My hunt for Kiwi tucker
by Michele Coelho
Excuse me, Sir? Where can I find a New Zealand restaurant?
That is one of the many question visitors, backpackers and international students ask as soon as they arrive here.
But getting an answer to that question is harder than you may think.
Any traveller around the world, when visiting a different country, has as their main goal a quest to understand and experience the local culture in its fullness.
Hence the explorer’s ‘To Do’ list often includes: visiting museums, galleries, historical sites and buildings and, of course, tasting the local food.
New Zealand doesn’t lack in beautiful and amazing places to visit, cultural history to soak in and crazy things to do.
But what we – myself included, as an international student – are eager to try is authentic New Zealand food.
As we research and ask around, we always end up with different particular items but never a complete NZ cuisine.
Typical Kiwi tucker usually comes in the form of: Hockey Pokey, ANZAC biscuits, pies, Marmite, spaghetti on toast and Pavlova; but for this last one there is a debate about who invented the delicious meringue dessert: Australians or Kiwis?
Some argue that Maori cooking, and the famous hangi, is what NZ food is about. But is it fair to say that hangi tucker truly represents a country made up of Maori and non-Maori people?
I must say that I have loved everything I’ve sampled so far; although I still haven’t plucked up the courage to try the spaghetti on toast.
The truth is we just want to go deeper into your culture, invade your kitchen and try whatever we find there.
The mystery is killing us, and we can’t keep from wondering whether we are missing out on something really special and unique to this country.
So, if you still have your grandma’s recipe book hidden in some forgotten drawer, please share it with us - it might just be a real treasure.