Kenney: There are legends that tie the people of Hawai'’’i to the islands of Tahiti.

Come along with me, Ed Kenney, and Maui Tauotaha as we trace these bonds and find the secret behind his favorite dish-- poisson cru.

There are so many reasons why I became a chef.

Every dish has a story.

Food brings people together and has the power to conjure up cherished memories.

I was born and raised in the Hawaiian Islands, one of the most diverse communities in the world.

In this show, we'’’ll meet a guest from Hawai'’’i, learn about their favorite dish, trace it back to its origins, and have some fun along the way.

Man: ♪ Higher so we can chase the moon ♪ Announcer: Major fun Kenney: The ocean covers 71% of the earth'’’s surface and is home to the majority of life on the planet.

There are still parts of the deep that have yet to be explored, but mankind has circumnavigated the globe for centuries.

For island people, the ocean provides a distinct way of life.

It provides us access to amusement, sustenance, and connection to the world around us.

Maui Tauotaha is a talented filmmaker and storyteller with Oiwi TV, a native Hawaiian production company.

For college, Maui traveled to Los Angeles to the heart of the film industry.

Maui'’’s grandfather Puaniho was a famous paddler and canoe carver from the island of Tahiti.

Growing up in Hawai'’’i, Maui was surrounded by the ocean, but he was disconnected from his Tahitian wayfaring roots.

I was really looking forward to meeting Maui.

He suggested that we meet at Hui Nalu Canoe Club.

It'’’s a small canoe club on the east side of O'’’ahu.

How'’’s it?

Doing all right?

Kenney: When I first see him, he shows up with a box of manapua, which is steamed pork buns, and suggests that we get out in the water for a paddle.

Right then and there, I knew I liked this guy.

Tauotaha: So the village of Tautira-- well, my family'’’s hometown in Tahiti-- was home to the best canoe builders and carvers in the world, and my grandfather Puaniho was one of those canoe builders and paddlers.

Kenney: When did he come?

Tauotaha: Papa Puaniho came to Hawai'’’i in 1975, I believe, for a canoe race, uh, with the Maire Nui Canoe Club, the best paddlers on the planet at that time.

Is that the race where they came and smoked everybody?

Uh, that was the first race they came and smoked everybody, and then there was another one and another after that.

Yeah, the first one.

Right.

Grandpa came back to Hawai'’’i and built almost 20 koa canoes for different canoe clubs here in Hawai'’’i.

Kenney: So the premise of "Family Ingredients" is to identify a dish that was really important to you growing up and trace it back to its homeland.

What dish do you think of when you think of Tahiti as a child?

When I think of Tahiti, I think of poisson cru.

Poisson cru is the quintessential Tahitian dish, talking about the land, the sea.

Uh, it'’’s just what it is.

That'’’s Tahiti.

Kenney: Poisson cru is the signature dish of Tahiti.

It is on every restaurant menu and at every family function.

In French, "poisson cru" means raw fish.

The dish consists of raw tuna that, like ceviche, is kind of sort of cooked by the acid from fresh lime juice.

It is drained and then mixed with a delicious blend of crisp vegetables and fresh-squeezed coconut milk.

It'’’s something that I'’’ve had on numerous occasions, and every time I'’’ve had it, it'’’s been completely different.

Everyone has their way to do it.

Their friend, the auntie, their cousin makes the best poisson cru they'’’ve ever had.

It all started because someone said it couldn'’’t be done.

The Polynesian Voyaging Society created a replica of a voyaging canoe to prove that Hawaiians didn'’’t accidentally land on these islands.

In 1976, they finally set sail.

No modern navigational instruments were used.

All they had was the sun, the stars, the winds, and the waves.

The crew set sail on a dangerous voyage to Tahiti.

They successfully completed the round trip and have had many voyages since.

On one of the voyages, Maui'’’s grandfather was selected as a crew member to sail from Tahiti to Hawai'’’i.

Now Maui has the chance to sail aboard the canoe on its return trip to Tahiti.

On O'’’ahu, I had the opportunity to visit the canoe that Maui will be calling home for the next few weeks.

He will be part of the next generation of traditional wayfinders.

Maui...

Yes, sir.

here it is.

Lie down, OK. and I'’’m gonna show you how this works.

Because seas can get rough, we have these little, canvas covers that we'’’ll hook up, and we'’’ll hook it up on the other side.

Oh!

Oh, yeah.

Ha ha ha!

Hey, that-- that'’’s something we all got to watch out for on the boat.

Seriously.

Kenney: One of the crew, Austin Kino, took a moment to explain some of the aspects of navigation, and as I looked along the canoe, I noticed little tick marks down the whole length of the boat.

It turns out, those marks are exactly 11 1/2 degrees apart.

