• 31 ideas
  • Checked October 2026

What to Eat with Kalua Pork

Rice, macaroni salad and cabbage for a plate lunch; poi, lomi salmon and haupia for a luau.

What to Eat with Kalua Pork

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  1. Two scoops of white riceSet the pork right beside the rice so the juices run into it.
  2. Macaroni saladServe it cold and creamy, one scoop next to the rice.
  3. PoiDip a forkful of pork into it. The plain taro paste softens the salt and smoke.
  4. Haupia (coconut pudding)Cut it into squares and serve it cold.
  5. Lomi-lomi salmonServe it chilled and spoon it over the pork like a relish.

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All 31 ideas

On the plate lunch 5

  • Cabbage cooked in with the pork Stir shredded cabbage through the hot pork until it wilts in the juices.
  • Furikake Shake it over the rice, not the pork.
  • Macaroni salad Serve it cold and creamy, one scoop next to the rice.
  • Taegu (shredded codfish) Tuck a small pile beside the rice.
  • Two scoops of white rice Set the pork right beside the rice so the juices run into it.

From the luau table 11

  • Breadfruit Steam or roast it, then cut wedges to eat like potato.
  • Chicken long rice Ladle it into a small bowl on the side, noodles and broth together.
  • Laulau Unwrap the leaf parcel at the table and eat the soft taro leaves with the meat inside.
  • Lomi oio (raw bonefish) Put out a small bowl and scoop it up with poi.
  • Lomi opae (dried shrimp, tomato and onion) Serve it cold, the way lomi-lomi salmon is served.
  • Lomi-lomi salmon Serve it chilled and spoon it over the pork like a relish.
  • Opihi (limpets) Serve them raw and cold in the shell, a few to each person.
  • Poi Dip a forkful of pork into it. The plain taro paste softens the salt and smoke.
  • Poke Keep it cold and put it out first, before the hot food.
  • Squid luau (octopus and taro leaf stew) Spoon the creamy stew next to the pork and take a little of each.
  • Steamed sweet potato Steam it in its skin and slice it thick.

Seasonings on the table 2

  • Chili pepper water Shake a few drops over the pork and the rice.
  • Inamona (roasted kukui nut relish) Sprinkle a little over the pork or the poke.

Leftovers and a mixed plate 4

  • Loco moco Use the pork in place of the beef patty, under the gravy and the fried egg.
  • Portuguese sausage (linguiça) Fry a few slices as the second meat on a mixed plate.
  • Saimin Top a bowl of the noodle soup with a little shredded pork.
  • Soft sweet rolls, for sliders Split the rolls and pile in warm pork.

Something sweet after 7

  • Butter mochi Pass a plate of squares round to eat by hand.
  • Chocolate haupia pie Chill it well so the layers cut cleanly.
  • Fresh pineapple Cut cold spears to follow the salty pork.
  • Haupia (coconut pudding) Cut it into squares and serve it cold.
  • Koelepalau (sweet potato and coconut pudding) Spoon it into small bowls, warm or cold.
  • Kulolo (taro and coconut pudding) Slice it thin. It is dense and chewy, so a small piece goes a long way.
  • Piele (baked sweet potato or breadfruit pudding) Cut it into small pieces. It is rich with coconut cream.

Drinks 2

  • Iced tea with pineapple juice Mix a pitcher and put a pineapple wedge on each glass.
  • Passion fruit, orange and guava juice Pour it over plenty of ice.

How it works

What to eat with kalua pork? These 31 ideas start with the Hawaiian plate lunch and the luau table, then add seasonings, ways to use leftovers, coconut sweets and two cold drinks.

Read the full guide

How kalua pork is served in Hawaii

Kalua pig is the highlight of many a luau: a whole pig cooked in an underground oven, then shredded. Lomi-lomi salmon is eaten with it like a relish, and the pork is sometimes cooked with cabbage. As a plate lunch it comes with one or two scoops of white rice and macaroni salad.

What to eat kalua pork with at home

On a weeknight, scoop the rice, add macaroni salad and wilt cabbage into the pork. For a party, set out poi, laulau and chicken long rice, and finish with squares of haupia or a chocolate haupia pie.

  • The pork is salted before it cooks, so go easy on the salt in the sides.
  • Keep the macaroni salad and the lomi-lomi salmon cold until the pork is on the plate.

Questions and answers

What to serve with kalua pork?

Past the rice and macaroni salad, steamed sweet potato and breadfruit are the starchy sides. Taegu, a dish of shredded codfish, goes beside the rice with a shake of furikake, and lomi opae or opihi add something cold.

What is served with kalua pig at a luau?

Poi, lomi-lomi salmon, laulau, chicken long rice, squid luau and poke, with haupia or kulolo to finish. Lomi oio, a raw bonefish dish, is a special side at some family luaus.

What sauce goes with kalua pork?

It needs very little. Chili pepper water adds heat, and inamona, a relish of roasted kukui nut and sea salt, gives a roasted, salty finish.

What to do with leftover kalua pork?

Pile it into soft sweet rolls for sliders, top a bowl of saimin with it, or build a loco moco with the pork in place of the beef patty.

What to drink with kalua pork?

Without alcohol: passion fruit, orange and guava juice over ice, or iced tea with pineapple juice. Both are sweet and cold against the salty pork.

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