Kolokasi

Ingredients

Taro

• 1 kgkolokasi taro

Meat

• 700 gpork shoulder or chicken pieces

Pot

• 2onions, chopped
• 4celery stalks with leaves, chopped
• 3 tbspolive oil
• 2 tbsptomato paste
• 400 gtinned tomatoes
• 500 mlstock or water
• juice of 2 lemons
• salt
• black pepper

To serve

• lemon wedges
• bread

Directions

1. Peel and cut it completely dry. Peel it with a knife and wipe it clean with a dry cloth rather than rinsing it. Do not slice it through.
2. Cut partway into the flesh, then snap the piece off with the knife. That break-and-snap cut leaves a rough torn face rather than a smooth one.
3. Cut it into pieces about 5 cm. Fry the pieces in the olive oil for 5 minutes until lightly sealed on all sides, then lift them out.
4. Brown the pork in the same pot, then add the onions and celery and cook until softened.
5. Add the tomato paste and cook it 2 minutes, then the tomatoes and stock. Simmer the meat, covered, for 45 minutes.
6. Return the kolokasi, add the lemon juice, and cook gently for a further 30 to 40 minutes. Do not stir it once the taro is back in.
7. Shake the pot instead. Stirring breaks the pieces and releases exactly the starch you spent the last hour avoiding. Serve hot with more lemon and bread.

Technique

• The small side tubers, poulles, are treated the same way and are considered the better part.
• Raw taro must be cooked thoroughly, because it contains calcium oxalate that irritates the mouth until heat breaks it down.
• It is a winter dish, cooked when the crop is lifted.

Substitutions

• Any taro, treated with the same dry handling.
• Chicken in place of pork, which cooks faster.

Variations

• Made with chicken.
• Poulles, the small tubers, fried and finished with lemon and wine.
• Meatless, with more celery and tomato.

History

Taro, grown at Sotira since antiquity and cooked with pork or celery; Cyprus is one of very few European producers.

Frequently asked questions

What is Kolokasi?

Kolokasi is a main from Cyprus: taro root braised with pork, celery, tomato. Taro, grown at Sotira since antiquity and cooked with pork or celery; Cyprus is one of very few European producers.

How long does Kolokasi take to make?

Kolokasi takes 25 min of preparation and 1 hr 30 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Kolokasi?

Yes, within limits. Any taro, treated with the same dry handling. Chicken in place of pork, which cooks faster.

What is the most important thing to get right in Kolokasi?

Peel and cut it completely dry. Peel it with a knife and wipe it clean with a dry cloth rather than rinsing it. Do not slice it through.