Ho'O Kanaka Stew

Ho’o Kanaka Stew is a traditional Hawaiian beef stew with deep roots in island home cooking. Before supermarkets and shipping changed the local food landscape, Hawaiian families built slow-simmered stews like this one around whatever was on hand, and poi (fermented taro paste) was the natural thickener stirred in at the end.

The stew starts with salt pork and bacon drippings, which render a deep, smoky base that chuck roast cubes brown in. Cabbage wedges lay on top in the final stretch of cooking, steam-braising until tender and then getting chopped back into the pot. Potatoes, carrots, and tomatoes fill in the classic beef-stew vegetable profile.

The poi is the real signature. A few spoonfuls stirred into the simmering broth thickens the liquid into something silky with a faint tang from the fermentation. If you can’t find poi, mashed potato works as a substitute but loses that characteristic island flavor.

Chef Tips

• Brown the beef in batches. Crowding the pan steams the meat and you lose the fond that builds flavor.
• Remove the tomato skins after cooking. They curl up during the simmer and become tough and stringy.
• Use bone-in chuck if you can find it. Bones add body and gelatin that lean cuts won’t.
• Add poi gradually until you hit the thickness you want. It keeps thickening as it cooks.

Variations

• Add a stalk of lemongrass during the simmer for a subtle Asian-Hawaiian crossover.
• Swap salt pork for diced bacon if salt pork isn’t easy to find.
• Serve with rice and a side of lomi-lomi salmon for a proper Hawaiian plate.