Source: Radio New Zealand
Marae assistant chairman and renowned Māori chef Joe Mcleod is helping his marae create around 500 ready-to-eat hāngī packs for the event in Wellington. Layla Bailey-McDowell / RNZ
A Wellington marae is putting its hāngī made up of mostly koha kai underground on Friday, in preparation for the city’s Waitangi Day celebrations tomorrow.
Thousands are expected to gather at Waitangi Park in Te Whanganui a Tara on Friday for large community event Te Rā o Waitangi that honoured the signing of Te Tiriti o Waitangi in 1840.
Ngā Hau e Whā o Paparārangi marae in Newlands helped feed those celebrating Waitangi Day in the city for many years.
Marae assistant chairman and renowned Māori chef Joe Mcleod had previously led hāngī operations to feed thousands at Te Tii Waitangi Marae.
Joe McLeod Supplied/Peter Gordon
This year, he was helping his marae create around 500 ready-to-eat hāngī packs for the event in Wellington, featuring local kai like meat and huawhenua (vegetables).
“Pork, lamb chicken in our packs. Potato, pumpkin, kumara, cabbage and stuffing. That’s the standard pack, and then we have a vegetarian pack,” he said.
“They go real quick.”
Mcleod said much of the kai was donated by the community and local supermarkets, and he was amazed by the support.
“We have a very strong local network.”
He said helping feed the crowds there was a lovely experience, that recognised the important moment in the history of Aotearoa.
“We’re there to celebrate and be there to provide a service for our people,” he said.
“It’s a fun thing. We’re giving back to celebrate with our country, and it’s a special event to celebrate a special moment.”
Mcleod was classically trained in French cuisine and dozens more culinary styles throughout his long career.
These days, he was more focussed on sharing matauranga Māori kai with other marae to pass on his knowledge.
“Letting them know that our food culture is still alive.
“The resources our ancestors used are still here, most of them, and our primary resources are still accessible through various connections that marae networks have.”
Live music, kapa haka and local kai are some of the highlights expected in Wellington from midday tomorrow, ahead of Saturday’s Wellington Pasifika Festival also at Waitangi Park from midday.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
