Luau Party -- Menus, Ideas...etc?

[fifibee]

I did a quick search and did find anything. Please direct me if there is an appropriate thread... TIA.

Feeling inspired from the Parenting thread's "First B-day party Ideas," I'm throwing a backyard Luau/Hawaiian-themed party for DH's upcoming birthday in July. :rolleyes: We are expecting around 15 adults. Since I'm not familiar with many Hawaiian or Luau dishes, I was wondering if you wonderful CCers can share some of your recipes and Luau party ideas or even fun drinks.

Here are some things I've come across so far that looks pretty interesting for decorations:

Hawaiian Lei Table Skirts (http://www.orientaltrading.com/application?namespace=browse&origin=catalogProducts.jsp&event=link.itemDetails&demandPrefix=12&sku=34/916&mode=Searching&erec=11&No=24&sp=true&Ntk=all&Ntx=mode%252bmatchallpartial&N=377380&sd=HAWAIIAN+LEI+TABLE+SKIRT-HIBISCUS+FLOWERS)
http://image.orientaltrading.com/otcimg/34_916.jpg?resize(250x250)

Hisbiscus Flower Fringe Decorations (http://www.orientaltrading.com/application?namespace=browse&origin=catalogProducts.jsp&event=link.itemDetails&demandPrefix=12&sku=34/915&mode=Searching&erec=7&No=36&sp=true&Ntk=all&Ntx=mode%252bmatchallpartial&N=377380&sd=HIBISCUS+FLOWER+FRINGE+DECORATION):
http://image.orientaltrading.com/otcimg/34_915.jpg?resize(250x250)

Luau Hawaiian Thatched Tabletop (http://cgi.ebay.com/LUAU-HAWAIIAN-PARTY-IDEA-THATCHED-TABLETOP-TIKI-HUT-NIB_W0QQitemZ9532554702QQcategoryZ102421QQrdZ1QQcm dZViewItem)
http://i3.ebayimg.com/04/i/04/9b/23/a1_2.JPG
This last one seems a bit over the top, but I thought it'd be fun if i can come up with something similar but less expensive.

All recipes, decoration ideas, or even games are welcomed! Thanks so much! :)

[Ohana]

DH is from Hawaii, so I have a ton of recipes.

Of course, you must have Kalua pork, sticky rice, and macaroni salad. They are on pretty much every luau menu in Hawaii. And you can also do shoyu chicken (which is like teriyaki chicken). If you're feeling adventurous, you can make chicken long rice or haupia (coconut pudding).

I've got recipes for the Kalua:
Take a pork shoulder (bone on or boneless, either is fine) and put in crockpot. Drizzle with a tsp or 2 of liquid smoke. Cook on low at least 10 hours. With 3 hours or so to go, add a handful of coarse or Hawaiian salt. After fully cooked, remove from crock pot and shred. This can be made in advance and frozen.

For the shoyu chicken, I just use a bottled sauce. An Asian grocery or other specialty store may carry it. If you live in an area with a large Asian/Hawaiian population like I do, the regular grocery store might carry it. Just marinate boneless, skinless chicken in the sauce for several hours and grill. You can marinate in teriyaki sauce for a very similar flavor.

I'd have to go look up recipes for chicken long rice, and I have an amazing recipe for a haupia based dessert at home, which I could look up if you like.

And don't forget to have Hawaiian music! Israel Kamakawiwo'ole is a good one to have playing in the background.

[Kimberland30]

Too funny that you posted this. I am planning a luau "Housewarming" party that we are hosting in a few weeks. Here's what I have on our menu so far...