There'’’s a 90-degree corner you stand at at the back of the boat, and depending on where the sun rises in the morning, it tells you what your bearing is.

He was actually taking apart his lashings and moving this one beam one inch because that one inch translated to two degrees, which could mean the difference between ending up in Tautira or Antarctica.

Today Maui and the rest of the crew will sail off to Tahiti.

They will be at sea for almost 3,000 nautical miles.

It is not a race.

These crew members will be retracing our ancestral paths across the Pacific Ocean and reconnecting with our traditional means of wayfinding.

[Cheering] After 16 days at sea, we will finally reunite with Maui when he arrives at the island of Tahiti.

My plane ride was 6 hours, kind of puts things in perspective.

So we'’’re in Tahiti.

Maui is tied up for a few days with Hokule'’’a, so we thought we'’’d come early and kind of do a little recon mission and educate ourselves about poisson cru.

We arrived here on a Sunday.

Come to find out everything is closed on a Sunday except the Marche Municipal, which is the market.

Sure enough, we arrived bright and early at 6 A.M., and the place was just hustling and bustling.

There was fish as far as the eye could see, and it was reef fish.

In Hawai'’’i, there'’’s kind of a scarcity of reef fish, but there was uhu, parrot fish; menpachi; huge papio, or trevally; and then there was tuna and all the same pelagic fish that we have in Hawai'’’i.

It was a reminder to me that, although we are 6 hours by plane south of Hawai'’’i, it'’’s the same ocean.

[Speaking French] Kenney: I'’’m finding a lot of similarities to our culture in Hawai'’’i.

It'’’s an island nation with a native people that are speaking something other than their native tongue-- here, French-- and then you see the influence of these cultures that have come in over time.

I guess the French first came here around 1880, but, it turns out, around 1860, there'’’s a big influx of Chinese that came here for labor.

This diversity of--of cultures-- of French, Chinese, and the native Tahitians-- really contribute to what we experience at the market.

So today we met Heimata Hall, who is our guide.

He is the mayor of Moorea, not for real, but he should be.

He is Moorea'’’s most eligible bachelor.

He told me to say that.

Come to find out he'’’s an aspiring chef.

He loves to cook.

He loves to feed people.

I told Heimata that I wanted to learn more about the dish poisson cru.

He explained that there are two different styles-- the Tahitian style and the Chinese style.

He knew of the perfect restaurant where we could try both.

I got to meet Kate Demedy.

Her family owns a restaurant-- Star Studio.

I had to ask first thing, "Why Star Studio?"

and it turns out, her father worked for the largest movie house in Tahiti.

He, after 35 years, realized that he wasn'’’t spending enough time with his family, so he decided to go and open a restaurant-- go figure-- but it turns out that their restaurant is a very popular breakfast and lunch spot in Pape'’’ete.

I had a chance to meet Patrick, her chef.

I could tell that he was one of these bulls in the kitchen when he started sauteing something and was bare-handing the hot saute pan.

All of us when we cook, we have a towel in one hand, and he was just grabbing that hot pan sauteing.

They had this electric machine called a rapacoco.

So I'’’m checking out this contraption here.

Demedy: First, the coconut grater.

Right.

OK.

So Patrick is gonna show us how to do it first.

Kenney: It'’’s basically a motor, and it has this little, round ball that'’’s got tiny teeth on it.

You just take the half-split coconut and just grind all the meat out... OK. Say good-bye to my fingers.

OK. Let me try it.

Kenney: and I go all the way through the meat, into the shell.

My coconut meat gets all kind of black in the catcher.

Thank you.

Ha ha ha!

Look at that.

Amateur.

Amateur.

Hall: Now you'’’re gonna squeeze, uh, the coconut milk.

Oh, OK. You got to make the coconut milk.

So I'’’m-- I'’’ve done this.

Kenney: I'’’ve often heard that sometimes-- and I'’’ve done it this way at home, where you add hot water, boiling water to it.

You squeeze it, and it helps get some of the coconut milk out... Oh, yeah.

Kenney: so this I really look at like cold-pressed, extra-virgin coconut milk because you don'’’t have any hot water helping you along to do it.

What ends up, it'’’s this really richer, a lot creamier, a lot more coconutty coconut milk, and it'’’s on just about every dish in some shape or form.

It'’’s an ingredient.

It'’’s a finishing flavoring.

It'’’s everywhere.

OK.

Here we go-- poisson cru.

Umm... Hall: Ha ha ha!

I don'’’t have to fake it, it'’’s so good.

Hall: So fresh-tasting... Yeah.

the fish--delicious.

Guys are missing out.

Kenney: Not a whole lot of ingredients, just together, it just works so well, and what I liked about it is that not everything was perfectly cut the same size or small, so every bite you had might have been a little bit different.

