Amateurs, pros dish up their best during 10th annual Great Poke Contest

WAIKOLOA — Nearly 40 professional and amateur poke chefs diced, sliced and mixed their raw fish creations Saturday vying to be crowned best in the trade during the 10th annual Great Poke Contest at the Waikoloa Beach Marriott.

As part of the Hawaii Island Festival, the Royal Court opened the competition with an eager crowd of 250 waiting to sample the offerings and vote for their favorite.

Once the pu was blown and hookupu offered, the tasting commenced with eager anticipation.

“There’s an amazing quantity and different variations on the traditional poke here,” said James Sturz, who was attending the competition for the first time, loading up on quality food.

It was the creativity of ingredients that nudged him to sample in the fusion category as he explored the venue.

And there were some creative entries, to be sure.

Four sisters from Texas, South Carolina and Hawaii joined their mother as the Cajun Divas. Linda Pokipala, former event organizer, was the instigator, bringing the family together as contestants to try their hand at putting their own twist on the raw fish dish.

Linda’s sister, Sandra Hunter, was born and raised in Hawaii but has lived in Baytown, Texas, for the past 23 years. Combining her adopted home flavors to a favorite local fare, her entry in the fusion category incorporated Cajun eggroll, shrimp jambalaya and crawfish etouffee infused with crawfish boil, Cajun seasonings and Cajun remoulade.

Of course, traditional ingredients like inamona, shoyu and the coveted lipoa limu from Maui could be found mingling with the ahi cubes.

Oohs, aahs, yums, and smacking lips could be heard throughout the ballroom as the crowd ate their way through the samples. Trays were available for those who preferred to sit and take their time judging the delicacies.

All that Woody Adrian of Laupahoehoe could say between sampling an array of raw fish on the tray in front of him was, “Ono.”

“Can they make the trays bigger?” he added.