Maori food- kai

After I watched a video, which shows how to cook traditional Maori style “Hangi”, I really wondered why Maori were cooking in the ground and what were their some traditional foods. Whereupon, I read a magazine about it, it gave me a kooky outlook on their different foods and I also learned why they cooked in the ground.

For centuries, Maori- the native people of New Zealand- have been living on the plentiful lands of their ancestors. Traditional Maori people believed that the earth was giving all life to them and they thought that food was coming from the soil, so again that food should have cooked under the soil.

In such a plentiful land, Maori people were naturally hunters, gatherers and farmers, who were harvesting their food from sea, forest and garden. So, the traditional Maori diet was basically including birds, fish and wild herbs. Also in their gardens, Maori was growing root crops like potato and kumara( sweet potato).

Usually Maori cooked in ovens, called hangi, which were under the ground. Traditionally in hangi style cooking, vegetables and meat are cooked together in the ground, which is a hole dug.

At the bottom, very hot stones are placed and then the prepared cookware is placed on them. After covering with a cloth, food is left to cook in the ground for a while. Contemporary New Zealanders still use this traditional cooking style in their feasts and some special occasions.

Let’s go to some other foods. One of the foods made me surprise is Maori potato. Maori potato- taewa tutaekuri- is very unusual, as it is a dark purple potato. In New Zealand cuisine, this potato has an important place.

I think, in general potato is very important taste in New Zealand kitchen, because this bread- rewena paroa- is made from potatoes and it is indispensable for New Zealand breakfast.

Actually, in New Zealand cuisine, there are so many foods but lastly I want to share this food. This is again a traditional Maori food and called kuku patties. It includes salmon, or instead some puha greens, New Zealand greenlip, kelp and horopito leaves. New Zealanders generally prefer this traditional food in dinners. I think, it seems quite delicious.

I don’t know, how did you feel when you saw the dark purple potato- which I saw for the first time-, but I was really amazed by it. And when I go to New Zealand in future, the very first thing which I will eat is going to be taewa tutaekuri.