Loco Moco

The Loco Moco is a dish unique to Hawaiian cuisine. There are many variations, but the essential loco moco consists of white rice topped with a hamburger patty, a fried egg, and brown gravy. Variations may include bacon, ham, Spam, kalua pork, Portuguese sausage, teriyaki beef, teriyaki chicken, mahi-mahi, shrimp, oysters, and other meats.

James Kelly, a University of Hawaii-Hilo professor writes that the loco moco dish was created in 1949 by the Inouye family, who owned the Lincoln Grill in Hilo, Hawaii in 1949. A group of boys from the Lincoln Wreckers sports club contributed to its creation. Because the boys did not have a lot of spending money, they asked Nancy Inouye to put some rice in a saimin bowl, one hamburger patty on the rice and brown gravy over the hamburger and rice.she charged twenty-five cents for this. it was much cheaper than ordering a hamburger steak entree. One of the boys, George Okimoto was nicknamed "Crazy" because of the wild way he played football. Crazy in Spanish is loco so the boys named the dish loco moco just on a whim. Moco had no special meaning except it rhymed with loco, however unknown to them it happens to be Spanish for "mucus". At first it was not on the regular menu but because of its popularity with the Wreckers, it became a fixture at Lincoln Grill. The dish is widely popular in Hawaii and now you will see it on the menu at many of the restaurants in the mainland.In keeping with the standards of Japanese Cuisine, they used rice as a staple starch and finished it off with the hamburger and gravy to create a dish that did not require the preparation time of bento. The egg was added later.

"Loco Moco" is also the name of an American restaurant chain featuring Hawaiian rice bowl dishes.

References

*Citation
last = Gimla Shortridge
first = Barbara
last2 = Shortridge
first2 = James R.
title = The Taste of American Place: A Reader on Regional and Ethnic Foods
publisher = Rowman & Littlefield
year = 1998
isbn = 0847685071 . (A reprint of Kelly's original paper)
*Citation
last = Kelly
first = James
title = Loco Moco: A Folk Dish in the Making
journal = Social Process in Hawai'i
volume = 30
pages = 59-64
year = 1983Hilo Tribune Herald article written by Gene Tao. staff writer. September 23, 1981 edition.

External links

* [http://www.plateoftheday.com/427/ Plate of the Day Food Blog - Loco Moco Adapted Recipe]