How to choose a good taro [with video guide]

How to choose a good taro [with video guide]

So I only learned this skill recently….and I’m old. My excuse is that, for a Samoan girl, I’ve never reeeeaally been a fan of taro.

But apparently, as us Samoans start to age, our primal instincts rise more to the surface and we begin to crave the food of our elders and ancestors, so… taro.

This is probably why I suddenly needed a chunk of coconut cream taro (fa’alifu kalo) on my plate the other night, and why I had to swallow my pride and ask my elderly mother how to make it.

But even before that, I had to learn how to pick a good taro at the shops.

Here’s what I found out.

How does the taro look?

Taro comes in a lot of varieties and colours – pink, white, purple, etc. – but whatever its variety, you want to make sure the surface of the taro looks even and relatively uniform.

With some practice, you’ll learn the difference between the normal colour patterns on the taro and the discolouration that happens when the taro is not fresh.

How does the taro feel?

When you pick up the taro, it should feel dense and weighty for its size.

Make sure it passes the ‘finger-flick’ test: When you flick the taro a few times, it should sound full (not hollow) and feel firm.

You don’t want a taro that has soft or mushy spots. 

Check the tiapula

Finally, look for the end of the taro that was once connected to its stem. It’s the part that is noticeably different in texture from the rest of the taro.

Samoans call this the tiapula – if you separate this part and plant it, you can grow a whole new taro from it.

Anyway, make sure the tiapula looks freshly cut and still healthy.

If your taro passes all these checks, you’re good to go!

Sua alaisa – Samoa’s sweet, coconut cream rice soup

Sua alaisa – Samoa’s sweet, coconut cream rice soup

Taro, green banana and breadfruit are some ‘official’ staples in the Pacific, but we love our rice, too!

Samoans have several rice-based favourites, including koko alaisa and alaisa fa’apopo, but sua alaisa is probably the simplest to make.

Alaisa (or araisa) is the Samoan word for rice, and sua is what we call a soup or any very liquid-y dish. Sua alaisa is a  sweet, creamy, comforting rice treat that we often have for dessert or a hearty breakfast… or sometimes even dinner if it’s one of those days. 

Here’s how easy it is to make.

How We Do

Rinse a cup of short-grain white rice until the water runs clean, then to up with a litre or two of fresh water (depends on how thick you like your sua alaisa) and bring it to the boil.

Just before it starts to boil, add some fragrance. Samoans use lemon or lime leaves, but in our house, apparently, we also throw in kigamogi (bay leaves).

This was a tip my mother and cousin suggested, and it’s a keeper for me. I love the bit of herbal flavour the bay leaves add, especially how it plays off the sweetness of the dish.

Once the pot has boiled, turn the heat down and add in your coconut cream. Now, the kind of coconut cream you use makes a huge difference to the consistency of the sua alaisa.

Freshly grated and strained coconut flesh is obviously always the best choice, but if you have to use canned coconut cream, choose a brand like Kara, Fiafia, Solo’s Choice or Ayam.

From here, let the rice soup simmer for a while – mine took around 45 minutes. You’re just waiting for the rice grains to thicken up and get soft and for all the liquid to get creamy… and then you sweeten the pot to taste (my ‘taste’ needed about a cup and a half of raw sugar) and that’s it!

Time to enjoy your sua alaisa!

Sua alaisa: Sweet , creamy Samoan treat

Sua Alaisa

Sua alaisa means rice soup in Samoan, and this dish is a sweet, creamy treat that we usually have for breakfast or dessert.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Course Breakfast, Dessert
Cuisine Samoan
Servings 4 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1 cup short-grain, white rice
  • 2 litres water around 8 cups
  • 1 ½ cups coconut cream around 400mls, or one can
  • 1 ½ cups sugar or to taste
  • Lemon leaves to taste
  • Bay leaves to taste

Instructions
 

  • Rinse and drain the rice until the water runs clear.
  • Add to a pot with the fresh water, then heat to boil, stirring often so the rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot.
  • Just before the pot boils, add the lemon and bay leaves.
  • After it boils, turn the heat down and stir in the coconut cream. Let the rice soup simmer (still stirring often) until the rice grains have thickened up and softened.
  • Sweeten the sua alaisa to taste (I used around a cup and a half of raw sugar) and serve.

Video

Keyword alaisa, oceania, Pacific, rice, Samoan
Alaisa fa’apopo – Samoan coconut rice

Alaisa fa’apopo – Samoan coconut rice

Lots of Asian countries do a coconut and rice dish, but they don’t do it like Samoans do. (As far as I know.)

