Good Meal Hunting With Kimi’s Kitchen: An Ocean Woman’s Guide to Wild Home Cooking
In her new cookbook, spearfisher Kimi Werner whips up delectable meals from wild-caught ingredients.
Photo: Courtesy of Ten Speed Press
Most know Kimi Werner as a champion spearfisher, an accomplished freediver and passionate environmentalist. But her new book, Kimi’s Kitchen: An Ocean Woman’s Guide to Wild Home Cooking, slated to hit shelves in early March, reveals one of the waterwoman’s lesser-known skill sets—her ability to transform fresh catches from the ocean and land into delicious, show-stopping meals. It’s know-how honed through years of culinary schooling and time spent as a line cook.
Humbly rooted in Werner’s Island upbringing, the book’s 79 recipes span multiple cultures. With its richly flavored broth, the hearty venison ramen is a take on her grandmother’s comforting somen noodle soup. A tribute to her mother’s gau gee, Werner’s “ugly” dumplings are stuffed with minced fish, water chestnuts and loads of veggies. And the smoked shank beans and sopapillas nod to her dad’s family ties in New Mexico.
Throughout, Werner offers a bevy of insights, including a rundown of her pantry staples and equipment, and tips on sourcing fresh ingredients, the best invasive species to eat, and how to clean and cut your own fish. She also shares stories and lessons from her life’s journey, delving into her upbringing in coastal Ha‘ikū, Maui, where she tagged along with her dad as he spearfished for family meals, to her current life as a globe-trotting mom and wife, whipping up meals for a family of her own.
Brie Thalmann is the home and style editor of HONOLULU Magazine.