One bite, you get a little bit of cucumber in it.

Another bite, you get some carrot.

It was actually just as good if you got a bite without fish because everything that was in it, like a healthy fish salad more than a ceviche which-- where the--the fish is the highlight.

Demedy: So this is the Chinese poisson cru.

We use a white vinegar, sugar, lemon, ginger, also full of ginger.

Oh, completely different taste.

It looks more raw and sour but also sugar.

They used Chinese pickled vegetables that had carrots, daikon, cabbage, so it kind of had this sauerkraut, pickled cabbage flavor, and it was a little sweeter.

I think they put a little bit more sugar in it to offset the sour from the pickled vegetables.

He said this is his first Hinano in French Polynesia.

Oh.

Kenney: I learned the word "manuia," which is cheers in Tahitian, and that'’’s probably my goal, is to learn cheers in as many languages as possible.

Mm.

[Men singing in foreign language] Tauotaha: Thank you so much for, um, voyaging with us on this Malama Honua voyage to take care of our earth.

As you can see, uh, the weather is...weather.

Ha ha!

We have about 15-foot seas, 20-, 25-knot winds, and we think we got about 7 or 8 more days on the wa'’’a.

Kenney: So it was really a breath of fresh air to have the opportunity to go to Moorea, away from Pape'’’ete, the capital.

It was beautiful.

It was small.

The pace was slow.

There weren'’’t a lot of people.

So over the last two days, Heimata'’’s really helped us with our quest to understand Tahitian food, the influences that make it what it is today, and eating quite a bit of poisson cru.

I think he saw it as his opportunity to show us how he does it in his family.

Well, you ready to carve?

Yeah.

All right, man.

Kenney: We had seen the automated grater, and he said, "This is not the way we do it.

"This is restaurant-style, but you'’’ve got to taste home-style poisson cru."

And usually to make poisson cru, you know, 3--3 coconuts is--is good.

You always want to shake.

You want to make sure that you hear the water.

If it doesn'’’t have water, that means the inside is too ripe, so there'’’s a--there'’’s another, like, a sponge that grows inside.

Gonna show how to husk the coconut.

Take it right here... On the side.

OK. on the side like this, muscle it in there, and then you just press.

And it takes 5 or 6 times, and the husk comes off.

You ever impale yourself?

Not yet.

Ha ha ha!

Let'’’s not make this the first time, either.

Voila, so basically, that is done.

OK, so which one'’’s gonna be more cooperative?

Here we go.

It'’’s gonna be a little tough, so just try to get a feel for it first, huh?

Aw, that was a good one, perfect.

Oh, check it out.

This one'’’s growing.

So that one might have the sponge inside, huh?

There it is.

All right.

So if you look, there'’’s always gonna be the two eyes and the mouth, so the first hit you always want to do is with the two eyes on this line.

You want to hit these lines, so when you hit the line, it'’’s gonna do a even-- how you say?-- Crack.

Yeah.

crack, but your first hit always wants to be right there, boom.

Oh, it'’’s gonna get a whap.

Nice.

Hard, hard.

It'’’s not cracking.

There we go.

There we go.

Go again?

One more.

One more.

Boom.

There we go.

All right.

Perfect.

Yeah.

I see that.

You could drink that.

Oh, that'’’s so sweet.

We'’’re gonna need some rum.

Yeah.

Ha ha ha!

Pina colada.

Pina colada.

This was the one you said was gonna have the sponge inside?

Yeah, it does.

Ho, look at that, and you eat it?

Yeah.

Ha ha ha!

Oh, God, that is unreal.

Kenney: I took a bite, and it was, like, sweet, coconut-flavored marshmallow, and all I could think about was taking that little ball that we took out and dipping it in dark, dark chocolate.

You see, I'’’ve lived with these things around me my whole life.

Come on, boy.

Get out of the way.

Can I sit right here?

Yeah.

Ha ha!

Ha ha ha!

So now to the grating.

Always good to hold the cutter, like, to the side so when you scrape, it'’’s gonna scrap the outer layer first because of you go straight like this, then it only scrapes in the middle, and then you get all this good meat, uh, actually, in the shell.

OK.

Here we go.

Here goes nothing.

So it'’’s kind of like a forward-- How much pressure?

Not too much.

Oh, feel it.

You can feel it when you get it right.

Uh-huh.

Oh, yeah.

Kenney: So it seems to me that the whole process of husking, scraping, and then squeezing the milk out of a coconut for one coconut should probably take about 5 minutes, and then you look at the people at Star Studio.

They do 10 to 12 coconuts a day, so that'’’s almost an hour a day it would take for a cook to just make coconut milk.

How come there'’’s only two beers?

Tauotaha: I'’’ll be honest.

