Mahalo Michael

This event was hosted at a long time Halau supports home in Nānākuli. Located near the southern end of the Waiʻanae mountain, on the island of Oʻahu, City & County of Honolulu,Hawaii, United States. It was a wonderful way to spend the day. 

This imu event was done in it’s own unique style  style to match the equipment and location and volume of pig to be cooked and packaged.

Kālua is a traditional Hawaiian cooking method that utilizes an imu, a type of underground oven. The word kālua, which literally means "to cook in an underground oven", may also be used to describe the food cooked in this manner, such as kālua pig or kālua turkey, which are commonly served at luau feasts.

Traditionally, a fire using kiawe wood (mesquite) Logs wood is built in a dirt/sand pit called the imu. River rocks are then placed in the pit to retain cooking heat long after the flames have burned down to coals. Once the rocks have become extremely hot, the hole is lined with hali’i, sliced banana stumps and Ti leafs.

To maintain even heating and to retain the meat's natural moisture, the meat is covered with wet burlap, then a tarp and with a layer of sand or soil. The meat is then left to cook in the pit for six to seven hours, absorbing smoke and steam from the koa wood and banana leaves. When the meat is fully cooked, it is removed from the imu and shredded by hand and bones are removed. This is done to allow the fat to mix with the meat to help maintain its uniform consistency and flavor