Fruit skewers or fruit salad
Mango Salsa and Chips (from Sams)
Mac or Potato Salad
Sparkling Punch (punch mix, sherbert, ginger ale)
Chicken Long Rice or some sort of rice dish
Teriyaki Beef and chicken on skewers (recipe below)
Blackened, grilled, and lemon tuna chunks
Sushi
Shrimp Cocktail

I went to Target and got all kinds of tropical stuff 'on the cheap'. I got some of those plastic "ice cubes" that I'll use with ice to create a bedding for the cold stuff. Also, since we are having it outside, I want to make use of most of our yard. So I'll have a drink station (with margarittas and tropical martini's), a table next to the grill with the shrimp and skewers, and another station for the fruit and other side dishes. On our invites, we are asking our friends to bring beach chairs or blankets to sit on. I bought more tiki torches to set up around the yard. I also went to a party store and got all types of luau stuff, including something that looks like a huge table cloth but actually gets hung on a wall, it's a beach scene so it sets the whole "mood". :)

Here's a picture:
http://www.partycity.com/images/full/luau/92654.jpg

I got some paper plates with a tropical design on them, and some in bold plain colors (bright yellow, blue, etc). I also got all the plasticware in different colors - hot pink, purple and green. It gets expensive going all out tropical, beach or luau, so I bought some basic stuff and will improvise with what I have. Oh, at Target I also got little buckets that have a packet of sand in them, plus 3 cintronella candle "torches". Very cute. If you have a Target nearby, check out their housewares department or the area by the outdoor stuff. Everything I got was 75% off.






Teriyaki Chicken or Beef Sticks

2 lb. sirloin tip steak or chicken breasts
1/2 c. Teriyaki sauce
Skewers

Teriyaki Sauce
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. mirin (sweet rice wine)
1 tbsp. sugar

Wisk together teriyaki sauce ingredients. Slice steak or chicken diagonally into strips (2x1x1/4 inch thick). Marinate meat slices in teriyaki sauce for 30-45 minutes. Thread slices onto 48 skewers, using a back and forth motion. Barbeque or broil until browned.

(I deleted the recipe I posted for Chicken Long Rice because there was something wrong with the instructions. I must not have copied the entire recipe to my menu sheet, whoops! I'll find it again and post it when I do).

[fifibee]

Thank you, thank you, thank you-- Ohana and Kimberland30! This will definitely help getting me started on the planning. :)

For recipes, I am definitely going to include the terriyaki / shoyu type of grilled chicken, Kalau pork, and then the macaroni salad. I've never made the Kalau pork, but I guess it's never too late to try. I'm not sure if mango salsa is usually a luau staple, but we love it so much that I'm having that as snacks for sure too.

The "chicken long rice" sounds interesting too, so if you don't mind, could you post it when you find it? TIA.

I'll definitely go into Target and check out what's available for a reasonable price. I was thinking of hitting the local Party City (http://www.partycity.com/)and Diddam's (http://www.diddams.com/) too for party decorations. I would love to have a tiki bar to serve drinks but it seems rather pricey. Kimberland30, I think your idea of mixing some tropical themed serving items with bright-colored basic items is fantastic. That will definitely help reduce the cost.

I feel like an idiot for asking, but Ohana, I'm not sure what "haupia" is. But I'm really curious and if you could share that recipe, maybe I can try it out for the dessert dish. Thanks!

Finally, I thought these would be kinda cute to throw in the inflatable kiddie pool we have in the backyard for added effect.
http://image.orientaltrading.com/otcimg/34_1152.jpg?resize(250x250)

Anyone else with ideas? :)

[Kimberland30]

The rubber duckies are SO cute!

You'll definately find a lot at Party City, that was my next stop after Target. They happened to be right next door to eachother too, so that helped. :)

I love mango salsa. My MIL brought two containers with her to our beach vacation and I swear I ate one of them myself. I'm not one to try "new things" with food, but I'm glad I did...deeee-lish!

The tiki bar is cute, but I know what you mean about the cost. I'm just going to have a separate table with a bright plastic tablecloth on it, and probably a grass skirting. If you have on of those canopy shelters, you could always set the table under it and get inexpensive tropical party lights to go around the canopy. ???

I'm not exactly sure what luau staples are either. I grew up in Hawaii, and there are so many cultures there that it's hard to determine exactly what is Hawaiian vs another culture...but it all works. I just normally think Asian, which is why I'm including sushi in my menu. I do the "houli" version using canned tuna, egg, cucumber and colored shrimp flakes.

Anyway, here a recipe for Chicken Long Rice. It was one of the easy ones I found...some get way too complicated!


Chicken Long Rice
This staple of a Hawaiian luau, Chicken Long Rice, actually originated in China.

