Preserving Hawaiian Culture: How To Build The Traditional Hawaiian Imu

Preserving Hawaiian Culture: How To Build The Traditional Hawaiian Imu. On June 4th 2016 Habilitat Hawaii presents the largest family luau in the state of Hawaii at Kualoha Ranch.

Preparing to feed 2000 people takes a lot of work. Habilitat participants created a giant underground oven traditionally known as an Imu. A full ton of pork was placed in the ground and cooked overnight to prepare for the huge event.

The entire traditional process was done by Habilitat participants in an effort to perpetuate Hawaiian Culture. Caputured here, from start to completion, this traditional cooking method has been used for thousands of years by Polynesians for various celebrations.

Habilitat is a 501c3 non profit located in Kaneohe Hawaii. "Build Better People, Not Better Prisons." America's Foremost Addiction Treatment Center. We get results when all else fails.

[jeffmeyer]

Been on the Big Island for almost two years and my new favorite meal is this kind of pork with rice and cabbage and hawaiian chili pepper water...da best!!

[lizardhierophant]

Good god! Could you imagine doing this without any technology? Big up to your ancestors!

[MelvinKanoa]

Brother i miss cooking kalua park in the Imo. Mahalo brother for sharing Malama pono Aloha

[flexof]

Maybe because we do it every week still, it seems much simpler. Same basic principles as our Hawaiian people, but much easier. At the end of the day, both the UMU and the IMU produce great food. CheeeeHooo!

[Teram]

Nothing like the taste of scorched Earth. Much love from Aotearoa

[conz]

Braah! I made some imu's in my day.. but braddahs you guys must be holding some kind of record cuz that is one BIG friggen IMU. Cheeehu🤘

[ArmandoDy]

From Oahu, and I live in Texas now, and even I think that is ONE BIG IMU. L.M.A.O. I did one with Mesquite wood over here, and it is NOT the same. I use pineapple juice and brown sugar, and some shoyu on it. MAHALO.

[donnabotelho]

Give them credit for all the hard work they do for kalua pig🤙🏽🌺😎

[bronsonmohika]

What else can u use besides banana leafs to cover?

[bdumlao]

Imu Style Kalua pig is always the best. Taste is awesome. Keep the roots alive. Cheeehooo! 🤙🏼

[dakahulaz]

Hawaiian... awesome job! One ting wit da plate when you guys chop chop, if da buggah broke das trouble fo da meat, glass inside or cut and bleed da hand...make stainless paddles or use empty corn can. Mahalo for da vid!!!

[cfonz]

Me ke aloha pumehana..Kamakakoa!! Aloha Aina, oka aina, Aloha piha!

[vkirisome]

Before the white man brought wire and air blowers what did the Hawaiian actually used?

[islandfantasy]

Back in 2005 I when help my cousin make imu for hotel luau. We used a backhoe to dig a 30 foot long imu. It was 6 feet wide and 3 feet deep. Pig, goat, lamb, Turkey, lau lau, kulolo, sweet potatoes, ulu and beef. Idk the exact pounds of meat we put inside the imu. The hotel had 2 chilled 40 foot shipping containers full of meat. It was a 3 day process. Not including gathering banana stomp/leaf, pohaku and t leaf.

[peggyannparkes]

Just like I remember it. Delicious!!!

[angien]

wow I never seen an umu that huge, were you guys feeding a whole

[alrodify]

Sup from new Jersey! What part of pig you guys using?? Pork shoulders(pernil) and pork butt?? Looks kool as hell .one day I want to make this.

[braddahangel]

Dat one unko who knows everything! LoL 💙🤙🏽cheee

[islandfantasy]

The plate is used to brake down the kalua pig. I'm sure there's a utensil that can give the same results but that's his style. Everyone has a different technique. I prefer to not chop up the meat into small chunks with a cleaver. I love to leave it stringy. My family when we make Imu we use forks and thongs to shred the meat. When ever we used a whole pig we never had a problem with blood. Maybe the butcher didn't let the blood drain long enough.

[franheta]

No eat the poaka straight away, chilling in the fridge when it's best eaten fresh off the stones.... I'm guessing the stones to meat ratio didn't equate to it looking slightly under done and slicing the meat with a plate? I'm not criticizing.