🇹🇱 Timorese Cuisine

Tua Sabu

Palm Wine

Prep Time Daily collection
Servings 4
Difficulty Hard

A mildly sweet, naturally fermented beverage tapped from the flower stalks of the lontar palm, with a refreshing effervescence and mild alcoholic content.

Ingredients

Instructions

  1. 1 Climb the lontar palm in early morning to access the flower stalk at the crown.
  2. 2 Make a thin incision on the flower stalk and attach a bamboo collection tube below the cut.
  3. 3 Leave the tube in place for twelve to twenty-four hours to collect the dripping sap.
  4. 4 Descend and carefully retrieve the full bamboo tube of fresh sap.
  5. 5 Strain the sap through a cloth to remove any insects or debris.
  6. 6 Serve immediately for sweet, non-alcoholic toddy, or let sit for several hours for mild natural fermentation.

Did You Know?

The men who climb lontar palms to collect tua sabu are called tua na'in (lords of the toddy) and are highly respected in Timorese communities.