The Toki Pona Recipe Challenge
A few weeks ago, I saw a page from one toki pona enthusiast suggesting how to write a cookbook in the language. My friends who read it were appalled by that person's guidelines, because they believed that they demonstrated how the idea of communicating a recipe in toki pona is not viable at all.
For this reason, I have decided to give the community a challenge, to see if my friends are right: try to translate my recipe below. Send me your translation via email (twentydaysofmay[at]gmail.com) or Discord (@twentydaysofmay), and I will reply to you how accurately you interpreted it.
There will be no clues provided outside of toki pona. And, admittedly going against the suggestions of the person who inspired me to do this, I will not include any visual guides, because I believe that if a language has to rely on images to describe something as conceptually simple as a vegetable, then it fails at being an effective medium of communication.
What I will provide is short descriptions next to the name of each ingredient. You may open them up using the "sona sin" buttons if you want to, but you have to tell me if you've done that.
Got it? Then here is your text!
lipu pi pali moku
sina wile e poki ni:
- poki suli: sina lukin e ona tan poka la ona li leko. sina lukin e ona tan sewi la ona li sike.
- poki lipu pi luka suli: sina lukin e ona tan poka la ona li lili. sina lukin e ona tan sewi la ona li suli.
sina wile e moku ni:
- ko walo kiwen: ona li awen e moku li pana e kule tawa ona.
- telo kasi: ona li pana sama e seli tawa moku. ona li lon ala la moku li seli pi sama ala.
- leko pi telo soweli kiwen: moku telo la telo soweli kiwen li lawa.
- kili ma kapesi: ona li tan nena Ante pi ma suli Amelika.
- kili pi seli ala: ona li sama kili seli pi ma suli Amelika. taso ona li seli ala.
- kili ma palisa loje: ona li jo e lipu kasi laso suli. taso sina wile ala e lipu ni.
- kasi linja laso: ona li jo e anpa sike walo. taso sina wile ala e anpa ni.
- sike waso:
ona li jo e mama wan taso. waso pi sike ni li jo e ijo loje mute lon lawa ona li tawa lili lon kon.
sina wile seli e sike ni lon telo. insa jelo ona li telo ala la sina ken kepeken e sike ni lon pali pi moku ni. - pan linja lili: ona li tan ma Italija.
o jo e poki suli. o pana e telo mute tawa poki ni. o pana e poki tawa supa seli. o open e seli wawa lon anpa pi poki ni. o pana e ko walo kiwen e leko pi telo soweli kiwen tawa telo.
o leko e kili ma kapesi tu tu kepeken kipisi. o pana e ona tawa telo.
o linja suli e kili wan pi seli ala kepeken kipisi. o pana e ona tawa telo.
o jo e poki lipu pi luka suli. o pana e poki tawa supa seli. o open e seli wawa lon anpa pi poki ni. o pana e telo kasi tawa ona.
o sike e kili ma palisa loje suli wan anu kili ni lili tu kepeken kipisi. o seli e kili lon poki lipu. o pana e kili seli ni tawa telo.
o kipisi e sike waso tu. o pana e ona tawa telo.
kili ma kapesi li kiwen lili taso la o pana e pan linja lili tawa telo. o pana e ko walo kiwen lili tawa telo. pan linja ni li wile ala e tenpo suli.
o kipisi e kasi linja laso. tenpo lili li tawa la o pana e ona tawa telo. o awen e tenpo lili lili. o pini e seli. o pini e poki.
o awen e tenpo suli lili. o pini e seli ale.
Extras
After you complete your attempt at interpreting what this text is supposed to say, you can also try doing the opposite: try to misunderstand it as much as possible. To put it more concisely: after doing your best, try doing your worst.
If you have any questions, requests, or complaints about this page, please use email or Discord (listed above) to contact me.