Lollipop, Lollipop, la, la, la lollipop!

Everyone loves flavorful candy on a stick and Ken Takahashi took the treats to a new level with his Burger Pops at last year’s Mealani’s Taste of the Hawaiian Range. Assigned grass-fed burger, Takahashi created something unique and fun to eat while “grazing” at Taste. Chef shares his recipe for making burger “lollipops,” tells how he got into cooking and details his use of grass-fed beef at Honolulu Burger Company.

Chef Ken Takahashi oversees the frying of Burger Lollipops by a Kona HawCC culinary student at last year's Taste.

From Hilo to O’ahu
Born in Sapporo, Japan, Ken arrived in Hilo at the tender age of five in 1967. He attended De Silva Elementary, Waiakea Intermediate and High Schools and graduated from UH Manoa with a BBA in international business. He opened Honolulu Burger Company in 2010 after getting into the culinary arts via restaurant management.

Takahashi explains, “I began in the restaurant business as a part time host at the Hilton Hawaiian Village’s Ajisai-tei restaurant.  There, I learned marketing and front-of-the-house operations, as well as rudimentary kitchen tasks from the chef.  Within a few months, I became marketing/ sales manager and was responsible for also managing their two other restaurants.  In order to effectively oversee the other restaurant operations, I had to learn how to cook and teach kitchen operations and cooking procedures to the culinary staff.  That’s where it all started.  After that, I opened a small hot dog, burritos and gyros stand called the Dog House at the King’s Village Shopping Center.

Besides loving food, Ken enjoys golf. He explains, “At last year’s Taste of the Range, I was able to sneak off with my friends from Hilo and almost finished 17 holes in two hours at Waikoloa Village Golf Club before it poured on us. Then I had to rush back to finish making our burger pops.”

Q and A

Q: How would you describe your cooking style and please give some examples.
A: Chop Suey!  I’m not ashamed to admit that through my career in the restaurant industry, I learned from whomever was willing to teach me.  My mom taught me traditional Japanese home cooking. I learned other cuisines from chefs at different restaurants that I was involved with. I picked up ideas from cookbooks, TV-I was a food network junkie when it first started- and I even learned how to make a great tzatziki sauce from a Greek taxi driver who didn’t like what I was using for my gyros. Finally, I experimented with tastes and ingredients in the kitchen-it was a lot of trial and error.

Q: Why do you use grass-fed beef?
A: At Honolulu Burger Company, our main goal is to use grass-fed beef as hamburger patties for burgers first.  We also started making loco mocos with it as well.  In addition, we use sliced grass-fed sirloin for our Teri and Philly Dip Sandwiches, as well as boneless short ribs and brisket for our braised short rib sandwiches.  I have experimented with mountain oysters but didn’t do too well….

Q. What are your favorite grass-fed beef cuts and why?
A: I really like all the different cuts because of the product quality.

Q: Do you let patrons know on your menu they are eating grass-fed beef?
A: Yes, our business plan revolves around the concept of eating local and grass-fed beef.

Q: What other local food products are your favorite and why?
A: The great thing about Hawai’i is that it is the true melting pot of world cultures, ideas and food!  We have such a diverse food culture that there is always a new favorite for me and it changes all the time.  (that’s why I’m so fat-Iove to eat all the time!)

Q: Are you participating in the 2012 Taste?
A: Yes!

Honolulu Burger Company is located at 1295 S. Beretania St. in Honolulu, 808-626-5202, www.honoluluburgercom.com.

Grass-Fed Beef Recipe: Big Island Beef Burger Pops

You may have remembered tasting the delish Kalua Big Island Beef….or maybe the Spicy Bloody Mary Mix that uses local WOW tomatoes and was featured by the RecipeRenovator.com? After just opening, Eddie Aikau Restaurant debuted last year at Mealani’s Taste of the Hawaiian Range to wide acclaim. At the helm of the popular Kings’ Shops restaurant is Chef Scott Kealoha Lutey. We feature Scott in this week’s Taste It blog, along with his recipe for Herb Cheese Rubbed Grass-fed Filet Mignon with Tomato Relish.

