Kiwi culinary journey for famous chefs
12 May 2010
Two world famous chefs, Rick Stein and Gordon Ramsay, will both be staging shows in New Zealand this year - giving them the chance to experience some unique culinary offerings, Kiwi-style.
Rick Stein will present ‘A culinary Journey - from Cornwall to New Zealand’, at Auckland's Aotea Centre and Wellington's St James Theatre from 4 - 8 August.
Gordon Ramsay will be in New Zealand from 22 - 24 June for a series of gala dinners in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.
In a country that has achieved world acclaim for food production and innovative treatment, the famous chefs will be faced with a range of "only in New Zealand" opportunities from sampling rare delicacies to scavenging for wild native foods.
Colourful culinary show
The notoriously foul-mouthed Ramsay is likely to produce a colourful show, and organisers Duco Events say they’ve waited two years to sign him up for the New Zealand tour.
Ramsay who has an extensive restaurant empire world-wide and recently opened another in Melbourne, has been awarded 16 Michelin stars and is considered one of the best chefs in the world.
Not knowing what to expect from the man famous for his temper and outbursts was part of the appeal, say Duco.
What is certain is that nowhere else in the world could Ramsay and Stein be able to sample foods like manuka eggs, huhu bugs, ponga fronds, mutton birds, hangi in a pie, kina, paua ravioli, Maori herbs or possum pie.
Given the chance, they could also enjoy the country’s coffee culture and enter into the local tradition of a daily flat white. New Zealand is the home of the stronger, less milky coffee type which has now been adopted by London cafes including Starbucks.
Stein’s Food Odyssey
Rick Stein’s ‘Food Odyssey’ tour will give audiences the chance to see the master in action as he works with guest chefs to prepare an array of his signature dishes, including one that is uniquely New Zealand.
For Stein, whose fish restaurant in Padstow, Cornwall is legendary, New Zealand is a seafood-lover’s paradise with a wide-ranging, bountiful supply of wet fish and shell fish.
New Zealand’s isolation means many marine species are unique to New Zealand and, as well as wild fish, the acquaculture of mussels, salmon and oysters provides a ready supply.
Crustaceans such as crayfish, pipi and tuatua are endemic to New Zealand, as are paua (known in some countries as abalone).
Paua is the Maori name given to the large sea slugs or molluscs found in shallow coastal waters around New Zealand. Maori consider paua as taonga or treasure - valuable as kai moana (seafood) with the shells in demand for arts and crafts.
One of the signature dishes at top Wellington restaurant Logan Brown is paua ravioli - served with a basil, coriander and lime beurre blanc.
The restaurant owned by Steve Logan and Al Brown, stars of the New Zealand TV series 'Hunger for the Wild', has won a number of awards including 2009 Cuisine NZ Restaurant of the Year.
If Stein or Ramsay chose to dine at the inner city restaurant, the menu choice would also include New Zealand treats such as meaty Bluff oysters, local crab, eel, snapper and tarakihi.
Top Kiwi culinary treats
New Zealand whitebait - very different from the small herrings the British call whitebait - would be another culinary experience the chefs ought to explore.
Each spring, hoards of Kiwis flock to river mouths, particularly on the West Coast of the South Island, to collect the tiny translucent whitebait in nets.
The small, sweet and tender whitebait is a delicacy because of strict fishing controls and a limited season. New Zealand whitebait have a delicate flavour, and the most popular way of cooking them is in a light fritter or omelette.
Huhu grubs - the larvae of a forest beetle endemic to New Zealand, are a traditional Maori delicacy. The grubs provided a high fat instant snack that was eaten fresh from their fallen bush log homes, and Maori had different names for the grub depending on its stage of life.
Ponga fern - with time, the chefs could check out wild offerings in New Zealand’s native bush, such as ponga fern fronds or pikopiko.
Only seven of the 312 varieties of wild fern that grow in the New Zealand bush are edible, but tender young edible fronds are known as bush asparagus and have a unique flavour.
New Zealand Maori chef Charles Royal has popularised indigenous foods such as horopito, kawakawa, korengo, koura, kumara, manuka and puha - ingredients likely to be foreign to the visiting chefs.
Pies -Ramsay and Stein might also like to share another favourite Kiwi gastronomic experience - the meat pie. While it is not necessarily unique to New Zealand, what Kiwis put inside the pie crust, is.
Pete’s Possum pies - an innovative move by a South Island company to help deal with the pests that pose a serious threat to New Zealand’s native forests and birds - are made in Pukekura, on the South Island's West Coast, and distributed throughout New Zealand.
Another unique New Zealand gastronomic experience is hangi in a pie. Hangi is the traditional Maori way of cooking food in an earth oven, and Waikato company Puff’n Billy foods has wrapped a European crust around the usual hangi ingredients of meat and vegetables to produce a uniquely Kiwi convenience food.
Manuka-smoked eggs - this unique-to-New Zealand food, fresh manuka smoked eggs from Lawrence in Central Otago, is new on the market. Manuka or ti-tree is a native shrub with a distinct flavour, often used for smoking goods like bacon, chicken and fish.
The NZ Manuka Egg company says free-range eggs are cold smoked and naturally absorb the manuka flavour. They are still raw and therefore can be used for any purpose - adding flavour to omelettes, quiches and other savoury egg dishes.
Chilli, lavender chocolates - if the chefs are keen on chocolate and want to try some different flavours, several Kiwi boutique chocolate makers are producing unusual taste sensations.
Schoc Chocolates, with shops in Wellington and the Wairarapa, says it combines the enjoyment and health benefits of quality chocolate in a gourmet range than features unusual flavours like lime & chilli, geranium, lavender, lemon and cracked pepper, lemongrass and of course, kiwifruit.
Oysters & rosé - chances are the top-rated chefs will have sampled the multi-award-winning syrah from Kennedy Point Vineyard on Waiheke Island. But they would need to visit the property, a short ferry ride from downtown Auckland, to experience the popular taste sensation of Te Matuku Bay oysters in a rosé shot - while relaxing on the wine deck in an iconic Kiwi setting under pohutukawa trees.
Fejoas and tamarillos - different varieties of fresh produce could also tempt the chefs into dreaming up some clever new ways with Kiwi produce. Fresh, home grown and organic produce is widely available throughout New Zealand, and a visit to one of the many farmers markets would give the visiting chefs a good idea of what kiwi fruit and veg. is all about.
More information:
Indigenous NZ food
New Zealand's culinary culture
Charles Royal - Maori chef
New Zealand Farmers' Markets
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