6 Mouth-watering New Zealand Specialities You Must Try – Tasty Culinary Creations for Foodies

The delightful dishes would be a highlight in this country and your visit wouldn’t be complete without savouring the distinctive local seafood. You would have the opportunity to try out mouth-watering seafood at the local restaurants or purchase fresh seafood and prepare it on your own. Some of the local highlights would be whitebait, bluff oysters, mussels, crayfish and salmon. Since New Zealand happens to be an island nation, with many cities located near the waters, seafood would be abundant here.

You will find that the nation’s South Island would provide its principal lamb, venison and beef exports. Often, New Zealand lamb would be offered at well-known European and American restaurants. Your visit to this country wouldn’t be complete without sampling the local lamb, particularly the variety produced in the region of Canterbury. The lamb of New Zealand would be noted for its rich texture and taste, as well as for its tenderness and leanness. Typically, the local lamb would be grass-fed for the duration of its life which contributes to its quality. 

Undoubtedly, the traditional Maori dish of hangi would be one of the must-try New Zealand specialities. This preparation method involves the use of hot steam for cooking a variety of ingredients like chicken, pork, beef, root vegetables and potatoes. These ingredients would be wrapped within leaves, packed in a basket and placed on warm stones in the ground. Food prepared in this kind of earth oven would have a typical smoky flavour. You could find hangi at some restaurants as well as roadside vendors. 

Whilst ordinary burgers would be commonly available across the globe, the Kiwi burger would be a New Zealand speciality that you could try out during your visit. Kiwi burgers would be made from locally produced high-quality ingredients making them an outstanding dining experience for food lovers. Amongst the special ingredients which would go into one of these burgers would be grass-nourished beef, pickles, tomato, a fried egg and sliced beetroot.

Meat pies would be a local favourite for a quick, convenient meal, particularly when you are pressed for time. You would find that New Zealand meat pies would feature a flaky buttery pastry as well as a selection of delicious fillings. Typical filling options for these pies would be steak, mince, chicken and vegetable, steak and cheese, and mince and cheese. When seeking the best hotels in Auckland, an accommodation choice to consider where you could base yourself as you try out such local foods would be Avani Auckland Metropolis Residences. 

Another speciality of Maori origin would be the kumara or New Zealand sweet potato. You would traditionally find kumara within a hangi; however, today, kumara would be a popular snack prepared using various cooking methods. You would have the opportunity to savour kumara in the form of chips, wedges or croquettes. Whilst there would be a variety of kumara available, the most traditional type would be the creamy purple-skinned variety.