I saw a youtube video about poke bowls that made me realize that they're insanely simple to make at home. And also way fucking cheaper. I got a swordfish filet and pan seared it until it was juuuust about cooked all the way through (but still a little pink in the middle) and cubed it and tossed it in ponzu sauce with some honey. Then I just added some random sides and some furikake.
I cooked the swordfish because I saw online that generally it's not consumed raw due to swordfish often having parasites. I saw other sources saying that it's eaten as sushi in Japan, but I'll be honest I don't trust my local Harris Teeter as much as I trust a Tokyo fishmonger. I tried a bit of it raw and it didn't have the pleasant texture of a fattier fish I was hoping for, so it probably worked out for the best anyways.
Even though this would probably fall under modern North American "poke" as we see it in a lot of common poke restaurants now, I think it's really more like a chirashi sushi or zuke don. I'm not Hawaiian and my knowledge of the subject is limited, but according to my research adding all the fixins and putting the fish on rice is not traditional. Check out the wikipedia article sometime! I find this kind of thing fascinating.
I'm perfectly happy eating the poke bowls I find in the states because they're delicious. But I think it's reasonable to have a respect for the original cuisine. Especially when it's from a culture that has been historically marginalized and exploited in the way Hawaiians have.
