Hawaiian Potluck Ambrosia Salad
The Backyard Ohana Potluck: Scaling for the Gathering
To mainlanders, a bowl of canned fruit, marshmallows, and sour cream might look like a mid-century fever dream. But to anyone raised around local Hawaiian backyard potlucks, this high-low masterpiece is pure nostalgic brilliance. The genius lies in the juxtaposition: the lactic tang of sour cream cuts the aggressive sweetness of the syrup, turning what should be a cloying dessert into a refreshing, necessary counterpunch to smoky Kalua pig and salty soy marinades. Respect the aunties who perfected this dish and heed their one absolute law: drain and dry your fruit mercilessly, or suffer a soupy, weeping mess.
Before you start
Drain the canned fruit.
Place the pineapple and mandarin oranges in a colander for at least 15 minutes, then pat them completely dry with paper towels to prevent the dreaded watery salad.
Rinse and dry the cherries.
Rinse the cherries under cold water to remove the heavy red syrup, then pat them aggressively dry so they don't turn your bright white cream a muddy pink.
Ingredients
- canned pineapple tidbits in juice20 oz
- canned mandarin oranges15 oz
- maraschino cherries10 oz
- fresh green grapes1 cup
- mini marshmallows1 1/2 cup
- sweetened shredded coconut1 cup
- macadamia nuts1/2 cup
- full-fat sour cream1 cup
- frozen whipped topping1 1/2 cup
Method
- 01
Combine the sour cream and whipped topping.
In a large mixing bowl, gently fold the sour cream and thawed whipped topping together until smooth, taking care not to deflate the fluffiness.
- 02
Fold in the fruit and dry ingredients.
Add the thoroughly dried pineapple, mandarins, cherries, grapes, coconut, marshmallows, and macadamia nuts to the bowl, using a large rubber spatula to gently fold everything together until each piece is coated in the creamy dressing.
- 03
Chill the salad overnight.
Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, though overnight is heavily preferred. As it sits, the marshmallows absorb the ambient moisture from the cream and swell into soft, melt-in-the-mouth pillows.
- 04
Garnish and serve cold.
Give the salad one gentle stir to revive the texture before transferring it to a proper serving bowl, finishing the top with a reserved sprinkle of coconut and a few cherry halves.
Notes
Make it from scratch if you must.
If you refuse to use store-bought whipped topping, whip one cup of heavy cream to stiff peaks with a tablespoon of powdered sugar and half a teaspoon of vanilla extract, then fold that into your sour cream instead.
The Filipino Buko Salad pivot.
Hawaii's deep Filipino roots mean Ambrosia is a close cousin to Buko Salad. Swap the sour cream and whipped topping for sweetened condensed milk and table cream, and add young shredded coconut (buko) to transform the dish.
From Cook Hawaiian in America.