Alaisa fa’apopo literally means rice that’s been coconut’ed, which of course means that we’ve done something very coconut-y to the rice.

(I’m cracking myself up right now).

It’s all true, though.

The only other thing you need to know about alaisa fa’apopo is that it’s yummmmm and goes perfectly with hot Koko Samoa. Here’s how you eat it.

Warm, sticky coconut rice in a bowl. Steaming hot Koko Samoa in a mug. Scoop up the rice with a spoon, dunk it in the koko, pop it in your mouth. Chase it with a (careful) swig of sweet koko. Oh my life.

I rejoice in alaisa fa’apopo every rare occasion someone (usually my mom) makes it. It happens so infrequently I thought it would be a difficult recipe, but it’s not. It’s so easy, and super cheap, I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to figure this out.

So under mom’s watchful supervision, I made my first batch of alaisa fa’apopo yesterday, and it turned out not too bad.

Here’s the How To:

Alaisa fa'apopo - Samoan coconut rice

Lils
Luscious coconut cream pounded into hot steamy, salted rice... Alaisa fa'apopo is a beautiful Cup Tea treat to go with a strong hot cup of Koko Samoa. 
5 from 1 vote
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Course Cup Tea
Cuisine Samoan
Servings 8 people

Ingredients
  

  • 5 cups white rice, (dry)
  • 6 cups water
  • 2 teaspoons salt (or, to taste)
  • 2 cans coconut cream (or 850mls)

Instructions
 

Cook the Rice

  • Chuck the rice into a pot, rinse well, then add 6 cups of water and the salt. 
  • Place the pot on a burner and bring to boil, stirring every minute or so. 
  • Cover the pot and turn the hob right down to low. Let sit for 10 minutes, or until the rice is well cooked. It should be slightly wetter than you'd expect for normal rice.

Mash and pour

  • While the rice is still hot (leave the burner on low), add some coconut cream and start mashing. 
  • Add a bit more coconut cream and keep mashing. Taste the rice and add more salt if necessary (to taste). 
  • Continue pouring and mashing until you've used up both cans of coconut cream.
  • Taste the rice again. Is it good? Is it mashed up and sticky but not too wet? Do you like the amount of salt in it? Can you taste the yummy coconut cream flavour? 
  • Tweak stuff until you can say yes to all of the above, then turn off the stove because it's done. 

Alaisa fa’apopo is great in any weather but it’s even more gratifying in New Zealand, when it’s cold. Or when it’s late at night and you want a heartier snack than chippies.

Or for breakfast.

Or, you know… just all the time.

Why Samoan panipopo is food for the soul

Why Samoan panipopo is food for the soul

So… I have no idea how panipopo – those decadent buns soaked in sweet, velvety coconut cream – became a Samoan thing.

I know that bakeries in Samoa are amazing, and have been for ages. Even my grandparents talked about getting up before the sun, seleni (shilling) in hand, to buy a fresh loaf of bread and rush it home, still piping hot.

I also know that luscious coconut cream…? Grated coconut meat, twisted and squeezed into liquid, through a husk fibre strainer…? Now that stuff is the nectar of the Polynesian gods.

It wouldn’t have taken long for some brilliant islander to start dipping steamy hot bread into sweetened coconut cream and then be floored by the mother of all lightbulb moments.

But whatever its origin story is (and if you actually know it, please share in the comments below), not many dishes are more iconically Samoan than the beautiful panipopo.

In my extended family, the ability to make good, authentic pagipopo (like they made it back in the old days) is a serious status symbol. My aunt is known around the family circles as the best pagipopo maker, but I have an older cousin who swears he taught her the recipe… and apparently, he got it directly from my grandfather. Oka!

So after I mastered the art of eating pagipopo, the obvious next step for me was learn how to make them. A few years ago, I went to my aunt. She made me swear a vow of secrecy then spent the whole day showing me – step by step – how to make her treasured pagipopo.

Over the next few months, I practiced and practiced (and ate and ate) and got pretty good at making them… and then I posted my aunt’s panipopo recipe on One Samoana.

I know I know… it’s supposed to be secret, but I had to do it!

Only cause back then most of the panipopo recipes online were posted by non-Samoans whose instructions were basically:

  • Buy some dinner rolls
  • Dip in coconut milk…

I felt like it was my duty as a Hamo Geek Girl to share an actual Samoan family’s old, authentic recipe for real panipopo.

