Kālua Pork

A Hawaiian dish named after its cooking method “kālua” (meaning “cooked in an underground oven”), kālua pork is a smoky, shredded meat dish. Also known as kālua pig, kālua pork is frequently served at celebratory events like luaus, potlucks, and is part of the ever-popular Hawaiian lunch plate, where it’s typically paired with Mac Salad and steamed white rice. Originally, to make kālua pork, a whole pig would have been wrapped in the leaves of the ti plant to protect the meat while it cooked in an underground oven called an imu. The leaves encase the meat and protect its moisture while it cooks for long hours. 

In this recipe adapted from chef Sheldon Simeon’s Cook Real Hawai‘i, Simeon calls for more widely available banana leaves to encase  boneless pork shoulder (Boston Butt), which cooks in a roasting pan in a standard oven to achieve juicy, succulent kālua pork at home. The meat is simply seasoned with Hawaiian sea salt, enhancing the pure flavor of the meat and helping to tenderize it along the way. The banana leaves protect the pork butt from drying out in the oven, holding in steam that keeps the meat juicy and plump while at the same time giving the dish a very subtle, anise-like flavor. “For me, cooking in banana leaves is a connection to the past,” Simeon says. “Also, the flavor it imparts in food is so delicious.”