Saturday, April 19, 2008

Dreaming of Samoa - RIP 12 April 2008

In Samoa you can buy young coconuts (not readily available in Melbourne) straight out of the esky for 50 cents – heaven.














Chef Notes
I could live off papaya and lime – such a natural combination. Tried to tart it up with the clean taste of coconut jelly (lessons learnt from my first for into agar-agar when doing Japan were put to use…) and the refreshing flavour of the mint.





Chef Notes
Such a rich combination of starchy bananas, coconut cream and turmeric – the whole thing was lifted by the kaffir lime leaves. The roasted peanuts contrasted the thick creamy texture of the soup and the grated turmeric gave the dish the required kick.








Chef Notes
Palusami Global Gobbler-style…I think it worked. Substituting wakame for taro leaves and adding currants and poppy seeds then wrapping the whole thing in cavalo nero were my touches to a Samoan classic. The taro was a little disappointing. If only I’d done the coconut cream and taro mash to face-off with the crispy taro chips.

Chef Notes
This dish went through a few reincarnations before it made it to the table – but I’m glad I went with the pancakes (fairly popular in Samoa). Cinnamon and banana mixed well and the wholesome spelt flour cut the stodge factor. The cocoa butter made with coconut oil and palm sugar added some decadence but drenching the whole thing in lime juice ensured the Samoan ambience remained (helped by a barmy 14 degree Melbourne night). Coconut roasted in lime juice and palm sugar – I’ll put that down to boredom.

What would my friends in Samoa think of this - to them, any divergence from coconut, taro, onion and banana is quite unnecessary... Malo Samoa!

No comments: