What ingredients should I use for Tī Kōuka — Cabbage Tree Hearts?

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NAT.01.0002 Maori

Tī Kōuka — Cabbage Tree Hearts

Native Plant

Tī Kōuka — Cabbage Tree Hearts

One of 208 entries · Pacific Migration Trail

I · Origin

Māori

II · Description

Tī kōuka (Cordyline australis, NZ cabbage tree) hearts were an important Māori food. The growing tip and inner core of the stem were cooked in the hāngi — the heat converts the starch to sugar, producing a sweet, slightly fibrous food. Fiso pickles tī kōuka hearts as a sweet garnish. The same genus (Cordyline) as the Hawaiian ti plant (Cordyline fruticosa) used in laulau and lawalu — the Cordyline family runs the entire length of the Pacific migration trail.

III · The Thread

Tī kōuka (NZ Cordyline) connects to the Hawaiian ti plant (Cordyline fruticosa). Same genus, different species, different latitudes, same role as wrapping material and food. → HI-5 Laulau / HI-70 Lawa → HI-5
Tī kōuka (NZ Cordyline) connects to the Hawaiian ti plant (Cordyline fruticosa). Same genus, different species, different latitudes, same role as wrapping material and food. → HI-5 Laulau / HI-70 Lawa → HI-70

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V · Quality Hierarchy

Sweet pickled tī kōuka hearts (Fisoʻs preparation) or hāngi-roasted for the traditional sweet starch.

VI · Sensory Tests

visual: pale, fibrous. Aroma: sweet, vegetal. Texture: fibrous, slightly sticky. Taste: sweet (from starch conversion during cooking).

VII · Where the Dish Lives or Dies

The cooking time. Hāngi-roasting must be long enough to convert starch to sugar. Under-cooked tī kōuka is bland and starchy.