Hāngī

Hāngī is a dish cooked in an earth oven by the Māori people of New Zealand, typically containing a variety of meats and vegetables.

Hāngi is also a traditional New Zealand Māori method of cooking food using heated rocks buried in a pit oven, called an umu. It is still used for large groups on special occasions. Common foods cooked in a hāngi are meats such as lamb, pork, chicken and seafood (kaimoana), and vegetables such as potato, kūmara (sweet potato), yams (oca), pumpkin, squash, taro and cabbage. The umu is essentially an underground pit and has been a traditional method of cooking food for inhabitants of the Pacific Islands

Originally the umu would have been used to cook fish and sweet potatoes but over time the range of ingredients diversified and so the ingredients you will likely find in a Hāngi today include chicken, pork, mutton, sweet potatoes, pumpkin and carrots.

Hāngi is an incredibly popular meal for celebrations or welcoming guests, it is not typically eaten often and so is reserved for those special occasions.