Kai(n) or Kai Cuisine opened their brick and mortar shop at 346 Kilauea Avenue last year. It has become a happening block with Hilo Bottle Shop and Basically Books next door. At the end of the building, the Pizza Hut is being demolished to make room for a drive-thru Taco Bell.
I remember my sons used to frequent the store at the other end, Kawamoto Store, and buy goodies after Japanese school lessons at Hilo Hongwanji.
Ashley Baxter and Ranghihoro Walker, the owners, ingeniously came up with the name, “Kai” which means ‘food’ in Maori, which is Ranghihoro’s heritage, and “Kain” which means ‘to eat’ in Tagalog, Ashley’s nationality.
Ashley told me that Ranghihoro went to culinary school in New Zealand but when he was courting her, his handmade pasta was what won her over. So the perfect business for the both of them would naturally be pasta!
Kai Cuisine makes several different types of pasta: fettuccine, bucatini, pappardelle, mafaldine, campanelle, and shells.
Fettuccine in Italian means ‘little ribbons’ and is a versatile pasta that goes well with many sauces, but I love it with a creamy white sauce like an Alfredo. You can use milk in the refrigerator and do not need to run out to get heavy cream. Using cream cheese helps to thicken the sauce and make it creamy and taste delicious!
Bucatini, one of our favorite pastas, also known as perciatelli, is a thick spaghetti with a hole in the center. The grandkids think of it as soft straws and love to suck the pasta up like Lady and the Tramp, with each end in their mouths and ending up kissing each other! Bucatini works well with rich sauces because it will absorb the sauce into its holes.
Here’s a simple recipe for Bucatini all’Amatriciana that you can have ready to eat in less than 15 minutes..
Bucatini all’Amatriciana
Instructions on Kai Cuisine’s fresh bucatini are to open the package and spread the fresh pasta out.
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the bucatini for 2 to 4 minutes, so I would have the pot ready and make the pasta sauce first.
In a large pot over medium heat, cook for 10 minutes:
6 ounces pancetta, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
Using a slotted spoon, transfer the pancetta to a paper towel-lined plate. Drain all but 2 tablespoons of fat from the pot.
Add and cook until soft, 5 minutes:
1 small onion, minced
Add and cook until fragrant, 1 minute:
4 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Add and bring to a simmer and let cook for 10 minutes:
1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon butter
Season with salt and pepper to taste
While this is simmering, start the water for the pasta. Remember, it takes only 2 to 4 minutes to cook the pasta so time it accordingly.
When the sauce and pasta are ready, use tongs to place the bucatini into the sauce (no need to drain as you want some of the pasta water). Place the pancetta back into the pot, add more pasta water, if necessary to help loosen and bind the sauce to the bucatini.
Serve topped with fresh Pecorino or Parmesan cheese and fresh basil.
• • •
Pappardelle comes from the Italian verb ‘pappare” or ‘to gobble up’ and are large, broad, flat pasta. When I think of pappardelle, I think of a bolognese sauce or a fresh mushroom sauce, with intense flavors.
Here’s a hearty bolognese sauce for a weekend meal:
Bolognese Sauce
Serves 6
Cook until softened, 3-4 minutes:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, finely diced
Add and cook until softened, 5 minutes:
1 carrot, finely diced
5 garlic cloves, diced
1 rib celery, finely diced
Add and brown until no longer pink, then drain out fat:
1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
Add and simmer until evaporated, about 7 to 9 minutes:
1-1/4 cups red wine or beef broth
Add and simmer until evaporated, 6 to 7 minutes:
1 cup whole milk
Stir in, breaking tomatoes up with a spoon, cover and simmer for 30 minutes or until thickened:
1 (28-ounce) can whole tomatoes with juice
4 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 bay leaf
During the last 5 minutes of cooking the sauce, start the pot of boiling salted water for the pappardelle.
Follow instructions on the label and cook the pasta. Using tongs, toss pasta into the sauce, adding more pasta water as needed.
Serve hot with Parmesan cheese.
Mafaldine is also known as reginette, and is a type of ribbon-shaped pasta, therefore also known as ribbon pasta. It is usually served with a more delicate sauce.
Campanelle or “little bells” is shaped like a cone with a ruffled edge or bell-like flower and is sometimes called gigli. A thick sauce serves this pasta well.
Foodie Bites
The Hawaii Community College’s Culinary students are ready for you to order your lunch from them. The first year students are running the Cafeteria and the second year students, the Bamboo Hale Fine Dining Room. The Cafeteria website is at http://hawaii.hawaii.edu/cafeteria and the Bamboo Hale site is at http://www.hawaii.hawaii.edu/bamboo-hale.
Email Audrey Wilson at audreywilson808@gmail.com.