The garlic shrimp trucks of Haleiwa and Kahuku on Oahu's North Shore — specifically Giovanni's, Romy's, and Fumi's — prepare shrimp in a style that has become one of Hawaii's defining culinary experiences: shell-on shrimp cooked with an extreme quantity of garlic in butter, producing a preparation where the garlic is simultaneously the spice, the sauce, and the reason the preparation exists.
- **The shrimp:** Large, shell-on — the shell protects the shrimp from direct heat and produces a different texture (more snap) than peeled shrimp. The shell is also the eating interface: diners peel each shrimp and the shell, now saturated with garlic butter, is sucked for maximum flavour. - **The garlic:** An extreme quantity — 15–20 cloves per 500g shrimp, minced fine. Not sautéed first; added raw to the pan and cooked with the shrimp simultaneously. - **The butter and olive oil:** Equal parts — the butter provides richness; the olive oil raises the smoke point to prevent burning. - **The technique:** Shrimp cooked shell-side down in the butter-oil-garlic mixture for 2 minutes; flipped for 1 minute. Total cooking time: 3 minutes. Any longer produces rubbery shrimp. - **The scampi sauce:** The residual garlic-butter liquid in the pan poured over the shrimp and the rice. The sauce is as important as the shrimp.
Aloha Kitchen