Traditional Drinks
Te Karewe
Kiribati
Fresh sweet sap collected from the unopened coconut flower spathe; drunk fresh or mixed with water or tea (tea-toddy); a nutritional anchor on atolls where soil cannot grow sufficient vitamins; rich in vitamin C; collected daily by toddy cutters who scale 30-meter palms barefoot with knives between their teeth; a fundamental part of I-Kiribati food culture.
Original eatfuls sticker artwork
What it is
A closer look at Te Karewe.
Fresh sweet sap collected from the unopened coconut flower spathe; drunk fresh or mixed with water or tea (tea-toddy); a nutritional anchor on atolls where soil cannot grow sufficient vitamins; rich in vitamin C; collected daily by toddy cutters who scale 30-meter palms barefoot with knives between their teeth; a fundamental part of I-Kiribati food culture.
What to look for
Know it when you find it.
A sweet, clear, slightly viscous liquid; the flavor is honey-like with a coconut undertone; collected fresh daily from coconut flower spathes; drunk fresh or mixed with water or tea; rich in vitamin C; a fundamental part of I-Kiribati food culture; similar to toddy/tuba in other Pacific islands.
Where it belongs
Origins and
traditions.
Food rarely respects a border. These are the places the dataset connects most strongly to Te Karewe.
Names around the table
One food, more than one name.
Keep exploring
If this caught your eye…
India
Aam Panna
आम पanna
A cooling summer drink made from raw mangoes, sugar, and spices. It is green, tangy, and refreshing.
Benin
Adoyo
A sweet drink from fermented corn water (ogui) with lemon and lemongrass; low alcohol (1-2%); a refreshing Beninese beverage; served cold.
Dominican Republic
Agua de Pana
A Dominican drink of breadfruit (pana) boiled and blended with milk, sugar, and cinnamon, served cold. A rich, tropical, starchy beverage, especially in the Cibao.
Colombia
Agua de Panela
A Colombian drink of panela dissolved in water, served hot with cheese and bread for breakfast in the highlands. The everyday Andean beverage.
Limón, Costa Rica
Agua de Sapo
Caribbean drink with panela (unrefined sugar), ginger, and lime, called 'toad water' for its color, refreshing and spicy.
Lithuania
Poppy-Seed Milk
Aguonų pienas
Poppy-seed "milk" served with kuciukai at Kūčios.
Benin
Akpan
A fermented maize drink with a yogurt-like consistency; white and slightly acidic; a ceremonial drink; sometimes called 'Beninese yogurt'; sold in bags at markets.
Argentina
Aloja
A fermented drink from Santiago del Estero and the Chaco, made from carob (algarroba) pods and water. A pre-Hispanic, mildly alcoholic drink of the dry northwest.