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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Wash the ti leaves in cold water, rubbing them with a cloth or sponge, and dry them gently with paper towels.
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2. Wash the fish under cold running water and pat it completely dry with paper towels. With a sharp knife, score the fish by making 5 diagonal slits 2 inches long and ¼ inches deep spaced about ½ inch apart on each side. Rub the fish inside and out with salt and pepper, meanwhile massaging it gently.
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3. To make a ti leaf envelope for the fish, first remove the stems from all but one leaf with a cleaver or sharp knife. Trim the stem of the remaining leaf into a point. Place 3 leaves, glossy surface down, crosswise in a shallow baking dish just large enough to hold the snapper comfortably.
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4. Overlap the sides of the leaves to make a layer that completely covers the bottom of the dish. The ends of the leaves will stick out be-yond the sides of the dish.
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5. Then, lengthwise over the bottom row of leaves, lay the 8 remaining trimmed leaves in 2 rows of 4 each, sides overlapping, with the tips of the 2 rows meeting in the middle of the dish and the stem ends extending well beyond the ends of the dish. The tips of the leaves should overlap in the center by about 3 inches.
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6. Put the fish lengthwise in the middle of the dish. Cover it with the salt pork and arrange the lemon slices over it in a row from head to tail. Pour in the coconut top milk.
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7. Lift the ends of the bottom (or crosswise) layer of leaves over the fish, one side at a time, and tuck them snugly around it. Then fold the extending ends of the top layer of leaves back over the fish to enclose it completely. The ends of this top layer of leaves should overlap in the middle by 2 or 3 inches.
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8. Now carefully slide the 12th leaf under the center of the wrapped fish. Bring the ends of this leaf around to the top and insert the pointed stem through the center of the leaf to hold the envelope together.
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9. Bake in the middle of the oven for 40 minutes. To serve, carefully transfer the wrapped fish to a heated platter, cut off the center "tie" and unfold the rest of the leaves.
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