Cooking

Types of Traditional Cooking

A bona wudu aira nigir. 

Ismael K. Isikel Edited 2/10/2017

Some traditional types of cooking practiced by the Tolai are described in this post. These are tunutun, kukulubai, nigir, pinapara, and pipitai. It is more on the vocabulary and not the recipe.

1. Tunutun
A simple type of cooking is roasting or grilling food such as taro, banana, and kaukau on an open fire (iap). The food item  (magit na nian) is placed on the fire and from time to time it is turned and brushed or scratched with a sharp implement until it is cooked and ready to be eaten.

Depending on the situation, tunutun is used as adjective as well as a noun. Tunutun comes from the word tun that means grill or roast food, especially tubers, banana, or meat. Tututun  is the present continuous tense of tun.

Stone

Ismael K.Isikel EDited 3/10/2017

Wat or watu is the word for stone in Kuanua. You find in almost every yard a ground oven (ubu) with stones. This is used for cooking and the two most common types of cooking using heated stones are pinapara and nigir.  Apart from pinapara and nigir, it was used as a tool and weapon in the past. Well, that was the past but if one observe riots today, stones are used as weapon in some riots. Pinapara or mumu in pidgin  is cooking food in a ground oven. Nigir is cooking using hot stones in a container such as a large saucepan which is a modern option to banana leaves. Banana leaves are also used as container for nigir. The banana leaves are prepared and arranged into a container. Kadui is the name of the container.

Dry (Mage)

Kuanua vocabulary related to the term Dry (Mage)

Ismael K. Isikel, Edited 20/9/2017

iki

Global warming  evokes a word and related terms in Kuanua. The word is mage and means dry. Ge is also used as a short form of mage. Magamage is the present continuous form of mage. The opposite of mage is bilim (wet). A related opposite word is pupuk. A Kuanua translation of global warming is A Gunagunan i malamalapang.

Maranga is a related term that means dry however, it is used pertinently in relation to describing dry leaves or dead trees. Maranga na dawai. A dead tree. Makuk is another related word that means dry but specifically describes the state of something, for example, a leaf, that is dry as a result of exposure to heat from the sun or fire.

The environment or something in a state of being hot is described as malamalapang. It is commonly shortened as malapang. When an object or something is hot, the heat may cause harm to an unprotected part of the body. Lapap is a related term to malapang but specifically used to describe red hot stones in a ground oven fire. Lapap is used to describe something very hot. For example, I lapap ra keake. The sun is very hot. Lapalap is the present continuous form of lapap.  A related term is wartun that is used to mean burn, scorch, or sear. The verb form of wartun is tun.

Example Usage

Itar lapap ra ubu. The ground oven is already red hot.

Mama means devoid of water and is used to describe a container or water well that is without water, empty. It is also used to describe low tide at sea. The lowest of sea tides where seaweed and reef corals are exposed is described as takere.  Collecting shells, seaweed, and catching fish trapped in small pools of water is called mur mama.  The opposite of mama is lubu.

Example Usage

I mama ra mata na tawa. I mama ra kivu. The water well is empty.

Oao is the state of experiencing heat on the body and causes sweating and of course thirst. The word for thirst in Kuanua is mar and the adjective of the noun mar is minar (thirsty). Mangon is the word for sweat that describes the wet body condition. Mangmangon is the noun form of mangon. Depending on the situation, mangmangon is also used as adjective.

Example Usage

Iau oao.                             I am hot.
I oao ra pakagu.               My body is hot.
Iau mangmangon.            I am sweating.
Iau mar.                             I am thirsty.
Iau tar mar.                      I am already thirsty.
A minar i warmonong.    Thirst is in effect.

The Coconut

Ismael K. Isikel 7/9/2017

The tree of life (dawai na nilaun) in New Britain and the Pacific is the coconut (lama). Lama is the Kuanua word for the coconut tree as well as the dry nut. Cocos nucifera  is the scientific name for coconut tree. It is a species of palm. Although the fruit is commonly called nut, botanically it is a drupe. It is not a nut.

The coconut provides material for food, water, oil, building material,and household items such as broom, basket, mat , and handheld fan. Most parts of the coconut palm are used. Prior to the mining boom copra and cocoa were the mainstay of economic activity in Rabaul. That is why it is a dawai na nilaun.

Names and uses of parts of the coconut tree 

Kuanua names of parts of the coconut and some of their uses are described here. Some related terms and meanings are also provided.

