The food of Paradise

A hybrid work of culinary history, personal memoir, and practical cookbook, this volume examines Hawaii's "Local Food" — the creole cuisine shaped by Pacific, American, European, and Asian influences that defines the islands' distinctive food culture. Rachel Laudan structures the book around a series of essays tracing the origins of particular local foods and dishes, from saimin and crack seed to butter mochi, followed by representative recipes drawn from each culinary tradition. With more than 150 recipes, a glossary, and a bibliography of Hawaiian cookbooks, the volume serves both home cooks interested in Hawaiian cuisine and readers with scholarly or historical interest in how immigration and cultural exchange transformed food in the islands. Published by the University of Hawai'i Press, it stands as a substantive reference on the origins and complexities of one of the United States' most culturally layered regional food traditions.