I have great respect for countries where drinking chocolate is a part of the culture. One such country, that I have yet to visit, is Samoa. While most cocoa producing countries export their cocoa, cocoa is an important part of national culinary tradition.
I didn’t realise this until recently though. On our drive through the Atherton Tablelands in Far North Queensland, we stopped at a farm stall on the side of the road that was selling cocoa pods. While deciding on which one to buy, the owner came out for a chat. We started talking about the cocoa tree he had in his backyard, and he mentioned that his wife, who is Samoan, makes Koko Samoa and drinks it every night before going to bed. He offered to sell us some of her home made Koko Samoa and we, of course, said yes.
Cocoa arrived in Samoa in 1883 when the Germans brought some plants to cultivate. But that is just the official story as it is entirely possible that it could have arrived earlier than that. One oral tradition suggests that it was brought from Peru by early navigators circa 700AD along with plants like tapioca and sweet potatoes. The Germans had plans to increase cocoa production but found that the Samoans weren’t willing to work on the plantations. Instead, they recruited Chinese and Melanesians to these plantations which became a place of oppression and racism. Many of these plantations were abandoned in the 1960’s when Samoa gained independence.
Samoan cacao is considered high quality because of its flavour and growing techniques. The trees are often planted amongst other tropical fruit and the volcanic soils make it a perfect environment for the pods to thrive. Because of this, there has been a recent flurry of makers, local and abroad, exploring bean to bar. One interesting challenge they have is that there is no milk on the island traditionally, so makers are experimenting with an ingredient that is abundant and popular: coconut milk.
Most households in Samoa have cocoa trees in their yard to make their own versions of what has become known as the national drink. Most trees are organic (although not certified, it costs money to certify). When the pods are picked and seeds removed, the beans are roasted on a plate over an open fire, stirring them constantly to make sure they don’t burn. The skins are removed by hand and then the nibs are granted down with a wooden mortar to a paste. This is set in a plastic cup, then wrapped in plastic. Nothing else is added.
To make the Koko Samoa, you use a knife to shave pieces of the cocoa. This is relatively easy to do as it isn’t very hard. These are then added to water, brought to a boil, and simmered for 10 minutes and then sugar added to taste. One of the most popular bits of the drink are actually the bits of cocoa nibs (called pelu) that haven’t been completely ground down when preparing the Koko Samoa. After and while you sip your drink it is usual (and enjoyable!) to chew on these.
I decided to buy a second Koko Samoa to experiment with some other culinary traditions from the country that use Koko. Luckily with a quick search I found a Samoan restaurant here called Nesians. The owner has a family member in Queensland making Koko Samoa from Australian beans. I must admit hers smelled and looked superior to the one I had brought over from Queensland. It had a beautiful aroma and you could see the bits of pelu in the block.
I am now obsessed with this drink. Don’t expect it to taste like the hot chocolates you are used to. It tastes like a hot chocolate lovers version of a coffee to me. It is dark and the roasted flavour notes are the most prominent by far. It tastes better than it smells as it is cooking (it had almost a burnt smell while it simmered but didn’t taste burnt when I sipped it). Don’t let this put you off it though. Enjoy it as the Samoans do at the end of a meal, surrounded by friends and family. If you have it with something sweet (like these panipopo -Samoan sweet coconut buns), you may choose to add less sugar as we did. I’m now a big fan.
Koko Samoa isn’t the only thing you can make with your new block of koko. Koko Samoa is also used as a key ingredient in koko alaisa (cocoa rice), kopai (chocolate dumplings) and koko Eli (cacao-papaya soup).
To find Koko Samoa, search for local Polynesian stores or online there are several companies that sell these, depending on where you live. At the base this is made using cocoa nibs so there is no reason why you couldn’t make your own as well by grinding down cocoa nibs, being sure not to grind down too finely so you still keep a bit of texture. No other ingredients are added.
Koko Samoa
Ingredients
- 2 cups water
- 4 tbsp grated Koko Samoa
- 4 tbsp sugar
Instructions
- Bring the water to the boil. While you are waiting, grate up the Koko. You can either use a cheese grater or with a knife or chop it into larger pieces so that you don’t cut up the pegu (cocoa nibs) inside. As its simmering you will see a nice sheen over the top which is the cocoa butter. Let this simmer for 10-15 minutes and then add in the sugar (more or less depending on how sweet you’d like it. When you serve, you need to swirl the pot to make sure the prices of pegu are evenly distributed so every mug gets some.Serve hot with friends and family.
