How To Enter The Civil Beat Recipe Challenge
Let’s reduce our reliance on imported food by learning how to cook with more local ingredients.
We are now accepting submissions for the first ever Civil Beat Recipe Challenge.
The contest runs for the next five weeks. Each week will focus on a different local ingredient that grows well in Hawaii — taro (kalo), banana (maia), breadfruit (ulu), papaya (mikana) and sweet potato (uala).
We’re starting with kalo, so get those recipes and photos in right away, but feel free to send in recipes for the other four ingredients as well. Enter your original recipes by below.
Winners will be announced at the end of each week — one representing each ingredient. Readers will then vote for an overall winner whose recipe will be cooked by Chef Mark Noguchi and featured in a live virtual event in July.
Hawaii imports more than 80% of its food, which keeps our cost of living high, limits our options and creates environmental problems. Civil Beat launched its “Hawaii Grown” project in January to explore solutions and identify problems.
It’s unlikely that Hawaii will ever grow enough wheat or rice to sustain the population, but as the latest story in the series points out, there are plenty of homegrown alternatives that can help us reduce our reliance on imported food by decolonizing our taste buds.
We’ve partnered with a group of local cooks and food service providers whose mission is to deepen the connection to Hawaii’s food system and community. We’ll be sharing their recipes and videos so you can cook along with us throughout the challenge.
Entries will be judged by Civil Beat staff and Chef Hui members on creativity, do-ability and appearance. Special bonus for the narrative you share about the recipe.
If you don’t have a recipe to submit, you can still participate in weekly challenges on social media. Be sure to follow us and Chef Hui so you don’t miss them and use the tags @civilbeat and @chefhuiHI and #cbrecipechallenge.
Winners will be featured on Civil Beat’s “Hawaii Grown” page. We’ve got a bunch of great prizes including local produce boxes from restaurant gift certificates, Civil Beat swag, Chef Hui gear and more. Not to mention choke bragging rights.
Submit your recipes through the form below and email a photo to membership@civilbeat.org.
