Rainbow Drive-In serves roast pork on Sundays, Wednesdays and Fridays but generally sells out about two hours before closing time. Vernon Tam has been late too often and wants to take matters into his own hands.
"Would like to see a local-kine-style roast pork recipe a la Rainbow Drive-In," he said in an email. "Have failed to get there in time on numerous tries to buy that yummy stuff, but they’re always out."
Hiroshi Fukui, Rainbow’s vice president for dining and facilities, said he couldn’t provide the restaurant’s exact formula, but he did draft a version that he said would be similar and easy to pull off at home. It’s really more of a braise than a roast, with the pork slow-cooking in the oven partly immersed in water. Fukui said those who prefer to cook on the stove-top could make the pork in a pot, simmering until done.
The seasonings are minimalist, just salt and pepper, in amounts you can adjust if you like your pork, say, very peppery. The technique produces a fork-tender roast with that "local-kine-style" flavor.
Now, Rainbow’s signature brown gravy is in the If-I-tell-you-I-have-to-kill-you category, so I’m offering instead a gravy recipe that I’ve used before as an accompaniment to hamburger steak. It’s tasty and simple. In this case it uses the leftover cooking liquid from the pork as a base.
If you have a drone that you can send into the Rainbow kitchen to spy on the cooks, perhaps you could get closer to the exact recipe. Otherwise, if this isn’t good enough, the drive-in closes at 9 p.m. Get there before 7.
Roast Pork A La Rainbow Drive-In
» 3 pounds boneless pork shoulder or butt
» 1 to 2 tablespoons salt
» 1/2 tablespoon pepper, or to taste
» 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
» 4 cups water
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Trim fat from pork. Season well on all sides with salt and pepper.
Heat oil in large pot over medium-high heat and brown meat all around.
Add water to pot (it should reach halfway up sides of the meat; use more or less as needed). Roast, covered, about 2 hours, turning once halfway through, until fork tender and internal temperature reaches 145 degrees.
Remove meat from pot to cutting board and cover while making gravy (below). Reserve cooking liquid to make gravy. Thinly slice meat. Serves 8.
To be clear, this is NOT Rainbow Drive-In’s gravy recipe, which is a secret, and is made in such large quantities, with hard-to-duplicate components, that you probably couldn’t duplicate it anyway. This recipe is a good brown gravy that pairs well with the roast pork and could be used with other meats — or simply poured over rice.
You can make the gravy in the same pot used to cook the pork. Just wipe it clean so your gravy is clear and smooth.
Multipurpose Brown Gravy
» 3 cups chicken or beef stock (or in this case use cooking liquid from pork)
» 1/4 cup butter
» 1/4 cup flour
» 1 to 2 teaspoons Kitchen Bouquet or other browning agent, or caramel food coloring (optional)
Strain solids from cooking liquid and skim fat.
Place saucepan over medium-high heat and melt butter. Slowly add flour, stirring to make a smooth paste. Gradually add cooking liquid, stirring constantly to prevent lumps. Reduce heat and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened. Stir in Kitchen Bouquet, if using. (If gravy has lumps, strain.) Makes about 3 cups.
Approximate nutritional analysis, per serving (using shoulder and 1 tablespoon salt, assuming 1/4 cup fat drains off): 370 calories, 24 g fat, 7 g saturated fat, 120 mg cholesterol, 1,000 mg sodium, 4 g carbohydrate, no fiber or sugar, 35 g protein
Nutritional analysis by Joannie Dobbs, Ph.D., C.N.S. Write "By Request," Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 7 Waterfront Plaza, Suite 210, Honolulu 96813; or email requests to bshimabukuro@staradvertiser.com.