Like, the trip to Tahiti is still kind of a blur, it happened so fast.

16 days at sea just went by so fast.

I felt very honored following in the footsteps of my grandfather.

Kenney: The canoe'’’s landing completes one leg in the Malama Honua worldwide voyage and strengthens the relationship between Hawai'’’i and Tahiti, a legacy that Maui'’’s grandfather started many years ago.

I'’’m stoked to finally reconnect with Maui and to make the trip to the village of Tautira, where his family is from.

Poehere was our guide for this portion of the trip that we met in Pape'’’ete.

She was raised in Laie, um, O'’’ahu, and then moved out here in the past few years.

The further we got away from Pape'’’ete, the less commercial activity you saw.

When we arrived, we went straight to the beach.

We were first one to have gotten there right before sunset.

I think it was a good way to be received into Tautira.

I mean, it was just kind of like an omen, a blessing.

Unbelievable.

Tauotaha: When I came to Tautira, my grandma told me she'’’s proud of me because I remind her of my grandfather because I'’’m doing what he did.

[Man singing in foreign language] Tauotaha: It was really special to come check out the canoes at Uncle Tutaha place.

Uncle was, uh, president, the captain of Maire Nui back in those days.

They always say, you know, no one'’’s like the--the guys in the old days, the old men of Tautira, but they'’’re, you know, legends, 30 years champions, but, you know, they'’’re coming back today, the young ones, with Coach Eric, coming back.

"Aah!"

Ha ha ha!

Wilson: So they paddled last year.

3 are 19 years old, and the rest are 17.

[Speaks French] [Speaks French] Wow.

In one minute, they would row 52 strokes.

Jeez.

They train 5 days a week.

What is the best food for training?

[Speaking French] A little bit of everything.

Last month, they ate a lot of spaghetti.

Carbo loading.

Uh-huh, to get the strength.

Ha ha ha!

Ha ha!

The paddlers before just ate from the-- from the ground, from--from nature.

That'’’s how they got their force, from the land... [Speaks French] and fish, yeah, from the sea.

That'’’s all you need.

4 of them participated in the world champion race.

[Speaks French] Oui.

In Brazil... World Sprints.

and they brought back all gold medals.

All right.

Good.

Tauotaha: Growing up in Hawai'’’i, didn'’’t really have a lot of extended family, but when I come here to Tautira, the whole village is family, and they treat me like family, and I'’’ve never had that feeling before.

Kenney: The whole family is just so happy to have Maui and his friends in town, we were again treated to a--a pa'’’ina that evening, a little party.

They had a barbecue.

I wanted to learn as much about poisson cru as I possibly can.

We had run to the store and picked up ingredients to make poisson cru, and they would not let me lift a finger, as much as I tried to help.

They let me grate some of the coconut, squeeze some of the coconut juice, but, because we were guests, it was like, "Sit down.

Sit down.

Enjoy."

I think it'’’s a cardinal sin in Tahiti to make anything with canned coconut milk.

They will go through the extra time and hassle it takes, and I think that makes all the difference in the world.

I just ate and ate and ate all night, and then, just like at home, kanikapila, playing music together till the end of the night.

I learned how to play the spoons.

Everyone was playing music, and, you know, you'’’re just tapping your feet, and it'’’s all in Tahitian, so I couldn'’’t sing along, but Poehere saw my interest in being a part of it, so she comes over to me and brings me two spoons and gives me a spoon-playing lesson, first time I ever played spoon.

By the end of the night, I was, like, jamming.

Brrap!

Brrap!

Brrap!

It'’’s amazing to me how much he has learned about his family, about the legends, the stories, the culture of this place.

Tauotaha: I grew up having meals sitting on the floor watching TV.

That'’’s just how I grew up, so I come here to Tautira and just have these grand feasts with so many people and talk and just feel like, you know, it'’’s a real family coming together at a--at a table.

That'’’s something I never really experienced in my life.

I'’’ve only been here in Tautira a few times, but whenever I come here, it feels like home.

I never sleep better anywhere else in the world except in Tautira.

Every night I spend in Tautira is a peaceful sleep.

Every day I spend with my grandmother on her porch looking at Orohena is a happy day.

Every time I get to see and embrace the people who are family to me and my family, it'’’s very special.

[Speaking Tahitian] Kenney: There are certain things that bring you back to your family--longing, regret, kuleana, or responsibility.

It was a joy watching Maui take a real interest in this place and these people and to see this community embrace him as if he'’’s been here forever.

Many people in America have forgotten where they come from or who their ancestors are.

They know that they are Italian or Chinese, but what does that really mean?

It can be intimidating to reach back and learn your family'’’s stories, but when you do, you'’’ll realize that they were connected to you the entire time.

[Man singing in foreign language]