The response to my original panipopo article was a lot of fun to read. For the most part, people loved it. Check out some of my favourite comments from back then:

Wow. Perfect, perfect, perfect! ‘O le panipopo mo’i lea!

I swear, when you try to tell the people who’ve served the ‘not as mama used to make panipopo’ and they tell you ‘Eh, ‘o le mea mo’i!’–it makes you crazy!

And, now… I am the Mastah Panipopo–hee, hee, hee. Thanks A LOT for the post, you gave me my panipopo sanity back; I knew my childhood taste-buds wasn’t lying.

just had to post up again!! so i made another batch and it went over so well, people actually think i do this on a regular basis!! this recipe has my boyfriend’s family LOVING me right about now!! thank you!! lol!! who knew that panipopo could create such reputation yeah?? lol!! Big faafetai’s to you and especially your auntii!! i hope you post up some more soon!!

SUCCESS!! Everyone loved it & I am super stoked to be able to FINALLY make this from scratch for my family to enjoy. I knew the pagi popo others were making didn’t seem right and it is because they used pre-made dough or frozen dinner rolls. Thanks so much for sharing your wisdom with us!

Yes. I know. I’m pretty cool.

BUT, I also had a lot of people (mostly offline, to my face) complaining that I didn’t include any actual measurements. They were like, but how can I make something if you don’t tell me how many actual cups of flour to use? Or how many exact teaspoons of yeast? And what exact size the pan should be?

And I was like… well, my aunt didn’t give me exact measurements either. What do you want me to do?

It really is about practice. I’ve made pagipopo so many times (you can tell from my pagipopo abs) that the process is pretty automatic to me now.

I still use coffee mugs of flour, heaped up just past the rim. I still add just enough butter so the mixture feels silky all rubbed between my fingers. I still stir in just enough warm water so that the batter is thick but jiggly. Are those not accurate measurements?

I get it, though. Not everybody is a fai mea palafu – I mean, a natural – in the kitchen like me. And even I get this pagipopo recipe wrong sometimes, like when I’m distracted and forget a step. And sure, writing the recipe down will help everyone to get more predictable results… So I finally gave in.

I’ve just spent the last couple days making pagipopo – refining things, getting my house to taste-test and critique, eating way more of those yummy pagi than I should (it’s for science) – to finally get you some actual, palagi-style measurements.

Now everyone can give this recipe a go:

Authentic Samoan panipopo (coconut buns)

Lils
Probably the most iconic Samoan dessert, luscious panipopo is a must-have for those especially momentous family gatherings. This one is an old, Palelei family recipe adapted for the world by a Hamo Geek Girl.
5 from 3 votes
Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 4 hours
Course Cup Tea
Cuisine Samoan
Servings 24 buns

Ingredients
  

The Panipopo Dough

  • 4 cups plain flour to begin with
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 50 grams butter
  • 3 tablespoons white sugar
  • 3 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1 cup warm water to dissolve the yeast
  • 2-3 cups warm water to incorporate the batter
  • 2-3 cups plain flour additional, for kneading

The Coconut Cream Sauce

  • 1 can coconut cream (or 425ml fresh coconut cream, if you're lucky enough to have it)
  • 2 tablespoons plain flour for thickening
  • 1 cup white sugar

Instructions
 

The Bun

  • Making the batter is so easy. Start by dumping your four cups of flour into a large bowl, add the salt and then rub in the butter until the flour feels 'silky' and gets a little bit clumpy. Then make a well in the middle of the bowl and chuck your sugar in there.
  • Time to work on the yeast. Put your 3 teaspoons of yeast into a smaller bowl (that's not made of plastic). Slowly add a cup of very warm water and stir until the yeast is dissolved... sometimes I get in there with my fingers to help the dissolving process.
  • Next, pour the yeast-water into the flour mixture - into the well with the sugar. You should see the yeast begin to bubble up as it makes contact with the sugar.
  • And then you just grab a wooden spoon and fold the flour into the liquid - mix it all up - adding more warm water (2 to 3 cups) until it becomes a thick batter that still jiggles a bit when you shake the bowl.
  • Cover the bowl lightly with a clean towel or baking paper and leave it in a warm, dry spot to rise for 2 hours.
  • When you come back to the dough, it should have doubled in size with lots of holes in it. Spread 2 cups of fresh flour out on a clean counter, then pour the sticky, hole-y batter on to it. Then you're going to fold the new flour into the dough and knead it until it's a lot less sticky because it's absorbed almost all of the flour. (This shouldn't take much more than 5 minutes).
  • When you've got a dough that's a lot more solid than batter, easier to hold but still a little bit sticky, chuck it back in the bowl and cover again for another round of rising.
  • This second rise should only take an hour and a bit. The dough should have doubled in size again but with only a few holes this time. On your clean counter top, dump another half cup of fresh flour because you're going to knead the dough again, but only to get rid of a little more sticky-ness.
  • And now it's time to roll your buns. That means, cut a palm-full of dough, roll it between your hands into a short, thick rope thing, then tie it like an 'almost' knot. If that's too hard, you can always just roll a sphere - up to you.
  • Oh wait!! Now is the perfect time to pre-heat your oven - 200 degrees Celsius if you're in NZ... or whatever that is in Fahrenheit (400?). Okay, continue.
  • Place your buns in neat rows in a pan that can take up to 24 buns (sorry, I'm still not sure what size pan that is). Let them sit there for a while (they will continue to rise) as you go prepare the coconut cream sauce.

