It’s a Mormon thing, I know. Although I have been LDS (Mormon) since I was a girl, and my mother grew up in primarily LDS communities, I did not try Hawaiian Haystacks until I was living in Washington D.C. as an adult and attended a baby shower hosted by an LDS friend. This is a meal that is universally appealing and one of the few that EVERYONE in my family will eat. I usually make the following substitutions: Short grain brown rice instead of white, and a basic white sauce instead of the cream of chicken soup. I also use a vegan creamy poppy seed dressing found here on my food instead of the white sauce. Go here for an interesting short history on Haystack food.
Hawaiian Haystacks
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Serves: 6
Ingredients
- 2 (10 ¾ oz.) cans cream of chicken soup
- 1 c chicken broth, water or vegetable broth
- 2 c chicken, cooked & cubed
- 4 c cooked long grain rice
- 1 (9 ½ oz.) can chow mein noodles
- 3 medium tomatoes, sliced
- 1 c chopped celery
- ½ c chopped green or red pepper
- ½ c chopped green onions
- 1 (20 oz) can pineapple chunks, drained
- 1 c grated cheddar cheese
- ½ c slivered almonds or cashews
- ½ c shredded coconut (I use unsweetened)
- ½ c cucumber
Instructions
- Combine soup and chicken broth in saucepan. Add chicken and simmer 8 to 10 minutes until heated through. On serving plates layer all ingredients.
- First, stack rice, chow mein noodles, chicken and gravy. Add tomatoes, celery, green peppers and green onion. Top with pineapple chunks, grated cheese and more chicken and gravy if desired. Stack almonds (or cashews), coconut, and cucumber on top.
Notes
To make it vegetarian: Omit chicken, and use a white sauce. To make this a delicious vegan meal omit cheese and use poppy seed dressing as a sauce. Trust me, it is surprisingly good! To make it gluten free substitute chow mien noodles for roasted pumpkin seeds.
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