A Hawai'ian Princess Shares Portuguese Recipes
Kau Kau Chronicles received a gift of some amazing recipes from The Pleasures of Portuguese Cooking (1987), published by the Portuguese Pioneer Civic Association in commemoration of their 50th anniversary (1937-1987). Our deepest thanks goes out to 🌺 Kerry Mews 🌺 who not only shared these recipes, but also shared a bit of her story and history as well.
Kerry (r)
Kerry was thrilled to share some recipe gems from her vintage cookbook, hoping to pique people’s interest in Portuguese cooking. And what an ono set of selections! Take a look at some of these recipes:
“Thank you for your contribution to preservation of food of Hawai'i, fusion and genuine cuisine of the Ethnicities that have formed the melting pot in History,” Kerry so generously shared with me as we talked story on FB Messenger. “Food is the basis of Aloha here. We gain friends with food,” she continued.
I couldn’t agree more. For Hawai'i folks, our love for our food is not just about nourishment, not just about how good it all tastes—it is that these foods are unique to us and our islands. It is about perpetuating our culture and bringing us together in a way that defies all things that might try to separate us.
Kerry’s words reminded me of the way my family used to spend a Saturday delivering bunches of bananas to family and friends when our trees gifted us with too many for us to eat ourselves. We’d just leave them on people’s stoops. And eventually, we’d find bags of mangos, lychees, or papayas left on our stoop. It is just that way in Hawai'i. Kerry said, “No poho.” Exactly, no poho, no waste. We didn’t have a lot of money, but we had our fruit trees and could spread wealth in that way.
Kerry also shared that she is a Hawai'ian princess, a descendant of the Hale O Keōua Nui bloodline. Robert Wilcox (Hawai'i’s first delegate to congress) and HRH Princess Theresa Owana Ka'ohelelani La'anui Wilcox are her great great grandparents. Her great great grandmother’s first marriage was to Alexander Cartwright Jr., the inventor of the rules of baseball.
(l-to-r) Kerry’s mother, great great grandmother (seated), and grandmother
Family crest of Hale O Keōua Nui
(l-to-r) Kerry’s great grand aunt, mother, great great grandmother, and grand aunt.
Kerry also shared that she is Frank De Lima’s cousin and was generous enough to let us post some photos of Frank De Lima's Aunty Caroline Farias. 🥰
Frank De Lima’s Aunty Caroline Farias making guava jam
Aunty Caroline Farias making pickled onions
“It's when we share, they still live, when we speak their names, in the hā or breath. It's the kino or flesh that returns to the ‘āina or soil, the spirit or 'uhane lives, it's an energy… you know when you know, a scent of a flower or perfume, (and there’s) no wind,” Kerry observed. “We can't take our knowledge to the grave, find someone in the next generation to past the torch of knowledge to! Listen, observe, and preserve. Mahalo for being that with this group.”
Yes, indeed. This is exactly what the Kau Kau Chronicles are about. Mahalo Kerry Mews, for your generous contributions to our efforts in preserving the history of Hawai'i’s cuisines.