The Coconut Cream Sauce

  • Pour one can (or 450ml) of coconut cream into a container. Chuck 2 tablespoons of plain flour into the empty can (or a cup) and slowly pour warm water into it - stirring, stirring, stirring - until the flour dissolves.
  • When the can/cup is full of water, pour the mixture into the coconut cream. Add one more can/cup of warm water - still stirring - and then stir in a cup of sugar.

The Final Step

  • Wow. This recipe is easy, but really time consuming, a ea? But we're finally at the end - yay!
  • You just need to pour your coconut cream sauce into the pan with the buns (save maybe a cup of cream to add halfway through the bake) then put the pan in the oven and go put your feet up for 20 minutes.
  • Come back after 20 minutes to check that your buns haven't burnt and the sauce hasn't spilled over and the oven is heating everything up evenly, etc. The sauce should have cooked down a little bit, so now's a good time to add the last bit of coconut cream, then close the oven for another little while.
  • After around another 20-25 mins (roughly 45 minutes in total), your buns should be golden on top with coconut cream bubbling around the bottom. Take the pan out and cover it with tin foil so the buns don't dry out as they cool.
  • Done! Call the family over, make a cuppa something nice, and share the panipopo love.

I think it’s pretty clear now why authentic, Samoan panipopo – especially this recipe – is food for MY soul. It’s all about family.

It makes me think of the grandfather I only know from stories and photos… a carpenter who built houses and cathedrals, a businessman who ran plantations and stores and inspired a Samoan newspaper… a caring babysitter who nurtured me as an infant when my parents had to work.

I smile thinking about my aunt – so proud of her baking skills, so generous with her knowledge… that apparently came from my cousin? I love that I’ve joined the family pagipopo tradition, but it comes with a challenge: who’s hand is really the best at making this treat?

Pagipopo reminds me of Christmas and New Years, birthdays and funerals, when the family is together and it’s time for Cup Tea.

I hope this recipe becomes a staple for your family, too.

Quick Samoan Language Tips:

Pani = bun, which isn’t quite the same as bread (or dinner roll), which is why this recipe does not include milk or eggs. Instead, this makes the same dough that’s similar (but not exactly the same) to the kind used for Samoan pork buns or German buns.

Popo = coconut, specifically mature coconuts with thick meat that’s grated and squeezed to produce gorgeous coconut cream.

Panipopo is the correct name for this dish, but in casual-talk, Samoans will also pronounce it pagipopo – where the ‘g’ sounds like the ‘ng’ in ‘hanger’.

The plural of panipopo is also panipopo.

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Tried this recipe? Please tell us about it in the comments below.

Ohh, and if you make this recipe and post a photo up on social, please use the hashtag #manauiPanipopo so we can check it out, too. 🙂

Samoan Style Chicken Curry

Samoan Style Chicken Curry

Here’s a dish we most likely inherited from Asian settlers in the Pacific. Samoan curry is made with powdered Indian spices, but it isn’t as strong or as fragrant as traditional curries.

Instead it is creamier, with spices balanced in a soul-food kinda way by the subtle sweetness of coconut cream.

Yum.

You can make Samoan curry with beef or lamb, but I prefer chicken only partly because it cooks faster.

My version of Samoan style chicken curry is so easy (and cheap) to make that it’s my go-to dish for pot-lucks and large family gatherings.

This recipe will feed an army – or 4, maybe 5 hungry Samoans.

Here’s what I used:

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