Maui No Ka Oi

Chef Scott Lutey (far right) and team give the shaka the 2011 Taste

Born and raised on The Valley Isle, Chef Lutey is a local boy who “loves to free dive and surf.” He credits his grandmother, who did a lot of cooking when he was growing up, for igniting his flame for the culinary arts. “I always remember the fish-steamed uhu or fried akule. If the opihi were big, she would put them on the grill.”

After graduating from Maui’s Lahainaluna High School, Lutey attended Kapiolani and Hilo Community Colleges. He earned his culinary chops at numerous restaurants and hotels on Maui and Kaua’i before coming to the Big Isle to serve as executive chef at Tommy Bahama’s Tropical Café. On the way, the Hawai’i native earned numerous awards and accolades, including being named a James Beard House “Featured Chef” and Angostura “World Class Taste” grand prize winner.

The four-time Hale ‘Aina Award winner has been at Eddie Aikau since it opened in July 2011 and has been wowing patrons with his innovative menu that relies on a wide variety of local foods-everything from Waipi’o Valley taro and ti leaf to Hula Girl Honey.

Q and A

Q: How would you describe your cooking style?

A: Simple.  I try to enhance the flavors and presentation of local products, like with our Watermelon Salad or Waimea Tomato Salad.  I try to present the foods in interesting ways, with different textures and layers of flavors.

Q: Why do you use grass-fed beef?

A: I use grass-fed beef because I support the local farmers and ranchers of course.  But a big part of it is flavor.  GFB has no hormones or the other chemicals they pump into other cows.

Q: What are your favorite GFB cuts and why?

A: The filet, because the flavor is very clean.  Sometimes other beef, packaged meat, has a “bloody” flavor.  The grass-fed filet doesn’t have that.

Q: Do you let patrons know they are eating GFB on the menu?

A: Yes, absolutely!

Q: What other local food products are your favorite and why?

A: My favorite is still the fish.  You can get meat all over the Mainland, but there’s nothing like the fish here in the islands.  Asa, our fresh fish provider, came in with a beautiful, fresh mahi and cut it just this morning.  Why come to Hawai’i and not eat the fish?

Q: Are you returning to participate in Taste?

A: Yes!

Eddie Aikau Restaurant and Surf Museum is located at the Kings’ Shops in the Waikoloa Beach Resort, 808-886-8433, Facebook. Read the Recipe Renovator blog on the 2011 Taste and get Chef Scott’s Spicy Bloody Mary Mix recipe.

Wowing attendees with grass-fed Kim Chee Meatloaf, Chef Michelle Yamaguchi of Honolulu’s ‘Umeke Market made a culinary name for herself at last year’s Mealani’s Taste of the Hawaiian Range. Chef Michelle is returning to Taste again this September to again offer her healthy and delicious style of cooking that is featured in the market’s deli. We feature Michelle in this week’s Taste It blog, along with her popular recipe for Kim Chee Meatloaf.

A Midwest Upbringing

Chef Michelle Yamaguchi of 'Umeke Market wowed the crowd at last year's Taste with her Kim Chee Meatloaf. A former journalist, the busy mother of three is returning to Taste in 2012

Michelle Yamaguchi says she grew up “eating the most amazing fresh fruit and vegetables.” The produce was sourced from mother’s family, who operated a farm in Wisconsin. They planted and tended a garden with lettuce, tomatoes, beans, cucumbers and squash. She also helped preserve food typical to Midwesteners: canning tomatoes and peaches, and making berry preserves.

