Taro-leaf parcels of seasoned beef and onion drowned in coconut cream, baked low until silken — Tonga’s Sunday centerpiece.

Where does Lū Pulu come from?

Lū Pulu is a Tongan dish from Tongatapu, Tonga.

Can Lū Pulu be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?

Yes. This Lū Pulu 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 Lū Pulu take to make?

About 110 minutes total (20 minutes prep, 90 minutes cooking), serving 4.

Lū Pulu — a Tongatapu, Tonga recipe

Name: Lū Pulu
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 110 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Tongan
Ingredients: 16 leaves young taro leaves (or collard greens); 12 oz corned beef (or fresh beef, diced); 2 cups thick coconut cream; 1 onion, diced; 1 tomato, diced; as needed foil or banana leaves, for wrapping; to taste salt + black pepper; for 4 baked kumara or rice, to serve

Oceania → 🇹🇴 Tonga → Tongatapu

Lū Pulu

Tongan · easy · serves 4

prep 20 min · cook 90 min

~741 cal · 29g protein · 40g carbs · 54g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Taro leaf parcels opened to show beef in coconut cream

🇹🇴 Tongatapu

After church on Tongatapu, the umu is opened and lū pulu comes out first — beef and coconut cream wrapped in taro leaves, a dish that marks the Sabbath across the kingdom. The oven version loses the earth but keeps the soul.

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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 —

•

16 leaves young taro leaves (or collard greens) — taro leaves must be fully cooked before eating

•

12 oz corned beef (or fresh beef, diced)

•

2 cups thick coconut cream

•

1 onion, diced

•

1 tomato, diced

•

as needed foil or banana leaves, for wrapping

•

to taste salt + black pepper

•

for 4 baked kumara or rice, to serve

Instructions

1

Stack 4 leaves into a cup shape in your palm, overlapping well.

2

Fill each with a quarter of the beef (or jackfruit-tofu), onion, and tomato; season, then pour in coconut cream until nearly full.

3

Fold the leaves over and wrap each parcel snugly in foil or banana leaf.

4

Bake at 325°F for 90 minutes — low and slow, until the leaves are completely silken and the cream has thickened around the filling.

5

Unwrap at the table and serve with baked kumara or rice. Sunday, delivered.

Tongatapu Sunday umu tradition.

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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Tongatapu. The royal island, where lū parcels emerge from the umu.

🗺️

Tonga. The Friendly Islands, where Sunday means the umu.

🌍

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 →