Paradise looks a lot like Fiji. Tropical islands fringed by sparkling mantles of reef. Tall coconut trees slouching over pure white beaches that melt into clear, warm turquoise. Flowering trees, vivid orchids and dense jungle smothering the green valleys and peaks of the interior.
The booming Fijian ‘BULA!’ is the perfect compliment to this visual splendour. It is an especially potent greeting when delivered with a giant smile, big white teeth, and a tropical flower positioned neatly into the hairline. Fijians are big-hearted people with great fondness for music, sport, laughter and feasting on seafood. Indigenous Fijians are Melanesian in appearance, with strong Polynesian traditions due to the close trading and cultural links they maintained throughout their history with surrounding island populations. Fijians constitute around 51% of the population. There are also significant populations of Polynesian and Chinese people in Fiji, and a very large population of Indian migrants who were brought to the islands by British colonists to develop sugar plantations. The Indian influence on Fijian food is profound, especially for developing the Fijian taste for curries. It is this powerful multicultural influence that distinguishes Fijian food from the food of any other Pacific nation.
Thankfully for modern tourists, the practice of cannibalism in Fiji is now officially extinct and ‘long pig’ is off the menu. However, food is still a big deal here. The traditional staples are typically bland in taste. Root crops such as taro (known as Dalo), tapioca (cassava), sweet potato, and yams traditionally constitute the bulk of the diet. The Flavours of Fiji are delivered through the many tropical fruits such as banana, mango, papaya (pawpaw) and pineapple, and of course by the rich bounty of the reef and the sea. The blending in of coconut cream, breadfruit, avocado, tastes from leaves such as banana or taro, and more recently, Asian spices and curries, provides the unique Fijian signature.
Taro and coconut are particularly important food items. The tuber or corm of the taro is a major source of carbohydrates in the Fijian diet, and the leaves and stems of the plant are also important food items. Stems are boiled and served like noodles with lemon and chili in the dish besei-sei (check). Leaves are used to make ro-ro (check), a spinach-like salad (check). Note that the leaves and tubers of the taro plant must be thoroughly cooked to remove oxalic acid (check), a mild toxin. Coconut is a delicious and usually reliable resource throughout the islands. The sweet nutty flesh is a delight on its own or as a grated addition to deserts and…. Juice straight from green coconuts is a sweet drink (cooking?), and coconut cream extracted from the flesh of ripe coconuts (also called coconut milk or ‘lolo’), is a ubiquitous ingredient across both savoury and sweet dishes.
Chicken, pork and goat centre many dishes, but the reef and the sea supply the high points of indigenous Fijian cuisine. The reef delivers a bounty of flavour, and is always full of surprises. It supplies rock lobster, octopus, sea slugs, edible seaweeds and shellfish delicacies. Twice a year on some reef systems the tiny palolo worm spawns. This causes great excitement among nearby villages, as parties of men and women will venture onto the reef at night with torches and hand-nets to scoop up the delectable worms which are eaten raw or fried. Parrot fish, trevally, unicornfish, emperors, groupers and wrasses are either speared, netted, or caught by line, and off the edge of the reef there are Spanish mackerel, wahoo, tuna, barracuda and sharks. Further out Fijians catch marlin, mahi-mahi, kingfish, jobfish and superb deepwater snappers, and in rivers and tidal flats there are mangrove jacks, prawns, freshwater prawns and mud crabs.
The fish drive is an important social and cultural event for the many communities that rely on the reef. Selecting the perfect time and tide, an entire village often participates in this exciting event. Nets are positioned at one end of the reef, and men, women and children create maximum havoc starting at the other end, driving fish forward and spearing anything they can along the way. It culminates in a triumph of desperate lunges, splashing fish and raucous laughter as villagers secure the prizes of the reef, usually in preparation for a great feast or lovo.
The lovo remains an important focus of Fijian culture, and is also a must for every visitor to the islands. Known as a hangi in New Zealand, a mumu in much of Papua New Guinea, and an umu throughout most of Polynesia, the lovo is a great feast from an earth oven. The oven is a hole dug into the ground with heat-absorbing rocks put into it. A fire is built on top to heat the rocks sufficiently that they will bake food. Once the rocks are hot enough, the fire is put out and rocks are distributed around the pit. Fish, chicken, and pork is wrapped in banana leaves, and placed into the pit. Taro, yams, sweet potatoes and cassava are added and the pit is again covered with earth for the food to bake for several hours. The tender parcels that emerge amid great fanfare have a slightly smoky taste that retains flavour from the banana leaves. One of the most popular lovo items is the dish palusami, a rich parcel of fish, onions, taro leaves and coconut milk, wrapped in banana leaf.
The lovo is a very convenient way to feed a large group of people, and at such gatherings it is customary to also serve the traditional Fijian drink of kava (also know as yaqona). Kava is a mildly narcotic drink with a muddy taste and a numbing effect on the mouth. The kava plant was introduced to much of the Pacific by ancient seafarers from its native Vanuatu using a network of impressive trade routes across wide expanses of the Pacific. The drink is made from the ground root of the kava plant mixed with water and is consumed, even by visitors to Fiji, with great tradition and respect as it holds a sacred place in Fijian culture. Strict protocol governs a kava ceremony. Participants must sit cross-legged in a circle surrounding the tanoa (a wooden kava bowl). Kava is scooped from the tanoa using a cup made from a half-coconut shell (the bila). The consumer must clap once when offered the bila, say ‘bula’, then drink the kava in one gulp. The consumer must then clap three times as an indication of gratitude. Most tourists to Fiji get the chance to participate in a lovo, and most resorts will include a kava ceremony and traditional singing and dancing (meke), performed by members of a nearby village. The meke is an important component of oral history for local communities, and performances reflect village legends and folklore Such events are taken seriously by the Fijian hosts and do not commonly smack of tourist-trap. They are still considered a vital connection with Fijian culture and tradition.
Modern Fijian cuisine encompasses a far greater range of flavours particularly through the extensive use of asian spices and curries. Fijian curries are usually mild, and are served with roti and chutneys made from indigenous tropical ingredients. Goat curry is very popular dish throughout the country.
Seafood Trails 