Michelle says her days spent with food on the farm spurred her interest in the culinary arts, which is her second career. Michelle has a journalism degree and first worked as a reporter for Pacific Business News. However, she is glad she traded in her notepad for a stockpot and loves working as chef/manager for ‘Umeke Markets’ two locations. In her spare time, the busy mother of three enjoys hiking “anywhere and everywhere.” In the summer, she heads to the beach and loves snorkeling at Three Tables on the North Shore.

Q and A

Q: How would you describe your cooking style?

A: My cooking style is simple, healthy, practical and imaginative. Meatloaf, for example, is pretty basic comfort food, but we’ve done it Kim Chee Style and with a Hoisin BBQ Sauce that people have fallen in love with! I’m also a huge advocate of whole grains and we make a wide variety of grain salads: quinoa, barley, millet.

Q: Why do you use grass-fed beef?

A: That’s an easy one: taste. When you start with a great product, it’s hard to go wrong. Start with fresh garlic, salt and pepper …. I’m also big on fresh herbs. Avoiding the use of hormones and antibiotics as much as possible is important to our customers.

Q: What are your favorite GFB cuts and why?

A: Because we’re a much more casual dining experience, we keep it simple and real. We work mainly with the ground beef right now. Burgers, meatloaf, local moco …

Q: Do you let patrons know they are eating GFB on the menu?

A: We make it a point to let customers know what we’re serving and why, especially the healthy meat options. Many of our customers return regularly for that reason alone. That and the food is really good.

Q: What other local food products are your favorite and why?

A: I love, love, love the organic kale we use from Ko Farms. Our raw ‘Umeke Kale Salad continues to be a customer must-have. This ultra-healthy super food has been largely ignored by the masses and chefs alike and considered little other than as a lowly garnish. As of more recent, our Kale Smoothie is also a top seller, easily surpassing the famed Acai Bowl and Acai Smoothie, among others.

Q: Are you returning to participate in Taste?

A: Yes, 2011 was our first year participating in the Taste of the Hawaiian Range and we’re absolutely thrilled to be invited to return. It was a fantastic event – from the hotel and kitchen staff, to the other vendors and volunteers, to the event guests – Big Island folks especially. They showed such appreciation for both our efforts and the event in general. Much aloha!

‘Umeke Market is located at Bishop Square in Downtown Honolulu, 808-522-7377 and across from Kahala Mall at 4400 Kalaniana’ole Hwy., 808-739-2990. http://www.umekemarket.com

Grass-Fed Beef Recipe: Kim Chee Big Island Beef Meatloaf

The Taste of the Hawaiian Range was developed to educate the public about the wholesomeness of grass-fed beef raised on our island. Yet, many people want to know more and more about where their food comes from and who supports the stewardship of the industry. Let’s take a look at some of the national organizations who support the beef industry nationwide.

The Beef Board
Congress created a national Cattlemen’s Beef Board under the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) to carry out the Beef Act’s program. The program includes Beef Promotion and the Research Act which are all associated with the Beef Checkoff Program. Locally, the Hawaii Beef Industry Council, a non-profit organization, is a Qualified State Beef Council under the national Cattlemen’s Beef Board.

What is the Beef Checkoff?
The Beef Checkoff is a producer-funded marketing and research program aimed at promoting and increasing sales of beef products in supermarkets, restaurants and marketing new products such as new recipes. With demonstrations of beef products and sampling, the Beef Checkoff Program is able to showcase new menus, new recipes and nutritional information about beef.

Professionals in the food service industry can access information about beef safety, cuts, facts and trends, recipes and training materials at www.beeffoodservice.org.

Those of you who love to cook and eat beef can go to www.beefitswhatsfordinner.com/ for cooking tips, facts, nutritional materials, recipes, and the Beef So Simple newsletter. The Mojo Beef Kabobs Recipe is from this website which is funded by the Beef Checkoff Program.

Check out these sites for more information:
The Hawaii Beef Industry Council, is the Hawaii State organizations which is responsible to collect Check-of dollars on each head of cattle sold or processed in our State. Hawaii benefits by having fifty-cents of every dollar collected in Hawaii held in the State for promotion of Beef in Hawaii. Beef promotional materials are done at Farm Fairs, supermarkets, restaurants, and with wholesalers and retailers.

