The crown jewel of a luau is the whole roast pig, pulled steaming hot and fragrant from its imu (underground oven). The meat is fall-off-the-bone tender, smoky, salty, and juicy.

Growing up in Hawaii, I attended many luaus – from first birthdays to church anniversaries to retirement parties. While we don’t have luaus every weekend, it’s relatively easy to get kalua pork from local restaurants or grocery stores. But when you live elsewhere, you have to turn to a homemade option that doesn’t require building an imu in your backyard or acquiring a whole pig.

Smoking up da kitchen

Kalua pork is just a version of pulled pork – cooked and seasoned simply. Sam Choy has shared at least two recipes for oven-roasted kalua pork. The first time I tried to make kalua pork was for a potluck for international students attending Boston University (yes, Hawaii was considered international). Each student was encouraged to bring a dish that represented their home and I chose to make kalua pork using Sam Choy’s first recipe. The pork butt is rubbed with salt and liquid smoke, prior to cooking. Because the pork butt roasted for close to 5 hours, the smoky smell permeated not only my tiny apartment but the entire building. Although the end result was delicious, I’m thankful no one called the fire department. I never made that recipe again.

Let’s make it easier (and a little less fragrant)

Sam Choy’s second recipe is much more neighbor-friendly. Instead of rubbing liquid smoke on the pork butt prior to roasting, the liquid smoke is added after the pork is roasted and shredded, before serving. I honestly feel the taste is the same and any minor sacrifice in taste is worth not having your home smelling like an imu.

Sam Choy’s recipe is made a bit easier by cooking the pork in an instant pot instead of roasting it in the oven. The instant pot cuts down at least 3 hours of cooking time and you forego wrapping the pork in banana leaves. Using a mesquite liquid smoke produces a very similar flavor to Hawaiian kiawe wood typically used in an imu. It is so easy.

What do I do with all this kalua pork?

Depending on the size of pork butt you cook, you will end up with a hefty amount kalua pork. So, unless you are hosting a family luau, what do you do with all of this delicious pork? In future posts I will share recipes incorporating kalua pork but for now, here are some ideas:

• Eat it with rice. If you are more adventurous, you can find powdered poi that can be cooked and eaten with the pork (in a pinch when I lived in Boston and was craving poi, this was my only option)
• Substitute the miso pork with kalua pork in these quesadillas
• Make it into pulled pork sandwiches with your favorite barbecue sauce (this may sound blasphemous to local Hawaii folks but it’s delicious)
• Buy frozen bao buns at your local Asian grocery store, steam them and fill them with kalua pork. Top with sliced green onions and cilantro leaves.
• Substitute kalua pork for the char siu filling in this bao recipe
• Freeze it into portions to use in future meals

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