Recipe
🥙 LUNCH
Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream)
Young taro leaves simmered down in coconut cream with onion until silky, dark and rich.
Fijian · easy · serves 4
prep 15 min · cook 25 min
~448 cal · 6g protein · 42g carbs · 31g fat · 7g fiber · 7g sugars · 27g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
↓ Jump to Recipe
AI-generated illustration
Rourou is the Fijian word for leaves, and also the everyday dish made by stewing them in , the fresh-pressed cream Fijians call lolo. It appears as a side or a light main across the islands, served with boiled or and often a piece of fish.
The method is simple but one detail is not optional: leaves must be cooked thoroughly, at least ten minutes, to break down the calcium oxalate that otherwise leaves an itch in the throat. Onion and garlic go in for depth, and some cooks add tomato, chilli, tinned fish or corned beef.
Cooked right, the leaves collapse into the and turn dark, soft and mellow, somewhere between a vegetable and a sauce. It is humble, cheap and deeply Fijian, the kind of thing that rounds out a plate of root crops.
Saved recipes and passport stamps are kept on this device. Sign in to keep them across your devices and leave reviews.
Make it yours
✓ Naturally vegetarian, vegan and gluten-, dairy-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 4
1 lb young leaves (or spinach), stems removed, taro leaves must be fully cooked before eating
1 1/2 cups
1 onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tomato, chopped (optional)
1 red chilli, chopped (optional)
to taste salt
Instructions
1
Wash the taro leaves well, strip out the tough stems and central ribs, and chop the leaves. If using spinach, chop it roughly.
2
Cook the onion and garlic in a little water or oil in a pot over medium heat until softened, then add the leaves and stir until they wilt right down.
3
Pour in the coconut cream, add the tomato and chilli if using, and season with salt. Bring to a gentle simmer.
4
Simmer, stirring now and then, until the leaves are completely tender and the coconut cream has thickened, at least 10 minutes for taro leaves.
✎ Chef’s note
Cook taro leaves the full time; undercooked, they leave a scratchy itch in the throat. Sturdy spinach needs only a few minutes.
5
Serve warm alongside boiled taro, cassava or rice.
Fijian home cooking, Viti Levu.
Ratings & reviews
Cooked it? Rate this dish:
No account needed. Sign in to leave a full review with a comment.
Cooked it?
Kept on this device, no account needed. Sign in to leave a review and keep your passport across your devices.
No reviews yet, be the first to cook it.
🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Viti Levu. The western side of the island is the sugar belt, and it is where Indo-Fijian cooking is densest, in Nadi and Lautoka: roti cooked on a tawa, dhal, and curries built on locally ground masala. That is not a separate cuisine sitting alongside the iTaukei one but part of the same everyday, sold from the same markets.
🗺️
Fiji. Fijian cuisine is defined by the reef and the coconut, kokoda (fish 'cooked' in citrus and coconut cream), taro, cassava, and the earth-oven lovo feast. Indigenous iTaukei and Indo-Fijian curry traditions meet across three hundred islands.
🌍
Oceania. The staple crops here were carried on purpose. Lapita voyagers moving east from roughly three thousand years ago brought taro, yam, banana, breadfruit and coconut with them along with pigs and chickens, because most of the islands they settled had almost nothing edible growing on them. The earth oven travelled too, as umu, imu, hangi, lovo, mumu, motu and um.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Fiji
Kokoda (Fijian Coconut Ceviche)Fresh fish "cooked" in lime, then mellowed in rich coconut cream with chili, onion, and tomato.
BabakauPuffy, faintly sweet Fijian fried bread, crisp outside and pillowy within, torn and dunked in sweet milky tea for breakfast.
VakaloloDense baked cassava under a dark coconut caramel, one of Fiji's oldest sweets, cut into sticky squares.
Browse all Fiji recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Fiji meal
Kava (Yaqona)Drink
VakaloloDessert
Fijian Chicken CurryDinner
Similar dishes from around the world
MorohoLesotho
Rukau (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream)Cook Islands
Mchicha wa Nazi (Greens in Coconut Milk)Tanzania
SimboroVanuatu
Blaukraut (Bavarian Braised Red Cabbage)Germany
Babenda (Greens, Grain and Groundnut Pot)Burkina Faso
Cuisine
Diet
Vegetarian Recipes from Around the World
Vegan Recipes from Around the World
Gluten-Free Recipes from Around the World
Dairy-Free Recipes from Around the World
Egg-Free Recipes from Around the World
Pork-Free Recipes from Around the World
Vegan Lunches from Around the World
Vegetarian Lunches from Around the World
Gluten-Free Lunches from Around the World
Dairy-Free Lunches from Around the World
Egg-Free Lunches from Around the World
Frequently asked questions
What is Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream)?
Young taro leaves simmered down in coconut cream with onion until silky, dark and rich.
Where does Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream) come from?
Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream) is a Fijian dish from Viti Levu, Fiji.
Can Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream) be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream) recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream) safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Rourou (Taro Leaves in Coconut Cream) take to make?
About 40 minutes total (15 minutes prep, 25 minutes cooking), serving 4.
Get the Sunday Spin
One dish from somewhere in the world, in your inbox every Sunday. No spam, just dinner inspiration you can cook that day.