Banana Poke: Cook Islands Ripe-Banana Pudding with Coconut Cream

On Cook Islands celebration days, poke is on the table

The Cook Islands is a country of 15 islands in the South Pacific, northeast of New Zealand. In an article in New Zealand's Otago Daily Times, Keri Teavae, who has Cook Islands roots, says poke is a dish made on special days like Christmas, Easter and birthdays. Teavae learned the recipe from her aunties and her grandmother, who live in Auckland. According to the article, about 20,000 people live in the Cook Islands, and more than 58,000 people of Cook Islands descent live in New Zealand and Australia. Even in the kitchens of families away from the home islands, poke is handed down.

There are only three ingredients: very ripe bananas, starch and coconut cream. The bananas are cooked and mashed, worked together with a starch such as arrowroot, and baked slowly in the oven. The result is a translucent amber dough with a springy, mochi-like chew and a jelly-like gloss. You eat it with warmed coconut cream poured over.

In the past, this dough was wrapped in banana leaves and steam-roasted in an earth oven dug in the ground. Today baking in an oven is the norm, and it is sometimes made with papaya, mango or pumpkin in place of banana. Maine Andrews, born on the island of Aitutaki, who presents a recipe on New Zealand's radio network RNZ, writes that poke is a little sweet, just from the ripe bananas. The basic way is to add no sugar and make it with only the sweetness of the bananas.

What to know when making it in a home kitchen

The quality of poke is decided by how ripe the bananas are. Teavae recommends using bananas whose skins have turned almost brown, and says that if they are not ripe enough she leaves them in the sun to ripen. With supermarket bananas, leave them at room temperature for a few days until the skins have many black spots and are brownish all over. The riper they are, the sweeter they get and the deeper the browning.

The "pia" used in the Cook Islands is arrowroot or tapioca starch. Arrowroot is not often seen elsewhere, but tapioca starch can be found at baking-supply shops or online. This article uses the more available tapioca starch.

Coconut cream is richer than coconut milk, with more fat. It is sold in cans and cartons. If you cannot get it, use coconut milk and simmer it a little longer when warming so that it thickens, and you get a similar result.

Ingredients (serves 6, one 20 × 20 cm dish)

How to make banana poke

Working the dough takes about 15 minutes, and then it bakes in the oven for about an hour. If you warm the coconut cream while it bakes, you can eat as soon as it comes out.

While warm, with coconut cream

Freshly baked poke is soft and chewy, soft enough to scoop with a spoon. When coconut cream coats it, the sweet banana aroma and the richness of coconut come together for a taste that is simple yet rich. Teavae says poke can be a dessert, a side dish or a salad.

Cooled poke sets firmly. According to Teavae, the chilled one is cut up and eaten with more coconut cream added. Cut into squares, poke has a chewy bite like yōkan or uiro, a different kind of deliciousness from when it is warm.

Ways to vary it

Teavae says poke can also be made with pumpkin or taro in place of banana. When making it with pumpkin, remove the skin and seeds and steam it, then mash it once soft and use the same amount as the bananas (about 800 g). Pumpkin is less sweet, so add 2–3 tbsp sugar to taste.

Making it with papaya or mango is also a well-known variation in Polynesia. Mash the fruit and make it the same way, and you get a poke with a tropical color and aroma. Mixing half mango with the banana adds a refreshing tartness.

Frequently asked questions

Will it be sweet without adding sugar?

With very ripe bananas, it is sweet enough without adding sugar. If the bananas are not very ripe, the sweetness is lacking and the browning is pale, so wait until the skins turn brown before making it. If it still seems not sweet enough, you can dissolve a little sugar in the coconut cream as you warm it.

Can I make it ahead?

Once the heat has gone, cut it up, put it in a storage container, and finish it within 2 days in the refrigerator. It hardens when refrigerated, but warming it in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute brings back the chewy texture. Keep the coconut cream separate and warm it just before pouring on.

The center stays white and cloudy and won't turn translucent.

The baking time may have been too short, or the dough too thick. Keep the foil on and bake 10 minutes at a time. Tapioca starch turns translucent when heated, so once it is cooked through to the center, the whole thing changes to amber.

Sources