Loco moco

History and origin

The dish was reportedly created at the Lincoln Grill restaurant in Hilo, Hawaiʻi, in 1949 by its proprietors, Richard Inouye and his wife, Nancy, at the request of teenagers from the Lincoln Wreckers Sports club who wanted a dish that was inexpensive, different from a sandwich, and quick to prepare and serve. They asked Nancy to serve some rice in a bowl, a hamburger patty over the rice, and then top it with brown gravy. The fried egg came later. The teenagers named the dish "Loco Moco" after one of their members, George Okimoto, whose nickname was "Crazy" because of his crazy antics. George Takahashi, who was studying Spanish at Hilo High School, suggested "loco" (Spanish, "crazy") and they tacked onto it "moco" which "rhymed with loco and sounded good".

Popularity

This dish was featured on the "Taste of Hawai'i" episode of Girl Meets Hawai'i, a Travel Channel show hosted by Samantha Brown. The episode features the dish being served at the Hawaiian Style Cafe in Waimea together with the plate lunch, another Hawaiian specialty dish.

The loco moco was also featured on a Honolulu-based episode of the Travel Channel show Man v. Food (this episode aired in the show's second season). The host, Adam Richman, tried the dish at the Hukilau Café, located in nearby Laie. Richman also tried an off-the-menu loco moco at a San Francisco eatery called Namu Gaji on his 2014 show, Man Finds Food. In 2018, on a different episode of the revived Man v. Food, host Casey Webb tried a loaded version of the loco moco at Da Kitchen in Maui.

Variations may include bacon, ham, Spam, tofu, kalua pork, Portuguese sausage, teriyaki beef, teriyaki chicken, mahi-mahi, shrimp, oysters, and other meats. However, the traditional name designation of loco moco applies to hamburger patties only. When the protein changes, the name is also changed, as in "Spam loco" or "kalua loco", for example.

Gallery

File:Locomoco (7770124116).jpg File:Loco moco 001.jpg File:Homestyle Hawaiian loco moco.jpg

References

References

1. "[https://playswellwithbutter.com/loco-moco/ Hawaiian Family Recipe from Lincoln Grill]"
2. (2016). "The great American burger book: how to make authentic regional hamburgers at home". Stewart, Tabori & Chang.
3. Laudan, Rachel. (1996). "The Food of Paradise: Exploring Hawaii's Culinary Heritage". University of Hawaii Press.
4. "The Loco Moco - Cafe 100, Hilo Hawaii". Cafe100.com.
5. "Loco Moco Recipe, Loco Moco History, History and Recipe of Hawaiian Loco Moco, Hawaii's Feel Good Food, Hamburger Recipes". Whatscookingamerica.net.