Pihlohlo mwehng is a traditional Micronesian (from the Federated States of Micronesia) recipe for a classic dish of taro, starch and sugar dumplings that are shaped, and rolled in syrup before serving. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Micronesian version of: Pihlohlo mwehng.
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Pihlohlo mwehng is a National Dish of Micronesia. This traditional dish consists of mashed and shaped taro corms coated with coconut sap syrup. The dish is made with a mixture of boiled and ground taro root, starch, and sugar. The taro mixture is then formed into oblong-shaped pieces that are added to a pot of caramelized coconut sap syrup and thoroughly coated with it. Typical of Mwoakilloa, this specialty uses mwehng, which is a variety of hard giant taro corms traditionally harvested by women.
Mweleng represent the corms of the giant taro, Alocasia macrorrhizos. Alocasia macrorrhizos is a species of flowering plant in the arum family (Araceae) that it is native to rainforests of Maritime Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and Queensland[1] and has long been cultivated in South Asia, the Philippines, many Pacific islands, and elsewhere in the tropics. Common names include giant taro,[3] giant alocasia, ʻape, biga,[4] and pia.
Anthelme Thozet in 1866 documented the method of preparation: "The young bulbs, of a light rose colour inside, found growing on large old rhizomes, are scraped, divided into two parts, and put under hot ashes for about half an hour. When sufficiently baked, they are then pounded by hard strokes between two stones – a large one, Wallarie, and a small one, Kondola. All the pieces which do not look farinaceous, but watery when broken, are thrown away; the others, by strokes of the Kondola, are united by twos or threes, and put into the fire again; they are then taken out and pounded together in the form of a cake, which is again returned to the fire and carefully turned occasionally. This operation is repeated eight or ten times, and when the hakkin, which is now of a green-greyish colour, begins to harden, it is fit for use.
Women dig hard taro (mwehng: giant taro), cut it into pieces, and boil the pieces but not until cooked. The taro is then ground up and mixed with sugar and starch. Coconut sap cooked/melted into molasses or, modern days, sugar, is cooked over a fire until boiling. The taro is then made into the shape of a sea cucumber and dipped or rolled in the molasses/carmelized coconut sap until the sauce gets sticky. Although there are similarities to a local Kosraen/Pohnpeian food called rotuma, the pihlohlo mwehng is of a much smoother consistency.
Ingredients:
1kg giant taro corms
300g brown sugar
4 tbsp white sugar
60g starch (traditionally taro starch but these days cornflour)
Method:
Peel the taro corms and cut into chunks.
Bring a pan of salted water to a boil. Add the taro pieces and cook for about 20 minutes (this is 'hard' taro so the pieces will only be parboiled).
Drain in a colander and set aside to cool.
Whilst still warm, pass the taro through a mincer (grinder) into a bowl. Mix in the sugar then add enough of the starch to form a stiff paste.
Allow the taro mixture to cool then shape into sea cucumber sized and shaped pieces.
Place the sugar in a heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Allow the sugar to melt and caramelize then bring to a simmer.
Add the shaped taro pieces, rolling in the sugar syrup to coat. Transfer to a lined baking tray as you finish rolling the taro dough in the sugar.
Allow to cool so the syrup coats the taro then serve.
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