Saimin for the Soul

An egg-wheat noodle soup including kamaboko, green onion, egg, and sliced Spam, saimin can vary based on the “secret ingredients” of whoever is serving it. While the origins are cloudier than the dish’s broth, most attribute saimin to Chinese immigrants who flooded the Hawaiian Islands, like Maui, during the late 1800s. In Cantonese, the name roughly translates to “small noodle,” and was developed when Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Portuguese, and Filipino immigrants were all making their mark on local cuisine while working plantation fields and combining their techniques. It was cheap and easy to put together, making it a dish of choice for the working class of Hawaii.

In the mid-20th Century, saimin grew from a lower-class dish to a general comfort food, no longer just prepared in wagons by plantations, but it could also be found in various establishments around the islands (even the concession stand in Honolulu Stadium). This is probably where Spam also became traditional with the dish, as many Hawaiian staples began to include Spam from the many U.S. military bases that used it for army rations. McDonald’s in Hawaii even picked up on the trend, serving a version of saimin all the way up until 2022. 

While it’s no longer possible to get saimin for .50, or at the old Hew restaurant for that matter, spots for saimin abound around the islands and still offer a nostalgic comfort to many locals.. After a long day of surfing the stupendous waves of Pāʻia, there’s nothing more cozy than a bowl of saimin.