Ingredients
Fruit
- 1marita fruit, Pandanus conoideus, about 60 cm long
To cook
- water, for boiling, or an earth oven
- banana leaves, if using an earth oven
To season
- salt, to taste
To serve
- kaukau, boiled or roasted sweet potato
- cooked greens such as aibika
- cooked pork, at a feast
Equipment
- a large pot
- a wide bowl for pulping
Directions
- Cut the fruit into lengths that will fit your pot. Cover it with water and bring it to the boil. Boil it steadily for about forty-five minutes to an hour. The water will take on a red colour as it cooks.
- Lift the cooked fruit out and let it cool enough to handle. It must still be warm when you pulp it. Keep a little of the cooking water aside. Hold a length of fruit over a wide bowl.
- Squeeze and rub it firmly between your hands. The soft red pulp will come away from the seeds and the core. Work along the length, squeezing hard as you go. The pulp is thick and stains everything it touches deep red.
- Add a little of the warm cooking water to the bowl. Keep squeezing and rubbing to release more pulp. The mixture will turn into a thick orange-red sauce.
- Add water only a little at a time, since a thin sauce is a poor one. Discard the seeds and the fibrous core. The sauce left behind should be thick and heavy with oil.
- Pour it into a pan and warm it gently. Do not boil it hard, since the oil will separate out completely.
- Season the sauce with salt to taste. Judging the consistency tells you if it is right. Serve the kaukau and greens on a plate or a leaf. Pour the marita sauce generously over both. It does not keep, and is made and eaten the same day.
Technique
- The fruit must be cooked before pulping, since it is far too tough raw.
- Pulp it while still warm, as cold marita releases its oil far less readily.
- Add the cooking water sparingly, since a thin sauce defeats the purpose.
Substitutions
- There is no substitute, since the fruit is specific to New Guinea.
- An earth oven if you have one, which gives a smokier result.
Variations
- Cooked in a mumu earth oven for a feast.
- Poured over cooked pork rather than vegetables.
- Made thinner and drunk as a rich soup.
History
The red fruit of Pandanus conoideus is cooked in an earth oven or pot, then pulped by hand into a rich orange sauce eaten in the Highlands.
Frequently asked questions
What is Marita?
Marita is a sauce & condiment from Papua New Guinea: scarlet oily pandanus sauce squeezed from cooked fruit, poured over greens and kaukau. The red fruit of Pandanus conoideus is cooked in an earth oven or pot, then pulped by hand into a rich orange sauce eaten in the Highlands.
How long does Marita take to make?
Marita takes 15 min of preparation and 1 hour of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Marita?
Yes, within limits. There is no substitute, since the fruit is specific to New Guinea. An earth oven if you have one, which gives a smokier result.
What is the most important thing to get right in Marita?
Lift the cooked fruit out and let it cool enough to handle. It must still be warm when you pulp it. Keep a little of the cooking water aside. Hold a length of fruit over a wide bowl.
