MAUI- FILIPINO FOODS @ VIDAD'S QUEEN K MALL

Some days eating the foods from the Philippines just hits the spot. Vidad's in the Queen Kaahumanu Shopping Center in Kahului just minutes from the airport has all the Filipino standards as well as some other local favorites.

If you are new to the islands, this is how you order the food here, like many other plate lunch diners. You step up to the counter, and order from the warmers, there's a few items to choose from, and you'll be charged for 2 or 3 entree selection which comes with rice or pancit noodles. Pancit noodles are like chow mein noodles, sautéed with some pork, shrimp and veggies. Some pork adobo, some pork and mung beans, some chicken dish, longanisa sausage. Even some Korean style food.

It's all good. The last meal I ate their was their Hamburger Steak Plate, it had two thick hamburger steaks, tasty but it was too hard for me, a good hamburger steak is juicy on its own and can be cut with a fork, and the gravy need not be soupy which was just how Vidad's made my plate, but I'm not really complaining, it was good, and the macaroni salad was perfect and the rice was cooked good too. Back to my version of a great hamburger steak, it has to be simply seasoned with some salt and pepper, maybe some onion powder, and some finely minced sweet onions, some mayonnaise, some mustard, some steak sauce, and just a bit of bread crumbs with no seasonings. It has to be about 5 oz each. Formed by hand into an oval shape, patted about 1/4 inch thick, seared on a flat top just right not over cooked, and plated, with brown beef stock gravy homemade. No onions or mushrooms needed, although there's no problem with me if it's on the burger steaks.

Keeping a hamburger steak simple is the key, with too much herbs and spices you kinda ruin it, unless you're trying to get a different style, like maybe an Italian spiced mix, I guess it can work, but really, the salt and pepper concoction can't go wrong at all. 

And the macaroni salad needs to be made with Best Foods Real Mayonnaise or something close to it, elbow macaroni, some minced onions, minced celery, a tad of shredded carrots, and maybe some peas. If someone put some tuna in there all the better that would be a filling plate. Remember lots of locals in Hawaii love white rice, meat, fish, and mac salad.

My cookbook is going to be out soon. www.cookemnscarfem.wordpress.com