Nectar of Polynesian taste buds
Every nation, every society, every culture has one or
more specialties that no foreign palate seems to appreciate, or even consider
without an obvious disgust. This applies to the fāfaru, an exclusively Polynesian
traditional dish.
In this category, we
immediately think of Scottish Haggis, of the Chinese alive monkey's brain, the
live cockroaches with lemon grass of
the Japanese, the living earthworms in salad of the
Americans and Quebecers, of termite larvae
on skewers of the Central Africans, etc., etc., etc…
Uneatable recipes
The list of these disgusting
recipes for some and at the top of refinement for others is much longer than
some might think. And it appears no country, no culture, no nation has among
its gustatory record at least one of these icons of the strange or repulsive.
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| A delight of insect skewers |
However, it would be
churlish for me not to quote some of the specialties of the prestigious and
indisputable French gastronomy, global benchmark for gourmets. So are we the
only ones in the world to enjoy a snail casserole, a pan-fried frog legs and
some other wonders of our national cooking that we are alone to savor...
Obviously, it is impossible
for me to close this chapter without mentioning some of our most delectable cheeses
that nobody in the world except us can bear at the end of a dinner party. I
think of, among other delights, the Munster, the Cancoillote, the Corsican goat
cheese, the "silk worker's brain"( or Canut’s brain), the Roquefort,
Maroilles or Void ... The list is endless, as smelling as tasty!
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| The fāfaru: appetizing, right? |
In the Hall of Fame (or Pantheon)
of these ambrosias, so delicate for some and emetic for others, no doubt that
the Polynesian fāfaru occupies a place of choice, both for its scent as its
method of preparation...
The ingredients of fāfaru
Present in each of the 118
Polynesian islands, the composition of this dish much appreciated changes
depending on where you are. It differs from one cook to another. However, it is
still based on the same principle.
First of all, you should know
that the fāfaru is prepared in 3 distinct steps. Make firstly the Miti fāfaru, which is the concoction in
which the fish, once cleansed, will marinate; then the Miti hue which will serve as a sauce. Further, prepare the fish itself
(after having caught it!)...
A good fāfaru imposes the
following adventures and operations: boat out beyond the reef to get two good
liters of sea water off. If your choice fells on one of these species, take the
opportunity to catch some mullet, tuna or sailfish. Otherwise, countless lagoon
fish like the parrot can also do the trick. For fishing it, back the open
sea...
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| Some mullet of the day for your fāfaru |
Once back on land, start
reaping some small beach crabs. Then you must run a getaway in the bed of a
river, in a valley or mountain, to get the necessary shrimps (South Pacific
prawns) without which there can be no real miti
fāfaru. Tahitian's word!
Back from the river, make a
detour to the fa'a'apu* to pick up some green coconuts. You'll just have to
begin to cook.
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| The green coconuts can't be picked on the ground, alas... |
In order to carry out the
following steps leading to your fāfaru, add two cloves of garlic, chopped
ginger and a small local pepper, minced too (For sensitive palates, be careful!
explosive effects!).
It's all there: you just
have to put your cook's flower wreath to honor your stars under the Polynesian
sky...
Prepare your miti fāfaru…
Before you begin, you must
solve a cruel dilemma: what flavor will you give to your fāfaru? It totally
depends on the basic ingredient of your miti
fāfaru: beach crab, shrimp heads or mullet heads... Today, let’s opt for
the shrimp: the most dainty, according to experts.
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| There is also ready-made miti fāfaru, in the market! ... |
Comfortably installed on the
terrace in the fresh air of the Pacific, in a container, pour in, one of your
two liters of seawater. Peel the shrimps and immerse thoroughly the heads in
the basin. The “chevrettes” heads (or shrimp heads) can be replaced by the
mullets bones or the flesh or, ultimately, by small crabs. Allow to ferment in the
shade for four or five days...
Filter this brine with a
cloth and pour it in tightly closed bottles. Your miti fafaru is usable with all its fragrance for a few weeks...
…Then your miti hue
For a liter of miti hue, split into two eight young
green coconuts. Once the flesh extracted from the shells, carefully remove it
outer skin. With patience, cut it into pieces as small as possible ... The next
step is of scalding this mixture for a few minutes.
While your cocos pieces are cooling,
pour the rest of your seawater into a container. Add the juice you have
obtained by crushing a few heads of prawns (or failing beach crabs). Add your
coconut pulp and, again, let rest in the shade for two or three days in a
covered container. Stir from time to time...
You thought it's done and
you might swim to get rid of the sweet smell of shrimp? Big mistake!
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| Don't worry: “miti hue” is also in the shops |
The time of fermentation passed,
remove the coconut cubes and rinse thoroughly with fresh water by removing
carefully all the pieces of shrimps or crabs. Here the ordeal begins... You
must crush the nuts into a sort of mash! Fortunately, colonization also brought
electricity and the mixer ... Add water to your preparation until the desired
consistency and reserve it in the refrigerator. The miti hue can be kept a few days, but no more.
The good news is that we
find today miti hue and miti fāfaru, the
both ready in all food stores and on all markets of the
fenua!
And now, the fāfaru!
Last stage of your culinary
marathon, you must now take care of the fish itself. Be careful: the fāfaru
can't accommodate a fish that is not ultra-fresh. In this case, a swordfish
caught of the morning will be perfect.
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| Prepare the fāfaru fish: a pleasure! |
Take on the beast a few
fillets very thin, then cut in pieces from six to eight inches square and put
to soak in a seawater jar. When all is cut, remove a good half of water and add
your selected condiments: chopped garlic, grated ginger, hot pepper... Finally,
drown everything with your miti fāfaru and mix gently.
At this point, you can
customize your dish by adding some raw shrimp tails.
Cover and marinate to your
taste: during two to three hours for a relatively light fragrance, up to eight
or ten hours for a "specialist's fāfaru".
The first fāfaru of Monak
Wait a little bit before
living your fāfaru experience. Monak
has done it for you. She tells...
“On a dare, just to
say," I can do it! I can... savor" this incredible flavour, and I let
myself be guided by the elegant finesse of the fāfaru fillets. Snorkeling at first bite, stenches of marshes
and mass graves invade me, with sewage acidities of remugles of broumés (bait).
Suddenly the brackish pages of the morgue in Therese Raquin (Zola), the pestilential whiffs of the stalls in the
Süskind's Perfume have torn my
stomach and twisted my mouth as a rotting bitter. I have not withstood the
shock! I better next time "...
In order not conclude on
this note a tad negative (although full of hope and determination...), I'll
leave the last word to Heiani, a Tahitian friend: "Monak made a small
mistake in the tasting: the fāfaru must never be eaten alone, but accompanied by other
dishes that make up the Polynesian ma'a. Don't focus on the smell, otherwise
you can’t really taste. We are all accustomed from childhood and we don't care
no more! I like it well, because the fāfaru preparation makes the fish very tender. In addition, it
is good in the mouth. In the same time, the visions of the lagoon are mixing
with the scents of the sea..."
When I told you that the
tastes and colors...
Glossary:
-fa'a'apu: Polynesian name of
the family vegetable garden and orchard. It can sometimes be very far from the
fare (home) in the mountains.
-ma'a : food, meal
An article
of Julien Gué
Translated from French by Monak
Copyright
Julien Gué. Ask for the author’s agreement before any reproduction of the
text or the images on Internet or traditional press.