INGREDIENTS:
3 pounds boneless, skinless chicken cut into small pieces or strips
6 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic, minced
1½ teaspoons sugar
dash pepper
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
6-8 oz. sliced mushrooms
2-4 chopped green onions
10 oz. long rice (cellophane noodles)
8 oz chicken broth

PREPARATION:
Combine 2 tablespoons soy sauce, sesame oil, ginger, garlic, sugar and pepper to create a marinade. Add the chicken and refrigerate at least 1 hour.

Cover and soak long rice in cold water for 30 minutes. Cut into eight lengths. (Smaller lengths can be used based on preference.)

Place a large skillet or wok over high heat. When hot add vegetable oil and marinated chicken. Cook until chicken no longer is pink, turning often. Reduce heat and add mushrooms, green onions, long rice, chicken broth and remainder of soy sauce. Simmer until hot, stirring often - about 3 minutes.

Note - Long rice requires very little cooking time. It absorbs liquid very easily and can easily break down if cooked too long.

[bluhimmy]

I threw a wedding shower with a Hawaiian Luau theme years back. This is the menu I had:

Kalua Pork
Teriyaki Chicken Skewers
Macaroni Salad
Green Salad w/ Miso Ginger Dressing
Tuna Poke
Spam Masubi
Assorted Vegetarian Sushi
Taro Spring Rolls
Hawaiian Bread/Rolls
Tropical Fruit Salad
Rice
Sparkling Guava-Orange Punch


I ordered some decorations from Oriental Trading. A friend brought back the leis from his trip to Oahu. I picked up some fake waterlillies to float in the pool. I think I got those at Cost Plus. I think I also picked up some laterns from there too. DH already had some tikki torches, from his bachelor party throwing days, that we used. DH's friend had make his own tikki bar, so we sort of half disassembled it and moved it over, and reassembled it at the party.

No one had kids then, so we didn't have kiddie stuff. But I love the rubber duckie you posted. I think they would look super cute in the inflatable pool.

[ejs]

One warning about Oriental Trading. We ordered some shells from them for a party. We opened up each container and they smelled so FOUL. It was as if they hadn't rinsed the shells before they packaged them. It was disgusting!

All other decorations were great, though.

[princesse]

How about virgin pina coloda smooties with umbrella straws for any kids who are coming......they love those straws.

Halo Halo or green tea ice cream for dessert or to be very simple, fresh pineapple, mango and coconut.

Sounds like it is going to be a great party! Are you going to give favors? In Style magazine last month had some great ideas. A take off of one of thier ideas would be to pick up a bunch of colorful flip flops from Old Navy in different sizes (I think they are 2/$5) and put them in a colorful tub along with other fun summer essentials like cheap sunglasses so that people can pick up a pair on the way out the door.

[caramello]

Haupia, if I'm not mistaken, is sort of like coconut jello/pudding. I love it. Its really easy to make if you cheat like me - in the Asian section of the supermarket, you can usually find a package of it (like a package of taco seasoning) and just add boiling water and then put it in the fridge like jello.

Don't forget pineapples, too. Other than that, seems like everyone's covered the basics.

Not sure if you have any Hawaiian restaurants near you, but they seem to be opening up all over LA - they usually do catering, too.

I threw a Hawaiian themed bridal shower and used postcards from Hawaii as the invitation. Just as an FYI - I recently ordered western themed rubber duckies from Oriental Trading Company - they are small - still cute though. Just didn't want you to be shocked like I was!

[Ohana]

I can't find my Haupia recipe (it was the regular haupia on top of a shortbread crust, topped with whipped cream, to die for), but here's a sit that has a lot of good recipes:

http://www.hawaii.edu/recipes/

[wine_o_girlie]

I made chicken shoyu skewers last night and they were so easy and would be great for a party. Just buy a bag of frozen chicken breasts at BJ's or Costco, defrost. Cut each breast into 2 or 3 long strips. Marinate in a purchased marinade sauce (try Trader Joe's if you have one, they have a bunch of different Asian inspired marinades), you could even add some pineapple juice to the marinade and that would be really good. Marinate for 1-2 days. Thread the chicken onto skewers and grill.

