Crack-seed cocktails conjure childhood memories

The unique smell of the crack-seed store brings back childhood memories. The sweet and salty taste of li hing mui can have us local folk reminiscing about football tailgates, trips to the movies and treats from our grandparents.

The kamaaina love affair with preserved plums, prunes, lemons and mangoes, in all shapes and forms, goes back generations.

Chef Alan Wong elevated the humble li hing, turning it into an epic dressing that made our local tomatoes sing and let us experience crack seed in a whole new light.

My hope is that the featured cocktails this month will do the same and transport the flavors of the crack-seed store into your glass.

STRAWBERRY LI HING LEMONADE

As much as I love the taste of li hing, I have to admit it probably isn’t the healthiest thing, with all of its red dye and aspartame.

The akamai folks at OnoPops wanted to capture the flavor of li hing without all the guilt, so they developed Grandpa Mui’s all-natural recipe, with no artificial coloring or aspartame (available at Whole Foods Market Kahala). This simple recipe binds fresh muddled strawberries with the sweet and salty li hing, fresh lemonade and vodka.

This combo would also work with gin, rum, tequila or even smoky mezcal.

• 3 strawberries, halved
• 1 teaspoon OnoPops Grandpa Mui’s li hing powder
• Pinch sea salt
• 1 ounce lemon juice
• 3/4 ounce rich simple syrup (2 parts sugar dissolved in 1 part water)
• 1-1/2 ounces filtered water
• 1-1/2 ounces vodka (such as Absolut or Grey Goose)

In a shaker, muddle (crush) strawberries with li hing, salt, lemon juice and simple syrup. Add water, vodka and ice. Shake and strain over ice into highball glass.

Garnish: Thin strawberries floating in glass and lemon wheel.

CRACKED UP

This next cocktail takes li hing to a more grown-up, layered and boozy place. The sweet and savory are balanced with the bracing herbal bitterness of fernet, the most intensely herbal of all amaros (bitter Italian liqueurs). The spiciness of rye whiskey and bitters bind it all seamlessly.

The li hing syrup is easy to make using OnoPops natural li hing powder once again.

• 1/2 ounce natural li hing syrup (see note)
• 3 dashes Angostura Bitters
• 1 bar spoon fernet (such as Angelico)
• 2 ounces rye whiskey (such as High West or Bulleit)

Combine syrup, bitters, fernet and whiskey in mixing glass with ice. Stir and strain over large ice cube.

Garnish: Preserved lemon and luxardo cherry on bar pick.

Note: To make li hing syrup, dissolve 1/4 cup OnoPops white li hing powder, 1 tablespoon sea salt and 1/4 cup sugar in 1/2 cup hot water. Let cool.

PICKLED MANGO MARGARITA 2.0

Last year during mango season I featured a pickled mango margarita using my Uncle Blane’s killer pickled mango that he gives to us once a year. I wish I could have a lifetime supply, but the reality is that once that prized mango is gone, we have to get creative.

This recipe is the 2.0 version, sparked by the tangy flavor of kombucha, which emulates the “pickling” process. A li hing-infused tequila ties it all together, and the combination is dangerous.

I especially like this version because the sugar content is low, with the alternative use of agave nectar and the ’buch.

• 1/2 ounce lime juice
• 1/2 ounce agave nectar (diluted with water 2-to-1)
• 2 ounces red li hing-infused reposado tequila (see note)
• 2 ounces mango kombucha (such as GT’s)

Combine lime, agave and tequila in highball glass. Fill with ice, shake to combine and top with kombucha.

Garnish: Pickled mango on a bar pick.

Note: To infuse tequila, combine 6 ounces red li hing mui with a 750-ounce bottle of reposado tequila (such as Patron Reposado) in a glass or nonreactive sealed container. Let infuse at room temperature 2-4 weeks, upending every couple of days to incorporate.

CRACK-SEED SODA

I featured this cocktail a couple of years ago at a Hawaii Food & Wine Festival event, and local people came back for seconds and thirds.

The secret was a special preserved lemon that I was able to source from one of my favorite pho restaurants, Pho Huong Lan. The matriarch of the family lovingly preserves the lemons used in a lemon soda.

My cocktail recipe is fairly simple — basically taking exactly what they do at the restaurant and adding a beautiful aged rum and some lemon for added acidity to keep it bright.

• 1/4 preserved lemon
• 1/2 ounce lemon juice
• 1-1/2 ounce aged rum (such as Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva)
• 7-Up or Sprite

Muddle (crush) lemon with juice in a glass. Add rum, fill with ice and top with 7-Up or Sprite; stir.

Nutritional information unavailable.

Chandra Lucariello is director of mixology for Southern Wine & Spirits. Ingredient note: The liquors and liqueurs used in these recipes are widely available from Oahu liquor stores and some supermarkets.