I’m an hour’s drive and a world away from the beaches and boutiques in Waikīkī, Honolulu’s famed tourist strip — but that’s kind of the point. I’m here at Mohala Farms to learn about sustainable farming on Oʻahu, traditional Hawaiian foods beyond poke, and the deep, abiding Hawaiian relationship with the island’s ʻāina, or land.
Farmer Mark Hamamoto, a native Hawaiian who grew up on Oʻahu, learned farming from a Catholic priest on the other side of the mountain and bought this land 20 years ago. His goal is both to feed and teach people. At Mohala Farms, he explains, “entertainment always comes with education.”
Hamamoto leads us past a tangle of breadfruit trees, a field of cassava plants, a line of banana trees, compost piles, and his gaggle of Rhode Island Red chickens. Meanwhile, we sample food that has experienced “as few touches as possible” — a smoked marlin dip served on a banana stem and grilled Japanese pumpkin.
As the sun sets and wild peacocks howl in the dark, we gather in a halé (a traditional Hawaiian hut) to eat mashed taro, white fish, and a roasted native pig caught in the nearby woods. We learn facts about the food and the Hawaiian language (for example, water is so important to Hawaiians that saying “water water” means “abundance”). We wrap up the night with a group song…