I always serve some kind of skewers or kebabs for big parties and they are a big hit plus they don't need to be warm which is awesome.

Definitely do the macaroni salad, it was a staple on our plates when we were in Maui recently. Have fun! :)

[fifibee]

Sorry I haven't dropped by in the last week or so, but I'm so glad you ladies have been contributing to my party planning! Thanks everyone!

So we've decided on the menu and this is what we have so far:

Appetizers/Snacks:
* Mango Salsa w/Chips
* Hawaiian Bread
* Spam Musubi

Main Dishes:
* Kalau Pork
* Shoyu Chicken
* Salmon (our friend is in charge of this one, and he promises he'll come up with something Hawaiian)

Other sides:
* Macaroni Salad
* Chicken Long Rice
* Fresh Fruit (lots of pineapple and mango)

Drinks:
Still TBD -- this is definitely something I'm going to need others to help me because we've got some drinkers and non-drinkers. So once I get some volunteers to be makeshift bartender, then we can decide on the drink menu.

Desserts:
I love to serve something simple like ice cream, but the coconut jello/pudding sounds easy enough to whip up in the midst of other prepartions.

We've ordered quite a package from Oriental Trading, including some luau-themed cups, straws, table skirts, fringe decorations for the patio, luau duckies and some bright-colored plates and napkins (orange & lime green). Once I get the package, I may just drop by Party City to pickup whatever else is necessary. Oh, how can I forget, I also scored some fun tiki torches off of Craigslist too!

Anyway, thanks again for everyone's help here! I'll definitely still check out the links that some have provided to get more ideas.

Happy 4th of July!

[bluhimmy]

I just noticed that you're in the bay area, meaning north cal, right? We got a guava cake (way yummy) from Aki's in SJ. If you still want to do ice cream for dessert, how about getting coconut, mango, or pineapple ice cream. I think you should be able to find them in the asian markets like Lions or Ranch 99. If you want to dress up ice cream, do coconut ice cream and top it with a simple pineapple sauce.

You have a great menu already. Have fun!

[caramello]

What about some plain white rice? I tend to mix it with my Kalua pork otherwise its too salty for me. Also, if you have time, I have seen chicken teriyaki in place of the spam for the musubis. For non-alcoholic drinks, how about pineapple juice and Hawaiian punch or one of those punch/sherbert type drinks?

[DallasLady]

bump

[Kiley]

Does anyone have a receipe for the macaroni salad?

[Ohana]

My MIL just takes salad macaroni (smaller than elbow, like Ditalini), boils it up, and mixes it with Hellman's Mayo, finely minced onion, and sometimes, she adds that fake crab stuff, minced up. You can also add shredded carrots, which is what a lot of the Hawaiian restaurants around here do.

Just don't use low or no fat mayo for true Hawaiian Mac Salad. It's ick.

[fifibee]

Just wanted to post some pics of our luau party last weekend. It was a huge success thanks to your help on ideas and menu items. I think DH had a great time. :)

Food table (with the table skirts and all...):
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a185/betsy808/Birthday/20060715_0131.jpg

Silly fishnets and sealife animals:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a185/betsy808/Birthday/20060715_0133.jpg

Inflateable pool with luau ducks and tiki torches:
http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a185/betsy808/Birthday/20060715_0134.jpg

Thanks for the help, ladies!

[gayle]

Wow, your party looks like it was awesome!!!

[DallasLady]

Our co-ed "baby celebration" is this Saturday and here is the menu we're going with. Not everything is 100% authentic polynesian, but my Texas family and friends won't know the difference ;):

-Spinach dip in a Hawaiian bread bowl
-Lime tortilla chips
-Mango salsa (from Sams)
-Hawaiian bread rolls
-Teriyaki Chicken
-Kalua pork
-Sweet and sour meatballs (I am going back and forth on this one)
-Fried rice
-Macaroni salad
-Sliced pineapple with caramel dipping sauce
-Tropical punch

[kimbyj]

Anyone have any new ideas or recipes? I am throwing an engagment party for my cousin and since their honeymoon will be in Hawaii....

TIA!