Yolking It Up At SOS Farms

Kelly and Yuichi Sato pamper their chickens. Daniel Lane photos

SOS stands for Sato’s Organic and Sustainable Farms. SOS provides an ELS or Eat Local Service. Selections include SOS produce and eggs from 160 pasture-raised chickens; pastries and breads from local bakers; Uncle Mickey’s dehydrated fruit; Hula Baby Biscotti; and produce from local farmers who provide cucumbers, fruit, mushrooms, taro, tomatoes and honey. Wednesday home deliveries to Kilauea and Princeville are free for orders of more than $20.

What’s Growing Now: Asparagus, beets, Swiss chard, collard greens, cucumber, curly kale, golden frill mustard, green beans, herbs, Lacinato kale, leeks, lettuce, Siberian kale, soybeans, yellow beans.

Grocery store eggs (right) pale in comparison to SOS eggs

FARM FRESH EGGS

Season: Chickens lay eggs year-round, but produce more in the summer months; averaging an egg about every 36 hours.

What to look for: Look for plump, saffron-colored yolks on clear, jelly-like whites. Yolks that separate easily from the whites indicate freshness and are nutritionally superior to pale eggs that collapse when cracked.

Storage: “Eggs that are washed and kept in the refrigerator will last six months to a year,” Kelly Sato says.

The Satos raise eight different breeds

Tip: “The eggs that come from the Mainland are at least six weeks old. Because of our customer base, our eggs are never more than three days old,” Sato says. Eggs with the label “shell protected” on the carton have been coated in a substance that extends their shelf life.

Preparation: “Because of the way we raise our girls, we eat the eggs raw,” adds Sato. “We just drop it over some warm rice in the morning, add some nori and mix it up.” This is the Satos’ favorite way to enjoy their eggs, although they are not advocating people eat raw eggs.

Healthy eggs: The Satos’ chickens eat a nutritious breakfast made from the off-cut fish of local restaurants, resulting in eggs that are high in Omega 3. “The eggs have a lot of vitamin D because the chickens have been in the sun all day,” says Sato, whose chickens enjoy a nice dinner of steamed brown rice with vegetable and fruit scraps.

Every morning Yuichi Sato chops up ahi for the chickens. Daniel Lane photo

Contact: Call 346-6843 or visit sosfarms.com. This is a pay-as-you-go service.

FRESH CROUTON AND CHEESE OMELET

“For the best flavor and performance, keep eggs cold and use them promptly,” says cookbook author Judy Rodgers. I adapted