 | |
| Course | Main course |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | United States |
| Region or state | Hawaii |
| Serving temperature | Hot |
| Main ingredients | White rice, topped with ahamburger steak, a fried sunny-side-upegg, and browngravy |
Loco moco is a dish featured in contemporaryHawaii cuisine. The traditional loco moco consists ofwhite rice, topped with ahamburger patty and browngravy, and asunny-side-up fried egg.[1] Modern (non-traditional) presentations of the dish may include other toppings and side dishes such as grilled onions, macaroni, or potato salad.
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The dish was reportedly created at the Lincoln Grill restaurant inHilo, 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.[2] They asked Nancy to serve some rice in a bowl, a hamburgerpatty 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 atHilo High School, suggested "loco" (Spanish, "crazy") and they tacked onto it "moco" which "rhymed with loco and sounded good".[3][4][5]
This dish was featured on the "Taste of Hawai'i" episode ofGirl Meets Hawai'i, aTravel Channel show hosted bySamantha Brown. The episode features the dish being served at the Hawaiian Style Cafe inWaimea together with theplate lunch, another Hawaiian specialty dish.
The loco moco was also featured on aHonolulu-based episode of the Travel Channel showMan v. Food (this episode aired in the show'ssecond season). The host,Adam Richman, tried the dish at the Hukilau Café, located in nearbyLaie. Richman also tried an off-the-menu loco moco at aSan Francisco eatery called Namu Gaji on his 2014 show,Man Finds Food. In 2018, on a different episode of the revivedMan v. Food, host Casey Webb tried a loaded version of the loco moco at Da Kitchen inMaui.
Variations may includebacon,ham,Spam,tofu,kalua pork,Portuguese sausage,teriyaki beef,teriyaki chicken,mahi-mahi,shrimp,oysters, and othermeats. 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.
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{{citation}}: CS1 maint: work parameter with ISBN (link). A reprint of Kelly's original paper.