Samoan Oka

Oka i'a is a Samoan dish consisting of raw fish, usually fresh tuna that is marinated in lemon juice and coconut, then served in chunks with onions. The combination of these ingredients makes for an extremely healthy, flavorful, and unique fish salad. Everything about this dish is according to personal taste, so you'd be hard-pressed to find two people in Samoa that cook it exactly the same. What follows is a basic recipe, but do not hesitate to make it your own by replacing the fish with fresh mussels, scallops or crabmeat. Add whatever vegetables you like, although crisp and crunchy veggies like celery and cucumber provide a nice contrast to the fish. This recipe was provided for Cook the Commonwealth by the Samoan Tourism Authority. This recipe was tested and photographed by Kiri Pointon-Bell, registered Dietitian

Good

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Choose sushi grade tuna fish and freeze it. When ready to make this dish, remove fish from freeze and thaw. Cut up your fish into bite size pieces

Step 2

Put in a bowl and cover with the fresh squeezed citrus juice. Marinate for about 10 minutes or until you finish cutting up the other vegetables. The citrus 'cooks' the diced fish quickly.

Step 3

Dice up the vegetables to similar bite size pieces

Step 4

Drain the citrus from the fish and add in the vegetables

Step 5

Add in the coconut milk

Step 6

Add salt to taste

Step 7

Refrigerate for about 30 minutes prior to serving to let all the flavours meld together and serve