Hawaiian-Snacks.Tripod.com
There are several Hawaiian snacks that have become popular in Hawaii since their introductions within the last 100 years. Two ethnic groups played a major role in introducing two quit different snack food into Hawaii. The Chinese introduced preserved fruits known as Li Hing Mui and the Japanese introduced rice crackers ( arare, kakimochi, and senbei) , which delighted many local people in Hawaii. In order to satisfy the tastes of many other residents and visitors to Hawaii, cookies with a tropical flavors have gained in popularity as one of Hawaii's best snack food in recent decades.
Li Hing Mui:
"Li Hing Mui" or "traveling plum" was introduced to Hawaii by Chinese immigrants. The sweet, sour and salty taste stimulates the sense of taste. Like many other peoples in many different lands preserving fruit was a way of making fruit and their vitamins available during the seasons when there were no fresh fruit. In Hawaii, the tropical climate allows fruits to be produce during most of the year, thus today li hing mui is considered more of a hawaiian snack food rather than an essential food.
Japanese Rice Crackers:
Arare, kakimochi and senbei were introduced to Hawaii by Japanese immigrants. In comparison, Arare is a relatively small Japanese rice crackers that are made from glutinous rice (mochi) seasoned with soy sauce and come in many sizes, shapes and colors. One of the definitions of arare is "to cut into small cubes. Kakimochi, which means "sliced and dried rice cake," is made from wheat and is usually larger in size. Senbei, which is usually served with Japanese tea and lacks the soy sauce taste as compared to arare and kakimochi, means "rice cracker made from wheat flour."
Hawaiian Cookies:
Hawaiian cookies typically contain products that Hawaii is well known for, such as macadamia nuts and tropical fruit flavors.