Today I read an article by the American travel and food author Steven Rinella on their (mis) adventures in roasting a pig in a traditional Hawa'ian earthern oven or luaus. Their initial brush with NYC fire safety laws and eventual success in a friend's farm in upstate New York makes interesting reading.
And it reminded me of similar gathering for a Lovo in our backyard in Fiji. Of course, we didn't have a 198 dollar 93 pound hog but we did have some pork, chicken, fish, Cassava and Dalo. It is the best roast meat I have ever tasted, every bit worth the effort put in (by other helpful Fijians friends)
Our friend Tora would take over the entire arrangement, from buying the ingredients to marshaling people to help with the digging of the pit. Everyone would arrive early one Sunday morning, and start digging. While the stones were getting heated, the packets would be prepared. Whole chicken, whole fish and great hunks of pig-meat rubbed with some salt and garlic and wrapped tightly in aluminum foil (I know, I know, it should have been banana or Taro leaves but foil worked well enough). The taro leaves were used for Palusami (again wrapped in a foil) and all the packets buried deep into the heated Lovo and covered with earth and leaves. Unfortunately we have no photos or videos of any of the Lovo feasts in our house in Fiji but this video from youtube shows a part of it (and you can find the rest there too)
Here's how you make Palusami:
Take a bunch of young taro leaves (Taro is similar to jimikand, I think but arabi leaves would do just as well). Lay them over lapping and forma cup like shape holding them in your hand. Pour 1/2-1 cup of thick coconut milk (or cream) into it. Add some chopped onions and/or one clove crushed garlic. salt to taste. Quickly fold it and make a packet of it in banana leaves or old big taro leaves or foil. wrap another time so that it is secure. Bake in oven for 30 minutes.
One version of Palusami also adds corned beef (very popular in Fiji) to the mix. I don't like corned beef so never really tasted that version but people like that too.
Miti
In 1/2 a cup of thick coconut milk, add the juice of 1 small lemon, chopped red/green chillies (1-2), and a small chopped onion. Mix well, and (for authentic version by Tora) take one small heated stone from the lovo and very quickly dip it in the sauce and take it out. It will sizzle furiously and leave behind a distinct smoky flavour. If you are making the coconut milk from scratch you can leave the stone for sometime with the grated coconut and mix it around for the grated coconut to take on the flavour.
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