PuPu Platter

For some reason, I remember a "specialty" of my youth, going out to eat and ordering the pupu platter in a chinese, or even better, polynesian restaurant. I recall some shrimp thing, and shrimp "toast". Maybe a baby egg roll. Does anyone rememebr what else is in a pupu platter (oh, of course, a small paper umbrella).

I remember them well, they were also a huge treat for my family in my childhood. I remember the "deluxe" version had shrimp toast and egg rolls, and also meat and pinapples coated with a sweet vaguely asian sauce on a stick, spare ribs, chicken wings, and a few large battered fried shrimp.

What a memory!! I remember those as well.In my experience, they were mini egg rolls, skewers of sweet and sour fruit,shrimp toast,little ribs,chicken wings,and deep fried shrimp.Yum!!

Here is one:

Pu Pu Platter (For 2)
Egg Roll (2), Bar-B-Q Boneless Spare Ribs (4), Crab Rangoon (4), Beef Teriyaki (2), Chicken Finger (4) & Chicken Wings (4)
....$15.50 for two
....$17.00 with a Small Roast Pork Fried Rice

I remember them as differing at various restaurants.

Pupu is really a Hawaiian word, borrowed by the likes of Trader Vic and Don the Beachcomber who served Cantonese dishes at their so-called Polynesian restaurants.

From the Mai Kai "Polynesian" restaurant in Ft. Lauderdale:

Pupu Platter (Serves 2)
A combination of Shanghai Chicken, Egg Roll, Crab Rangoon and Tahitian Cheese Tangs.
$13.95


And yes, Shrimp Toast would have been common.

All really fun nibbles!

2 Bar-B-Q Spare Ribs, 2 Fried Wonton, 2 Crab Rangoon, 2 Teriyaki Beef, 2 Teriyaki Chicken, 2 Shrimp Toast, 2 Egg Roll, and 2 Chicken Wings



In my experience, the Shrimp Toast always disappeared first.


Shrimp Toast
SERVES 4
4 slices white bread
8 ounces cooked peeled shrimp
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 large egg
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
oil, for frying

Remove crusts from the bread.
Using a food processor, blend shrimp, soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil and egg until a smooth paste has formed.
Spread paste evenly on top of bread.
Sprinkle bread with sesame seeds and press them into spread.
Cut bread from corner to corner twice, to form small triangles.
Heat oil in wok and fry toasts, sesame side up, for 4 to 5 min, until golden. WARNING: WATCH THEM CAREFULLY. THEY MAY TAKE CONSIDERABLY LESS THAN 4 MIN TO BECOME GOLDEN.
Drain toasts thoroughly.
Serve with sweet and sour sauce.
Enjoy!

In my mind, the little grill in the middle of the pu pu platter, with its flame merrily burning, was the COOLEST thing ever! And yeah, the food was good too!

Oh, yes I do remember the Pu Pu platter! Ribs, mini eggrolls(spring rolls), shrimp toast(still a favorite of mine), skewered beef, chicken wingettes and pineapple & cherries on a stick. A great memory that I don't think my kids would appreciate. Well, maybe with the indoor fountain and coi pond(indoors, of course).

??? Pu-pu platters are still served in the chinese restaurants here in my area....they're fun to get. Why would they be just a memory to people elsewhere? They really don't have them anymore?

You da man, Porkbeaks. I loved those ones with the mini-habachi.

Most Chinese restaurants have them here in Southern Ohio

They have 'em out here in Sacramento, I looked up two places but they call it .. both of them call it.. a po po platter. Weird huh?

No shrimp toasts but they do serve fried prawns, egg rolls, beef sticks, bbq pork , paper wrapped chicken and chicken wings.

This also coming from a place that don't know what duck sauce is.. (But I DID find a place that has Duck Sauce packets.. it's a HAWAIIAN BBQ place.. and I raid it constantly everytime I order in there i'll snag 8-10 packets. ;)

I have enjoyed the Pu pu platter before but the name totally turns me off. It reminds me of Pu Pu.

Paul E Smith
Knoxville, TN

PorkBeaks - Great picture. Interesting shrimp toast recipe..I never saw one that utilized cooked shrimp. I use to make it from chopped raw shrimp, with much of the same ingredients you've mentioned. The raw shrimp mix was also a paste but you did not have to use a mixer or anyhting...Just chop up the raw shrimp with two cleavers. I spread it on slice of thin white bread with crust removed. Covered it with another slice, cut in in two and then fried it. Anyway:

I remember ribs (they'd cut them in half), mini egg rolls, skewered teryaki beef, chicken wings, fried won tons, and shrimp toast. I always use to wonder, if they actually cleaned the wooden serving bowls between customers.....I remember the wrapped chicken!

I just do not remember every having it. How the heck is that made? May be with those won ton skins? Any of you ever remember getting fan tail shrimp on a pu pu platter? Any of you remember Stuffed Fan Tail Shrimp? They'd stuff it with ground fresh pork..Fantastic!

