My Kinda Kai

Television (Full Length) – 2004

Presenter Pio Terei believes “every Kiwi should know how to make a hāngī”. In this documentary he invites viewers on a journey across Aotearoa, gathering ingredients for a hāngī. Starting in Hokianga, he meets the Rawiri whānau who fish using traditional methods, and watches Te Maapi Pere demonstrate tūna trapping. In Bluff, he visits the Metzger family, who continue the tradition of muttonbirding and crafting pōhā (seaweed bags) to preserve their catch. Lastly, Terei stops by Dell Wihongi's South Auckland garden to dig up potatoes, before returning home to bring it all together in a giant hāngī feast.

The big day has finally arrived and all the food that I've gathered from around the country is ready. Looking at all this kai and thinking about all the people I've met reminds me of a great Māori proverb about cooperation: Nāku te rourou, nāu te rourou, ka ora te manuhiri; with your food basket and my food basket, the visitors will be fed.
– Presenter Pio Terei on preparing the hāngī feast