Hawaii’s popular poke bowls may be all the rage in major U.S. cities but the dish has been around for centuries. For those less familiar, Poke, pronounced “POH-keh”, is a cubed raw fish, seasoned any way you want it. When poke is served over a bowl of sushi rice, it is called a poke bowl, kind of like a deconstructed sushi.
Now days, you see health-oriented poke bowls incorporate ingredients like quinoa, zucchini noodles and tomatoes.
If you want to make your own, try the classic approach first, you won’t be disappointed. Make a batch of rice, cube your fish, add your seasoning, and enjoy your bowl while the rise is still hot and the fish is still cold. Remember quality depends heavily on the freshness of the fish you use…so always use a high-quality grade fish. Make sure it doesn’t smell fishy and that you eat it as soon as possible after purchasing it.
Don’t want to get your hands dirty? Come to Pearl’s and order the Ahi Poke! The delicious dish is made up of raw ahi tuna tossed with a sweet and spicy Asian dressing (like a soy or ponzu sauce, but different), cilantro, pico, scallions, sesame and fresh avocado served over crispy rice noodles for $10.