E’ia Ota Image Used Under Creative Commons License From toriavey.com
Citizens – the beautiful island of Tahiti is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia; this overseas collectivity of the French Republic is sometimes referred to as an overseas country.
The island is located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the central Southern Pacific Ocean, and is divided into two parts: The bigger, northwestern part Tahiti Nui and the smaller, southeastern part Tahiti Iti. The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous with surrounding coral reefs. The population is 183,645 inhabitants (2012 census), making it the most populous island of French Polynesia and accounting for 68.5% of its total population.
Tahiti is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia. The capital of the collectivity, Pape’ete, is located on the northwest coast with the only international airport in the region, Fa’a’ā International Airport, situated 5 km (3.1 mi) from the town centre.
Tahiti was originally settled by Polynesians between 300 and 800 CE. They represent about 70% of the island’s population with the rest made up of Europeans, Chinese and those of mixed heritage.
The island was part of the Kingdom of Tahiti until its annexation by France in 1880, when it was proclaimed a colony of France. It was not until 1946 that the indigenous Tahitians were legally authorized to be French citizens. French is the only official language although the Tahitian language (Reo Tahiti) is widely spoken.
If French Polynesia / Tahitians had a national dish, it would surely be e’ia ota (poisson cru in French). It’s on nearly every menu in the country and is a version of ceviche, the citrus-marinated raw fish dish of Mexico and South America but with the addition of coconut milk to soften the acidic edges of the flavor.
Citizens, this is not a difficult recipe at all and well-worth adding as an exotic meal as you dream of the sun-kissed Tahitian islands of the South Pacific!
1 tomato, seeded and diced, squeezed in cheesecloth to remove excess liquid
2 cloves garlic
1 small knob of ginger
Unsweetened fresh coconut shreds
Instructions
Dice the fish into ¾ inch pieces, then cover with cold water and 2 tbsp salt (add a few ice cubes if the water is not chilled). Let the fish sit for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, squeeze your limes to juice them.
Drain the fish and pat it dry. Submerge the fish in fresh lime juice. Let the fish marinate, stirring occasionally, for 15-30 minutes.
While fish is marinating, prepare your vegetables. Reserve a little of each on the side for garnish.
Marinate the fish until the edges are opaque and the center of each piece is still pink. Drain the lime juice, then return the fish to the bowl. Stir in the fresh vegetables, coconut shreds and coconut milk. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Allow the mixture to marinate in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes.
Serve cold garnished with fresh vegetables. May also be enjoyed over coconut rice for a more filling entrée.
Prep Time:0 hours
Cook Time:0 hours
How useful was this post, Citizen?
Click to rate My Recipe, Citizen - 5 hearts are ALWAYS appreciated!
Average rating / 5. Vote count:
No votes so far! Be the first to rate this post.
As you found this post useful...
Follow us on social media, Citizen!
We are sorry that this post was not useful for you!
Be advised that as an enlightened Dictatorship here at TFD, we are indeed on the side of right when it comes to protecting the privacy of TFD Nation!
We do use technologies such as cookies to store and/or access device information, solely to improve your browsing experience and to show personalized ads.
Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions - trust us, we really ARE on your side!
YOUR LOYALTY IS NOTED!
Functional Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Generalissimo,
How long does the actual marination take?
Your obedient citizen,
Mark Gibbs.
Gah! Cancel that, speed reading first thing in the morning is not advised …