The Shark God - Bananas and Sweet Potatoes

Henry Montgomery wrote to his children from the deck of the Southern Cross. "Remember," he told them, "that your father visited all these islands, and that his heart went out to the dwellers among these lonely scenes, praying ever that they might be brought to know their Father in His son Jesus Christ." He reminded his children that they were special. "You have all been taught that we must be true and pure and upright because we are Christ's disciples; but next after that reason there is no incentive to live nobly which is so powerful as the possession of a great family tradition. You come from a family of 'gentlemen'; you know that word does not signify mere outward refinement: it tells of a refined and noble mind, to which anything dishonourable or mean or impure is abhorrent and unworthy."

-The Shark God by Charles Montgomery

When I choose a book to read it is usually based upon its description on some online store or in little catalogs that I get in the mail, so suffice it to say I did not really know what to expect when I chose The Shark God. I did expect ghosts and a bit of the paranormal, but it wasn't really about those things. It was more about running after the ghosts of the past. It was atheist Charles Montgomery's journey into Melanesia inspired by his missionary grandfather who had traveled there long ago to convert the locals to Christianity. Charles went looking for magic, but he mostly found religions jockeying for position and a steady supply of kava. Kastom, or local custom, was sometimes hard to come by and often the display of it was more for theatrics. He ran into so many varying levels of belief and Christianity that by the end he was frustrated and confused, yet trying to force meaning where none was to be found. To me it felt almost like reading an anthropologist's account of a personal spiritual journey - educational, but not quite what you want to read.

Unfortunately, there were few mentions of local cuisine. Kava was definitely a central drink, but I did not want to go that route, and whenever he did mention his meals they were mostly his own noodles, peanut butter, and crackers. There were mentions of coconut, chop suey, and pork, but I still wasn't satisfied. I remembered that I had sweet potatoes on hand from my community supported agriculture (CSA), and realized that yams and sweet potatoes are likely consumed in the Pacific. So I turned to the web and came across a recipe which seemed like it could possibly be a staple consumed in Melanesia.

Bananas and Sweet Potatoes
Originally found at Food in Islands of the Pacific

• 2 lbs sweet potatoes
• 2 ripe bananas
• 2-3 Tbsp. butter

Scrub the sweet potatoes and then boil them in water on the stove until soft (about 20 minutes). Drain the potatoes and when they are cool enough to handle peel the skins off. Cut them into bite-size chunks or slices, and cut the bananas into large slices.

In a skillet melt the butter and pour the bananas and potatoes into the skillet. Saute them for a good 5 - 10 minutes, then serve.

My normal method of cooking with sweet potatoes is to bake them with the skins and then eat with a good amount of butter and salt. So I was quite interested in trying something different. I wasn't sure if I would like them so the above recipe is a smaller batch than the original recipe I found online.

This had a very lovely aroma when I was cooking the bananas and sweet potatoes together. The taste was very interesting as well, but I am sorry to say that I felt a little ill after eating it. I am not sure why as I do not think any of the ingredients were bad. One thing I do wonder, though, is if it would have made more sense to use plantains instead of bananas. I don't normally think of bananas as something you eat cooked, and on the opposite side of things I never think of eating plantains raw. At any rate, I doubt I will make this in the future. As pleasing as it smells, getting sick to one's stomach usually puts an end to eating a particular dish again.