Grated root vegetables and coconut cream wrapped in banana leaf and baked in an earth oven — Vanuatu's national dish.

Where does Lap Lap come from?

Lap Lap is a Ni-Vanuatu dish from Efate (Port Vila), Vanuatu.

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

Yes. This Lap Lap 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 Lap Lap take to make?

About 130 minutes total (40 minutes prep, 90 minutes cooking), serving 6.

Lap Lap — a Efate (Port Vila), Vanuatu recipe

Name: Lap Lap
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 130 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Ni-Vanuatu
Ingredients: 3 lb yam, taro, or green banana, peeled; 2 cups thick coconut cream; 6 large banana leaves, softened over a flame; 2 cups island cabbage (or spinach), shredded; 1 tsp sea salt

Oceania → 🇻🇺 Vanuatu → Efate (Port Vila)

Lap Lap

Ni-Vanuatu · medium · serves 6

prep 40 min · cook 90 min

~593 cal · 7g protein · 91g carbs · 27g fat (estimated, per serving)

🍽️

Slice of dense baked root-vegetable cake wrapped in banana leaf

🇻🇺 Efate (Port Vila)

Lap lap is the heart of every Ni-Vanuatu celebration, cooked in the umu, a pit of hot stones. Yam, taro, or banana is grated into a smooth paste, layered with rich coconut cream, wrapped in banana leaves, and baked underground for hours until it sets into a dense, savory cake shared across the whole community.

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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 6 —

•

3 lb yam, taro, or green banana, peeled

•

2 cups thick coconut cream

•

6 large banana leaves, softened over a flame

•

2 cups island cabbage (or spinach), shredded

•

1 tsp sea salt

Instructions

1

Grate the peeled root vegetable finely on a stone or box grater into a smooth, thick paste and season with salt.

2

Line a baking dish with overlapping banana leaves, leaving plenty of overhang.

3

Spread half the paste, layer the greens, pour over half the coconut cream, then repeat with the remaining paste and cream.

4

Fold the banana leaves over to seal into a tight parcel and cover with foil.

5

Bake at 375°F for about 90 minutes (standing in for the earth oven) until firm and set; rest, then slice through the leaf to serve.

Efate, Vanuatu tradition.

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🌏 While it simmers — know your destination

📍

Efate (Port Vila). Where lap lap bakes for hours beneath hot stones.

🗺️

Vanuatu. Melanesian islands where the national dish bakes in leaves.

🌍

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 →