~412 cal · 4g protein · 13g carbs · 41g fat (estimated, per serving)
🍽️
Baked taro leaf parcels opened to show creamy coconut centers
🇼🇸 Upolu
Palusami is the dish everyone reaches for first when a Samoan umu (earth oven) is opened on to'ona'i, the big Sunday lunch after church. Layers of taro leaf melt around a core of thick coconut cream; done right, it eats like a vegetable that became a custard.
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Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
Ingredients
Serves 4 —
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16 leaves young taro leaves (or collard greens/spinach) — taro leaves must be fully cooked before eating
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2 cups thick coconut cream
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1 yellow onion, finely diced
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1.5 tsp sea salt
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as needed foil or banana leaves, for wrapping
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1 tbsp lemon juice
Instructions
1
Stir the coconut cream, onion, salt, and lemon juice together.
2
Stack 4 leaves in your palm like a cup, slightly overlapping. Spoon in a quarter of the coconut mixture.
3
Fold the leaves over into a snug parcel and wrap in foil or banana leaf. Repeat for 4 parcels.
4
Bake at 350°F for 60 minutes (taro leaves need the full hour to be safe and silky; sturdy greens can go 40).
5
Unwrap carefully and serve hot, traditionally alongside baked taro or breadfruit — or simply with rice.
Upolu Sunday umu tradition.
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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination
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Upolu. The island of Apia, where every feast starts at the umu.
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Samoa. Polynesian kitchens ruled by taro, coconut, and the umu earth oven.
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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 →
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