Title: Sam Choy's Polynesian Kitchen
First published: July 10, 2002
Description: In this groundbreaking book, Sam Choy, Hawaii's celebrated chef and restauranteur, broadens his focus to showcase a vibrant area previously unexplored by any major cookbook. Here are the delicious foods of the seven island groups of the South Pacific: Fiji, Hawaii, the Marquesas, New Zealand, Samoa, Tahiti, and Tonga. Forget pupu platters and Mai Tais. The extraordinary dishes in the book represent the islands' authentic cuisines, which fuse European, Chinese, and East Indian flavors with local ingredients to create unique and enticing meals. They are drawn from Sam's own travels through the South Pacific and his experiences growing up in a small Hawaiian town that was a remarkable gathering place for pan-Polynesian culture -- music, dance, and especially cooking. Many of the recipes in Sam Choy's Polynesian Kitchen are adaptations of traditional island dishes, such as the Fijian fish dish, Kokoda; others are Sam's own creations -- like his Pago Pago Snapper and his Deep-fried Calamari Salad -- inspired by the tastes and textures that make each island cuisine distinct. All of the recipes are wonderfully simple, with easy-to-follow cooking techniques and few ingredients. - Jacket flap.