Sonia Tastes Hawaii: The 17th Annual Mealani Taste of the Hawaiian Range

Photos above: the fresh produce display by Kamuela Grown is always so huge it is hard to take it all in one shot... After the event, the produce is all donated to Hawai'i Island Food Bank

This is our 4th 'Taste of the Range' and it never gets old...

One of the premier and oldest food festivals on the Island of Hawai'i, "the Taste" is more than just a celebration of island grown food...it is also a showcase for the talented chefs that come to 'strut their stuff' ...and for the ranchers, farmers, growers and purveyors of the hundreds of agricultural related products that can be found on our island it is a chance to meet each other and meet the chefs using their products.

Chefs from around the state competing in "the Taste" are assigned a cut of meat by lottery and each is given 100 pounds of whatever cut they were paired with to wow the sophisticated taste buds of the hungry herds (oops, I mean hoards) that attend the event. The meat showcased is island raised grass-fed beef; pork, both commercial and feral; lamb, mutton and goat. From tongue to tail, no edible part is wasted.

Photos above: Left: Delicious Shepherd's Pie made with seasoned ground mutton, in puff pastry cups made with the rendered fat and the addition of Hawai'i Island Goat Dairy cheese to the mashed potato topping, by Town Restaurant of Oahu; Chefs Ed Kenney & Dave Caldiero Top: Appetizer made with 'Mountain Oysters' (beef testicles) on a cucumber slice and topped with salsa, by Honolulu Burger Company; Chef Ken Takahashi; the most talked about pupus of the event. Right: Beef Flank Slider with Shiraka Sauce by Village Burger of Waimea; Chef Ed Goto. Bottom: Goat Manapua by Mauna Lani Bay Hotel; Chef Allen Hess.

Photos above: Left: Roasted Leg of Mutton, one of 5 mutton presentations served by Hilo Bay Cafe; Chef Joshua Ketner. Top: Beef Top Round, smoked, braised with chili garlic and onions for 10 hours and served with Pico de Gallo on chips; Red Water Cafe in Waimea; Chef David Abrahams. Right: Pork on Crostini served with a cold Apple Soup and edible flower petals, Cafe Pesto in Hilo; Chef Casey Halpern. Bottom: BBQ Smoked Beef Brisket served with Mashed Taro Root, Potatoes and Pickled Kula Onion Salad; Hilton Waikoloa Resort, Chef Charles Charbonneau.

Photos above: Our own Big Island Celebrity Chef who competed in the recent Season 8 of The Next Food Network Star, "Ippy" Iona of Solimene's Restaurant in Waimea served Seared 'Butcher' Steak with Chili Bruleed Peach, Gorgonzola Crumbs and topped with their own Cafe Pickled Red Onions.

Peaches in Hawai'i you ask? Yes, the Mealani Research Station is testing growing peaches on the Big Island and report a hefty yield this past spring. The station is also growing blueberries, persimmons and other crops not considered tropical.

Photos above: Familiar faces...Clockwise from Left: Executive Chef James Babian of the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai, working in the trenches; Chef Joshua Ketner & Dean Otake of Hilo Bay Cafe; Ryan Peters of Cultured Foods Hawai'i; Bottom Right: Hawai'i Community College School of Culinary Arts, East Hawai'i booth with Chef Instructor Allan Okuda and students; Dick Threlfall of Hawai'i Island Goat Dairy and Leslie Hill of the Wailea Agricultural Group showcasing their 'hearts of palms'.

Besides the chefs' showcase, educational, agricultural and local products booths, there are educational presentations held earlier in the day. This year the presentations included a "Nutritional Seminar" geared for culinary students and industry professionals presented by Joannie Dobbs, PhD CN5, a faculty member of the Human Nutrition, Food and Animal Sciences Dept at UH Mahoa; and "How to Cook Grass-Fed Beef 101" presented by Executive Chef James Babian of the Four Seasons Resort Hualalai well attended by both culinary students and the general public. I will be sharing an article about Chef Babian's presentation in the Hamakua Times newspaper of Honoka'a in their next issue.