Techniques
Traditional Polynesian cooking technique using a pit oven lined with banana leaves and heated by hot rocks.
Traditional Tahitian method of preserving fish by steaming in banana leaves
Samoan Fa'ausi steaming cooks fish gently in a sealed pot with banana leaf and coconut milk, preserving moisture and nutrients.
Low‑temperature aqueous extraction of kavalactones from ground kava root.
Samoan fish sun‑drying involves laying fish flat on woven mats and exposing them to direct sunlight for several days to reduce moisture content.
Proteolytic enzymes cleave peptide bonds in muscle proteins to reduce shear force and soften meat.
Polynesian pit cooking (imu) involves cooking food in a pit oven using hot stones and steam.
Kava root is ground and macerated in cold water to extract lipophilic kavalactones, then whisked and served communally in a single gulp.
Kava root fermentation extracts psychoactive kavalactones while reducing bitterness through lactic acid production.
Polynesian pit-cooking involves cooking food in an underground oven using heated rocks and earth.
A traditional Pacific Island method of preserving fish by salting and fermenting in porous clay pots under tropical conditions.
Traditional Pacific Island coconut milk dessert
A traditional Polynesian earth‑oven method that cooks food wrapped in banana leaves, combining gentle heat with mild fermentation to preserve moisture and enhance flavor.