Ingredients
Dumplings
- 1 kgfresh cassava, peeled, cored and finely grated
- 1 tspsalt
- 100 ggrated fresh coconut
- 2 tbspcoconut cream, to bind
Wrapping
- 24large slippery cabbage leaves (aibika or island cabbage), thick stalks stripped out
- banana leaf strips, for tying, or wooden cocktail sticks
Coconut broth
- 700 mlcoconut milk, from the second pressing
- 300 mlthick coconut cream, from the first pressing
- 1onion, thinly sliced
- 1 tspsalt
- 1green chilli, split (optional)
- 50 gngali nuts or almonds, roughly crushed (optional)
To serve
- 1lime, in wedges
- boiled taro or rice
Directions
- Grate the cassava finely into a bowl and squeeze out most of the free liquid, keeping the white starch that settles at the bottom of the bowl and stirring it back in.
- Mix the cassava with the salt, grated coconut and enough coconut cream to bring it together into a heavy, sticky paste that holds its shape when squeezed.
- Wilt the slippery cabbage leaves for 10 seconds in boiling water so they turn dark green and go floppy without tearing. Drain and pat dry.
- Place a heaped tablespoon of the cassava mixture near the stalk end of two overlapped leaves, fold the sides in and roll into a firm parcel about the size of an egg. Tie with a leaf strip or pin closed.
- Bring the thin coconut milk to a bare simmer in a wide pan with the onion, salt and chilli. Do not boil it hard at any point or the milk will split.
- Lower the parcels in seam-side down in a single layer, cover and poach gently for 25–30 minutes, turning once, until the cassava inside is translucent and firm rather than chalky.
- Stir in the thick coconut cream and the crushed ngali nuts and cook a further 5 minutes uncovered, until the broth thickens and glosses over the parcels.
- Rest 5 minutes off the heat, then serve two or three parcels per person in a shallow bowl with plenty of the sauce spooned over and a lime wedge alongside.
Technique
- Slippery cabbage is Abelmoschus manihot, the everyday green of Melanesia. Its natural mucilage is what thickens the sauce and gives the dish its name and its texture.
- Food safety: grate, drain and fully cook the cassava. Undercooked cassava is bitter and unsafe, and the dumplings must be poached through until glassy.
- The thick first-press cream always goes in at the end. Boiled from the start it separates into oil and curds and the sauce turns greasy.
Substitutions
- No slippery cabbage: use large spinach or chard leaves, blanched and doubled up. You lose the slipperiness but the parcels hold together.
- Two 400 ml tins of coconut milk stand in for fresh: use the watery part for poaching and the thick top for the finish.
- Ngali nuts are Solomon Islands canarium nuts; almonds or cashews are the closest supermarket match.
Variations
- Made with grated taro instead of cassava, which gives a firmer, nuttier dumpling.
- A version with grated sweet potato mixed into the cassava for a sweeter parcel.
History
Grated cassava is rolled in slippery cabbage leaves and poached in coconut milk, a dish shared with neighbouring Vanuatu.
Frequently asked questions
What is Simboro?
Simboro is a main from Solomon Islands: grated cassava dumplings wrapped in slippery cabbage leaves, poached in coconut milk. Grated cassava is rolled in slippery cabbage leaves and poached in coconut milk, a dish shared with neighbouring Vanuatu.
How long does Simboro take to make?
Simboro takes 40 min of preparation and 35 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated medium to make.
What can I substitute in Simboro?
Yes, within limits. No slippery cabbage: use large spinach or chard leaves, blanched and doubled up. You lose the slipperiness but the parcels hold together. Two 400 ml tins of coconut milk stand in for fresh: use the watery part for poaching and the thick top for the finish. Ngali nuts are Solomon Islands canarium nuts; almonds or cashews are the closest supermarket match.
What is the most important thing to get right in Simboro?
Bring the thin coconut milk to a bare simmer in a wide pan with the onion, salt and chilli. Do not boil it hard at any point or the milk will split.
