice cooker will heat the lau lau. This method may take longer if the lau lau is frozen, so adjust the timing accordingly.

Using a Microwave

To reheat lau lau in the microwave, place it on a microwave-safe dish and cover it with a damp paper towel. Heat in one-minute intervals until the dish is hot throughout. For frozen lau lau, this can take around 20 minutes or more, depending on the number of pieces.

Other Methods

Other methods for reheating lau lau include using a double boiler or chafing dishes with sterno flames. These methods can take around 15-20 minutes. You can also thaw and reheat lau lau in the oven or on the stovetop, adjusting the timing as needed.

How long to steam lau lau

Lau lau is a traditional Hawaiian dish that is considered the island's soul food. It is a form of cooking and not a specific dish, and there are many ways to cook it. The traditional method involves steaming the lau lau in an underground imu, which is a large pit dug into the ground with a layer of hot rocks over a fire. The cooking time for this method is several hours.

Nowadays, people use more convenient methods such as pressure cookers, rice cookers, or ovens to cook lau lau, which reduces the cooking time. When using a pressure cooker, the cooking time is around one hour. When steaming lau lau in a steamer basket on the stove, the cooking time is around three to four hours.

The length of steaming time depends on the method used and the desired level of doneness. For example, when using a pressure cooker, the cooking time is around one hour, while steaming on the stove takes about three to four hours. The traditional method of cooking in an underground imu also takes several hours.

It is important to note that the cooking time may vary depending on the size and number of lau lau being cooked, as well as individual preferences for doneness. It is always a good idea to check the doneness of the lau lau before serving, as it should be tender and easily breakable with a fork.

What to do if you don't have ti leaves

To cook lau lau, it is recommended to steam the dish for around three to four hours. The traditional Hawaiian dish is made of pork and butterfish wrapped in lu'au (taro) leaves and ti leaves. The ti leaf is used to wrap the food and is not edible, while the luau leaf is eaten and is known to be delicious.

If you don't have ti leaves, you can wrap the lau lau in foil and steam it. You could also use banana leaves and burlap to wrap the lau lau, as these are used to cover the imu (underground oven) when preparing kalua pork.

Ti leaves are also used for non-food purposes, such as making leis, sprinkling holy water for blessings, and making hula skirts.

Frequently asked questions