Poke, man! Go try this Hawaiian dish

Ryan Thoo and Nicholas Alec of Paperfish. Photo: The Star/Yap Chee Hong

Poke bowls are... everything. They’re hand-held horns of plenty which can presumably contain every imaginable flavour and texture – because even in the Klang Valley, you’ll come across toppings ranging from deep-fried salmon skin to lychees and cubes of ripe mango. No chocolate yet, but can a dessert poke bowl be far away?

A centuries-old Hawaiian dish, poke (pronounced poh-kay) refers to the cuts of raw fish that top a typical poke bowl. The word “poke” means to cut or slice, and the dish originated from the odd off-cuts of a fishing catch – waste not, want not, especially when you can season with a little sea salt or soy sauce and enjoy it as a snack!