The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) represents U.S. Cattle producers and advocates for the cattle industry. They have a Livestock Marketing Council, a Cattle Learning Center and sponsor a Summer Conference. To learn more about the NCBA visit www.beefusa.org.

One of the “hot” booths at Taste and the ag trade show was Kaiulani Spices. Here the aroma of exotic curry and cinnamon beckoned attendees to come and “take a whiff.” What they got was a delicious sample of Curry Fried Rice with Cranberries, grass-fed short ribs seasoned with Kona Coffee Rub or yummy Hawaiian-seasoned pasta.

Kai Cowell readies her Curry Fried Rice with Cranberries at Mealani’sTaste of the Hawaiian Range.

Kaiulani Spices
Doing the cooking with the aromatic spices was O‘ahu’s Kaiulani Cowell, founder of the spice company that bears her name. A native of the Philippines, Cowell got her culinary training at Honolulu’s Kapiolani Community College and the famed Culinary Institute of America in New York. Cowell says she “seasoned” her cooking skills at the Hilton Hotel in Guam and at the Stanford Court Hotel in San Francisco. She started her spice company after finding “a need” for natural rubs and seasoning collections.

“Having cooked with spice rubs while in school, I learned how easy they were to use and how much they could enhance the flavors of so many foods,” details Cowell.  “I wanted to expand and improve on the existing spice choices, so, early in my cooking career I experimented with natural herbs, spices and sea salt, all of which quickly enhanced the flavor of my recipes.”

After extensive research, tasting and experimentation, Cowell created her self-described “just right” rubs for meats, poultry, vegetables, stews and casseroles. She uses island favorites such as ginger, garlic, chives, Chinese parsley, onion and a total of 22 different spices.

“Today, I am thankful that recipes made with Kaiulani Spices are enjoyed in restaurants and homes throughout Hawai‘i and beyond,” she adds.

Spices Boast Medicinal Uses
The more Cowell studied spices, the more she discovered their uses beyond tempting the palate.

“In India, they call turmeric the ‘holy powder,’ because it helps fight infections, aids in wound healing, is high in antioxidants and helps prevent Alzheimer’s,” she shares.

Cowell reports cinnamon is considered the world’s most important medicinal spice. “Cinnamon helps the digestive system, controls blood sugar levels, soothes stomach ulcers and fights yeast infections.”

Forumulating Spice Blends
Each Kaiulani Spice blend contains eight different spices, with the exception of the Chinese 5 Spice. Cowell uses fresh, raw spices for individual roasting and grinding. Spices are then mixed and bottled by hand in Honolulu.

“I’m proud to say we are one of the few organic, locally made spices in Hawai‘i,” she notes. “We are anxiously awaiting our organic certification.” Cowell ensures her spices are free of preservatives, gluten and MSG. They are non-irradiated and no animal, fish or peanut products are used in their preparation.

Flavor Without the Labor
Kaiulani’s offers six choices of rub/seasoning mixes: Exotic Curry Medium, Exotic Curry Hot, Hawaiian Spice, Kona Coffee, Chinese 5 Spice and the new Hawaiian Cajun. They are for sale at Foodland/Sack ‘n Save on the Big lsland and numerous locations on O‘ahu and Maui. To order online, visit Kaiulani Spices.

Grass-Fed Beef Cooking Tip
Cowell suggests using her Kona Coffee Rub and Seasoning for beef. “It’s a favorite steak rub for chefs in Waikiki,” she notes.

Cowell suggests “sprinkling 1.5-2 tablespoons on the whole steak (both sides). Then rub olive oil on the meat and marinate for an hour. To cook, first sear the steak, followed by your choice of grilling or broiling.”

Exotic Curry Fried Rice with Cranberries