I used to get them a lot when I was younger and still do occasionally. One of the items that used to be in them frequently, but that I never see any more is chicken wrapped in foil. It was sort of ground up chicken and heavily seasoned, and the foil would be dripping in grease. I loved it.

quote:

Originally posted by phlmaestro

I used to get them a lot when I was younger and still do occasionally. One of the items that used to be in them frequently, but that I never see any more is chicken wrapped in foil. It was sort of ground up chicken and heavily seasoned, and the foil would be dripping in grease. I loved it.

Ahhhhh you speak of paper wrapped chicken :) That's real common out here in California and most places have it if you ask for that.

I haven't seen the Pu Pu Platter around here in a looooonnnngggg time. I do miss it indeed!

Andrea

Years ago I recall a Polish restaurant in Riverhead NY (yes, in Polish Town) that served a Polish pu-pu platter featuring kielbasa & pierogies, among other things. I never ventured to try it.

Uh oh -- I may have awakened the dreaded Polish Guy and encouraged him to again crank up his torturous gasbaggery

rjb---don't remember the platter but when we went to the stock car races in Riverhead
we often went to a Polish place that had great food, and so much you had to let out
your belt. Then off to the track and a few cold ones. I can still hear the roar in my
un-conscious mind as they go round and round and round and round.

If we didn't go there we continued out to Jamesport to the Elbow Room -- bestest steaks !!!

The granchildren enjoyed a Pu-Pu tray the other evening at Leanh's Chinese restaurant in Daytona Beach. They love the flames! Incidentally, we enjoyed some excellent food here and the service was very good, as usual. I used to go there years ago and had quite forgotten it until someone mentioned it here on Roadfood and I immediately put it on our list of places to eat while vacationing here.

(Incidentally, this pu-pu tray had egg rolls, spareribs, beef teriyaki, wings, fried wontons and jumbo fried shrimp.)

Our favorite Chinese restaurant in Columbia MD serves a great Pu-Pu tray which they order everytime we go there. I had no idea that some areas no longer had them.

Glad you liked Leahann's...Again. Incidently, there's another place I'd recommend when you are in the Deland area ..Won Lee. Great, great shrimp with lobster sauce. As good as NYC. Also their egg rolls, roast pork with cashews, etc. Tough to choose between the two places...

Roadfoodie John A (Daytona Beach)and I are hoping to meet for the first time and go next week to Leahann's for lunch. We'll take some pictures of her food for all of you. What I do not know is how to get those pictures onto this site. When we get the pictures, I'll ask for help.

I rember the pu pu platers at a now closed polynesian restaurant here in BR, They also had a drink called The Flaming Volcano It came in a punch bowl & you drank it with long straws.

We have PuPu Platters all over the place here. They generally come with wings, teryiaki beef, shrimp toast, pork ribs, butterfly shrimp, egg or spring rolls, fried rice,(of your choice), and a few other things, depending on which restaurant you're patronizing.

Kit Chen's Kitchen, Rock Hill, SC, late '70s-early '80s: my little sister and I would split a pu pu platter during every visit to Rock Hill's first Chinese restaurant -- that, surprisingly enough, is long gone. We were mesmerized by the little hibachi grill and always wondered how long the flames would last on just a scoop of Sterno. Our first introduction to Chinese (-American) food, and many, many pu pu platters and fond memories followed... Chris

All the Chinese restaurants here have pu pu platters. They generally have butterfly shrimp, fried chicken drumettes, ribs, crab rangoon, and sometimes shrimp toast. Mmmmmm.

quote:

Originally posted by Pwingsx

All the Chinese restaurants here have pu pu platters. They generally have butterfly shrimp, fried chicken drumettes, ribs, crab rangoon, and sometimes shrimp toast. Mmmmmm.

"Prince" it's good to see you back again.
I still feel your pain and hope you're doing well.

Richard, how incredibly nice of you to say so, especially after so much time has elapsed. Thank you!

Hello All,
Here in the Harrisonburg, Va. area, we have Pu-Pu Platters,
(hope I spelled it right) but we are surrounded by mountains
and live in a valley, and the dish is usually pork, beef, and
chicken offerings.
Take Care,
Fieldthistle

In China you can buy authentic Poo Poo platters, Andrew Zimmer won't eat them!

quote:

Originally posted by chewingthefat

In China you can buy authentic Poo Poo platters, Andrew Zimmer won't eat them!

Mr. Smoke, did you mean this:

http://www.travelchannel.com/TV_Shows/Bizarre_Foods

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

A great site to help you find purveyors of pupu platters, past and present:

http://www.critiki.com/cgi-bin/browse.cgi?by=category&id=1

My personal favorite: Lotus Garden in Greenwood, Indiana (south of Indianapolis), still alive and well.