TThe granola had me at Café Mocha. Tatsuyoshi Omura, creator of ReBran, talks about the granola he’s been cooking in a Makiki commercial kitchen since last year. Cocoa Banana Bread, Hawaiian Coffee, Island Honey and Sea Salt – All flavors are made with leftover bran from locally milled rice. Café Mocha is Omura’s favorite, so I make a mental note before asking the obvious: why rice bran granola?
“I was thinking of starting a musubi business, so I visited the Kubota [Rice Industry Hawai‘i] facility in Kalihi and we saw the huge rice milling process. I was very impressed,” says Omura. “But they were discarding the rice bran. This does not happen in Japan. The Japanese know that rice bran is a superfood.”
Photo: Aaron K. Yoshino
Rich in fiber, antioxidants, vitamins and cholesterol-lowering oils, rice bran, or nuka, is common in Japanese home kitchens and in skin care products such as moisturizers and anti-aging treatments.
“I went home and thought about how to recycle rice bran,” says Omura, who grew up in Hawaii and Tokyo, where he did national campaigns for a leading advertising agency. “Making granola is something American people do. I know both cultures. I thought, I’ll be the person who can do this.”
He used his marketing background to test 50 to 70 recipes, setting up samples and surveys to optimize flavors and textures. Matcha Latte joined the lineup; new kinako, miso and shoyu flavors are coming. Like all of their granola, none has refined sugar or preservatives.
As for Café Mocha? The flavor of roasted coffee beans permeates a crunchy blend of oats, bran and nuts with hints of coconut. It is noticeably less sweet than American granola. It was my favorite too, until I tried Island Honey & Ginger. I’m on my fourth bag. Now Omura is testing her new Black Sesame Kinako granola at farmers markets. I’m keeping an open mind.
Available at Saturday Kaka’ako and Sunday KailuaTown Farmers Markets, Dean & DeLuca Hawai’i, Lawson Station, Vim N’ Vigor, The Rice Factory, Kumu Farms Country Market (Maui), Down to Earth, rebrangranola.com, @rebran.granola
SEE ALSO: Your guide to farmers markets on O’ahu
Mari Taketa is the Dining Editor of HONOLULU Magazine and Editor of Frolic Hawai’i.
