New Zealand Cuisine

Author: Josh D
Hey food adventurers!

The New Zealand cuisine is the topic of today's blog post. I consider New Zealand home, as I lived there for pretty much all my childhood except for the first 6 years where I lived in England and Sri Lanka. New Zealand cuisine is very similar to most first world countries, as it includes fish and chips, burgers, hot dogs and more. However, one special dish (or more specifically cooking method) they have is the Hangi (picture below). Hangi is a cooking method invented by Maori (the native people of New Zealand) rather than a dish, meaning the choice is yours in regards to the ingredients (e.g. any meat, vegetables, fruits or even a mixture of everything).

What makes Hangi special from other cooking methods is that it’s cooked underground with volcanic stones, creating an ‘earth oven'. To make sure the food isn’t contaminated by the dirt on top, multiple layers of different fabrics are put on top to make sure the food is kept clean. Hangi does take a long time to make (about 6-8 hours) as it takes a long time to heat the stones, however this gives it that unique smell and taste. Here’s a recipe that you can use if you’re up for the challenge: https://www.wikihow.com/Put-Down-a-Hangi

Finally, there are many other unique New Zealand foods, such as Kūmara (sweet potato), Manuka honey, Pavlova (sorry Aussies but this was invented by Kiwis (a.k.a New Zealanders), get the facts right) and more. Hopefully this has introduced you to a cuisine that is not as well-known as other cuisines. Also, just for curiosities sake, above is a picture of Milford Sounds, one of the most beautiful places in New Zealand, and in my opinion, the world.