Lama 

Lama is the general name of the tree as well as the dry nut. Inalama specifically means coconut tree. The kernel  of the dry nut is used for food. It is freshly eaten by many. The kernel is simply cut out and eaten or finely grated and eaten. Coconut eaten with banana (wudu), taro (pa), sweet potato (kaukau), yam (mamia ba up) or other food items is called wiara. Wiare ra lama ma wudu. A popular delicacy made from coconut milk is called ku. The process of making ku is described as pipitai na ku. Punupur or mumu in Tok Pisin is another form of food preparation that requires the use of milk from grated coconut. Even many everyday cooking involves the use of coconut milk extracted from grated kernel. Inainalama or lamalama is the plural form of coconut trees. Makura lama is the word for coconut grove or plantation.

Piogo   The early stage of formation of the nut just after flowering (titi).

Kulau dadauk    The stage between tirip and kulau.

Kulau   The stage at which the green coconut's kernel and water is right for consumption. Kulau is a common item in markets and at roadside stalls. People relish drinking the water (tawa na kulau) and eating the soft kernel. The soft kernel is also called kulau.  With the aid of an ankle loop (kinobir) a person climbs the coconut palm to get the kulau down. The green nuts are either plucked one by one and dropped or the whole bunch is simply shaken and all fall off. Some are able to climb the coconut palm without the aid of a kinobir (ankle loop). The act of climbing a coconut palm without the aid of a kinobir  is described as papaku. The verb form of papaku is paku. Any able person who for some reason cannot climb a tree or palm is called a pagu.

Katung    The transitional stage between kulau and lama where the kernel is no longer soft but crunchy. A traditional recipe using grated katung is called kamuk. The grated katung is eaten with ripe banana. The preferred types of ripe bananas for kamuk are iawa and kalapua.

Tirip    The stage at which the kernel is just forming but still too watery and the shell is still brittle and breaks easily.  The tirip is used for traditional medicine as well as food preparation.   

Titi   The coconut flower before it forms into piogo. Fruit bats love the titi for its nectar.

Warai     After some weeks the dry fallen nut starts to sprout, ready to grow. This stage is called warai. Sometimes the dry coconuts do not fall early and remain hanging until they start sprouting. A dry coconut that does not fall early and starts sprouting while still attached to the arere is called warailiu.  Warai from the top (liu) would be the suitable translation to English. The plural of warailiu is umana waraliu or warawara.

Pagal   The stem that holds the fronds of the coconut palm. Dry pagal is used for firewood. I remember it was also used as a skateboard for galgalir by children. I did use it too as a child.The activity involves collecting a suitable pagal and cut it short. This is carried up the top of a hill, placed on the ground, and the rider sits on the pagal and simply enjoy the ride (slide) down hill. At the end of each ride the children carry their pagal uphill and repeat the process downhill. Umana pagal or pagapagal is the plural of pagal.

Ul    (pronounced ool) Coconut frond. It is also commonly called mapinaul. The mapinaul has various uses. A good fire starter is the dry leaf. The green leaf is used for weaving basket (rat, robong/lovor, kakia, gep),  mat (ding/kubin, tabakau, kupa), hat (kere), and fan (teptep). It is used as well for walling. Brooms are also made from the fronds. The word for broom is tawiai or noko It is used for sweeping (niarupa).

Upa

  The soft inner part of the coconut husk is called upa. Upa na palalama is the phrasal noun. Upa is very good material for making rope for various household uses as well as fishing. Upa is good for scrubbing purposes, especially on utensils and general cleaning.

Gogor   The young coconut frond. Gogor is a favorite item for body and other ceremonial decorations as well as for making the best baskets.

Arere    Nut holder. The dry fallen arere serves as firewood. It is also used as rake.

Agoro/wo/pagoro   The pod that covers the arere with titi that eventually develop into coconuts. Agoro serves as good firewood.

Nirut   A net-like fabric forming at the base of the frond covering the upper part of the coconut palm. The 'green' nirut was used for squeezing out milk from grated coconut. Nirut was used as pupupur for punupur.

Malup  A thick greasy thin substance that forms at the top of the kernel holding the warai fruit.

Palalama

Palalama is the word for coconut husk. It is used for firewood, and serves as good mosquito coil. The Kuanua verb for removal of the husk is upal. Usually the husk is removed with the aid of a sharpened stake called bair. The bair is usually about 1 metre long.

Palakakai is the word for empty coconut shell, after the kernel has been removed . It is also called kakai. The unbroken coconut shell was used as water bottle. This is called palatawa. Coconut shells are commonly used as firewood.

Pulapula    Coconut palm log. Used for house building material including posts.

Me  Used grated coconut is called me.