Ni-Vanuatu Recipes
4 recipesVanuatu stretches across more than eighty islands, and food habits shift from one to the next, but root crops and coconut tie them together. Yam, taro, manioc (cassava) and sweet potato are the main starches, and they are grated, mashed or boiled and often cooked with coconut cream. Laplap, a pudding of grated roots baked in leaves with hot stones, is the national dish and is made for ceremonies, markets and Sunday lunch. Island cabbage, a leafy green, is cooked in coconut cream or used as a wrapper, as in simboro. Fish, chicken, pork and locally raised beef supply protein, and the French and British past shows up in baguettes, strong coffee and sausages at market stalls. Nangai nuts are roasted as a snack. Kava is drunk in the evening at the nakamal, a men's gathering place, with small salty bites on the side. Seasoning is mild and the cooking is slow.
Staple ingredients
- yam
- taro
- manioc (cassava)
- coconut cream
- island cabbage
- beef and pork
- fresh fish
- nangai nuts
Soups
Main Dishes
Side Dishes
Snacks
Common questions
What is Vanuatu food known for?
Laplap, root-vegetable puddings baked with hot stones, plus coconut-cream dishes, island cabbage and beef. Market stalls in Port Vila sell laplap, simboro and tuluk daily.
What is the national dish of Vanuatu?
Laplap is the national dish. Grated yam, taro or manioc is mixed with coconut cream, wrapped in leaves and cooked in an earth oven, then eaten with pork, chicken or fish.
Is Vanuatu food spicy?
No, it is mild. Salt and coconut cream carry most dishes, and chili is added at the table by those who want it. The smokiness comes from cooking over hot stones.