Building a better popsicle
OnoPops / Last July, Oahuans Joe and Jessica Welch attended a family reunion in North Carolina where they discovered Locopops–a gourmet version of the Mexican paleta. They walked away from the shop thinking, “This would do well in Honolulu.” Nine months later, OnoPops was delivered. Shortly after conception, Jessica realized she was too busy to devote enough time to the business, and in stepped Joe’s brother Josh. The San Francisco restaurant he had been working at closed, and an ‘ohana apartment at his parents’ house opened up–creating a perfect storm for his return to the Islands.
After much online research, the Welch brothers learned paletas are a national phenomenon, and especially popular in cities such as San Diego and Los Angeles. “Paletas are a perfect fit for Hawaii because of the abundance of fruit, and it’s hot year round,” says Joe. “There are so many ingredients to work with here–it’s unlimited.”
Both brothers are talented home cooks and they use locally grown, often organic, ingredients to make alluring flavors such as ume-Thai basil, Kona orange and cinnamon, and Kula strawberry and Maui goat cheese. They even make their own li hing mixture, using carmine (red dye made from cochineal beetles) instead of FD&C Red No. 40.
“Some fruits transfer better than others,” says Joe. “Mangos and papayas have a perfect texture for popsicles. Pineapple is so watery–it’s a little icy but still has a good flavor.” The faster the pops freeze, the smaller the ice crystals, he explains.
Now that mango season is starting, “mango habanero is the favorite of my test batches,” says Joe. He and Josh have also just perfected caramel shoyu–a local adaptation of the French classic caramel-and-sea salt–and butter mochi. They make a roux of mochi flour and butter, cook it down, put it into a mold and freeze it. They’re now figuring out how to use rangpur limes from Hawaii Island–“they’re orange, but they’re limes, and have sweet notes of mandarin oranges,” says Joe.
Joe is a fireman, and last year was part of the crew that did the fire safety check at the JAIMS campus in Hawaii Kai. “The woman there said they were renting out space, and she showed us the huge kitchen that hadn’t been used in 10 years,” he says. That’s where OnoPops is now based, housing the new popsicle-making machine the brothers ordered from Brazil.
The Welch brothers would like to open a storefront in the next year, and they rent out vintage Brazilian popsicle stands for parties, but for now you can buy OnoPops ($3 each) at Muumuu Heaven (767 Kailua Road, Kailua, 263-3366), and they’ll have a stand at the Hawaii Kai Farmers Market, which debuts May 22 at Kaiser High School. Restaurateurs and others interested can visit [onopops.com].
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