Solomon Islands Cuisine

Solomon Islands cuisine is wholesome, simple Melanesian island food drawn from the abundant sea and the tropical land, built on fish, root crops and coconut. Fresh reef fish and seafood are the mainstay, eaten grilled, raw or in coconut, while starchy staples of taro, yam, cassava, sweet potato and the swamp taro that thrives on the atolls accompany nearly every meal, alongside plantain, breadfruit and abundant tropical fruit. Coconut, in its milk and flesh, enriches many dishes. The traditional feast is cooked in the motu, an underground oven of hot stones, and betel nut is widely chewed as a social custom rather than eaten.

What you actually see

• The fresh reef fish - the grilled and coconut-cooked seafood.
• The root crops - the taro, yam, cassava and sweet potato.
• The motu feast - the food cooked in the earth oven.
• The coconut and fruit - the coconut dishes and tropical fruit.

When to go

Year-round; the colourful Honiara Central Market is the place to see the islands' abundant fresh fish, root crops and tropical produce, and simple eateries and village meals offer wholesome island food. A motu earth-oven feast, prepared for gatherings, is the most traditional and communal way to eat.

Honest expectations

Solomon Islands food is simple, fresh island cooking centred on fish, root crops and coconut rather than a varied or refined cuisine, so its appeal is freshness and the communal motu tradition rather than culinary complexity, and everyday eating, especially in Honiara, can lean on imported and processed foods; dining options are limited in this undeveloped country. For fresh reef fish, tropical produce and a village motu feast, though, eaten with island simplicity, it is a wholesome taste of Melanesia.

Nearby

Honiara's Central Market and the village feasts across the islands are the places.