Traditional Recipes Shared in Mand

by Amy Levendusky

Members of the Mand Community Working Group continue to meet together twice monthly to discuss how to promote the production and consumption of local foods within the community. This is part of Phase II of the on-going project promoting the Traditional Food System of Pohnpei, coordinated by the Island Food Community of Pohnpei. Each time the Mand working group meets, in addition to the meetings agenda, a traditional recipe is also presented by one of the members and shared with all the participants. These recipes are being photographed, recorded, and then sampled. This project began in September 2005 and will continue through September 2007.

After participants have had a chance to sample these recipes shared during the meetings, everyone is inspired to use local food when preparing their meals at home. Many members are also inspired to use local foods in new innovative recipes. In a recent meeting, Elene Edward shared her traditional recipe of sawa mwul. (see recipe below)

The IFCP thanks the Mand community and our collaborating partners and support agencies, including the Pohnpei Office of Economic Affairs, Department of Health, Department of Land and Natural Resources, COM/FSM Land Grant, Centre of Indigenous Peoples' Nutrition and Environment (CINE), New Zealand Embassy, Pacific German Regional Forestry Project (PGRFP) and Sight and Life.

SAWA MWUL

Ingredients:

Taro or sawa, any type
Grated coconut for making coconut cream

Method:

1. Wash the taro and place into a large pot.
2. Boil taro in water with the skin on.
3. When it is done cooking and still hot, drain the water and take the skin off. Place the taro onto a pounding board/wood.
4. Begin to pound immediately while still hot. (It is good to have one person peeling the skin off the taro while another person is pounding the taro.)
5. After pounding the taro until smooth, shape the taro into a long roll on a serving tray.
6. Add a small amount of water to the grated coconut in a separate basin.
   Squeeze several times until water is white in color.
7. Squeeze the coconut cream on top of the pounded taro roll.