On Wednesday, January 10, 2018 at 4:37:01 PM UTC-10, cshenk wrote:
>
> It is, but it's unique as well. It's the only place where there is no
> 'majority' race/ethnic for example. I don't have the actual stats in
> frnt of me but it's something like 20% Chinese, 20% Japanese, 15% other
> islanders, and 20% mixed white and African American. The remaining 5%
> are at least partly Native Hawaiian. Something close to that if not
> quite right.
>
> Due to the distance, they have some differences but yes, they are all
> American. The food is a melting pot of mixes just like the Continental
> USA, but with a different melting pot mix used.
>
> Rice cake soup probably makes no sense to you due to this. Don't worry,
> they make cheeseburgers too!
> Carol

Near as I can tell, most of the folks on rfc have no idea about what Hawaiian food is. Either that or they're acting dumb. The competent Hawaiian cook has to be familiar with American food, Hawaiian food, Samoan food, and Japanese, Okinawan, Filipino, Chinese, and Korean foods. Some of our favorite dishes originate from Puerto Rico and Portugal and, to a lesser extent, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Some people on this newsgroup act like all we eat is Spam and poi. That may be true for some Hawaiians but I got too much going on to be eating just S & P. If people knew anything about taro and poi, they would be in awe of this plant. The ancient Hawaiians could pound the cooked taro corm and produce a nutritious food that would not spoil and could sustain life for months on long voyages across the Pacific. Taro is one of the world's most perfect foods. On this group, it's mostly one big joke.

The reality is that this is not a real foodie group. Mostly, it's a group that disrespects and spreads fear about foods - especially the foods of other cultures.