A rich Palauan taro-leaf soup thickened with coconut cream and studded with crab or fish.

Where does Demok come from?

Demok is a Palauan dish from Ngerulmud, Palau.

Can Demok be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Demok recipe includes ingredient substitutions to make it vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, or egg-free — including several of those at once, such as gluten-free and dairy-free together.

How long does Demok take to make?

About 70 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 50 minutes cooking), serving 4.

Demok — a Ngerulmud, Palau recipe

Name: Demok
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 50 min
Total time: 70 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Palauan
Ingredients: 1.5 lb young taro leaves (or spinach), chopped; 12 oz crab meat or firm fish; 1.5 cups thick coconut cream; 1 onion, chopped; 3 cloves garlic, minced; 1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated; 1 chili, sliced; to taste salt

Oceania → 🇵🇼 Palau → Ngerulmud

Demok

Palauan · easy · serves 4

prep 20 min · cook 50 min

~487 cal · 27g protein · 19g carbs · 36g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Creamy green taro-leaf soup with crab in coconut

🇵🇼 Ngerulmud

Demok is a signature dish of Palau, where taro is both staple and cultural treasure. Young taro leaves are simmered slowly with coconut cream until velvety, then enriched with crab, fish, or chicken, and seasoned simply so the earthy leaf and sweet coconut carry the dish — Micronesian home cooking at its most comforting.

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Make it yours

Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.

🥕 Vegetarian

🌱 Vegan

🌾 Gluten-Free

🥛 Dairy-Free

🥜 Nut-Free

🥚 Egg-Free

Ingredients

Serves 4 —

•

1.5 lb young taro leaves (or spinach), chopped — taro leaves must be fully cooked before eating

•

12 oz crab meat or firm fish

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1.5 cups thick coconut cream

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1 onion, chopped

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3 cloves garlic, minced

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1 tbsp fresh ginger, grated

•

1 chili, sliced

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to taste salt

Instructions

1

Simmer the taro leaves in water with the onion, garlic, and ginger for 30 minutes until fully soft.

2

Pour in the coconut cream and cook gently 10 minutes until velvety — do not boil hard.

3

Add the crab or fish (or hearts of palm and mushrooms) and warm through until just cooked.

4

Season with chili and salt.

5

Serve hot with taro, rice, or breadfruit.

Ngerulmud tradition.

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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Ngerulmud. The world's smallest capital, on islands of taro and coconut.

🗺️

Palau. A Micronesian archipelago of taro-leaf coconut soup.

🌍

Oceania. Island kitchens where coconut and the sea rule.

The story behind this dish is up top — worth a read while the pot works.

👩‍🍳

Richard Moore & Kelsey Tucker

Recipes cooked, tested, and researched by the creators of Spin the Globe. How we build our recipes →