Civic club to mark 80 years

Ko‘olaupoko Hawaiian Civic Club will celebrate its 80th anniversary Aug. 5 at the Koolau Grand Ballroom and Conference Center in Kaneohe. This year the group will honor two kamaaina businesses with ties to Kaneohe, Hawaii Memorial Park and Kamaka Ukulele, and two club members, Ardis Eschenberg of Windward Community College and Keau George of the Hula Preservation Society.

Individual tickets are $85; tables start at $1,000. The event includes entertainment by Waipuna and a silent auction benefiting the club’s scholarship fund for students in the area. Email Leilani Jones-Tollefsen at jonesjen@hawaii.rr.com or call 348-5957 for information or tickets.

Ko‘olaupoko has long been an advocate for natural resource management, the perpetuation of cultural knowledge and practices, and Hawaiian rights and community issues. The club provided this week’s tasty local recipes.

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Hoio Salad
Liko Kaluhiwa of Heeia

• 1 pound hoio, cut into 1- to 2-inch pieces (fern shoots, available at farmers markets and some grocery stores)
• 1/2 pound limu (seaweed; available in seafood sections of grocery stores)
• 1/2 pound tomatoes, cubed
• 1/4 pound onions, cubed
• 2 tablespoons patis (fish sauce), or more to taste
• 1 (3-ounce) package opae (dried shrimp; available in Asian sections of grocery stores)

Prepare 2 large bowls of ice water; set aside.

In a large pot of boiling water, blanch hoio 1 minute. Using a strainer, remove hoio and place in ice water to keep crunchy; drain.

Blanch limu 30 seconds and place in second bowl of ice water; drain.

In another large bowl, mix remaining ingredients; add hoio and limu and toss. Serves 8.

Approximate nutritional information, per serving: 80 calories, 1 g total fat, no saturated fat, 45 mg cholesterol, 500 mg sodium, 9 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 2 g sugar, 10 g protein.

Sweet and Sour Spare Ribs
Gwen Lee of Kaneohe, handed down in her family for generations

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 pounds spare ribs
• 1/4 pound ginger, sliced
• 1-1/2 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup shoyu
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 1 -1/2 cups water
• 2 tablespoons flour or cornstarch mixed with 2 tablespoons water

In a large pot, heat oil; add spare ribs and ginger; brown ribs. Add sugar and stir. Add liquid ingredients and stir. Bring to a boil, then lower heat to medium; simmer about 30 minutes, until meat is soft.

Add flour mixture and stir to thicken. Serves 6.

Approximate nutritional information, per serving (assumes all sauce is consumed): 700 calories, 41 g total fat, 12 g saturated fat, 125 mg cholesterol, 750 mg sodium, 56 g carbohydrate, no fiber, 51 g sugar, 26 g protein.

Hawaiian Cabbage Stew
Mahealani Cypher of Kaneohe, handed down from tutu Elizabeth Cypher

• 2 pounds beef stew meat, chopped into 1-inch cubes
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1/2 large onion, sliced
• 1 cup water, plus more as needed
• Hawaiian salt, to taste
• 1 head cabbage, sliced into 1-inch strips
• 1 (8-ounce) can tomato sauce

Season meat with salt and pepper; set aside.

Heat oil in large pot; add onion slices and saute until softened. Add meat; brown on all sides.

Add a cup of water to pot and parboil on medium to low heat until meat is softened. Add more water as needed. When meat is tender, add water to reach 2-3 inches above meat mixture; sprinkle with Hawaiian salt and more pepper. Add cabbage and tomato sauce. Stir ingredients; taste and adjust seasonings. Cook until cabbage is softened. Serves 6.

Approximate nutritional information, per serving (not including salt to taste): 280 calories, 9 g total fat, 3 g saturated fat, 95 mg cholesterol, 400 mg sodium, 16 g carbohydrate, 6 g fiber, 9 g sugar, 36 g protein.

More Hawaiian Electric Co. recipes are available at hawaiianelectric.com.