New Zealand - cheese rolls and Maori bread

Australia's nearest neighbour, New Zealand, celebrates today as Waitangi Day, to commemorate the 1840 signing of the Treaty of Waitangi, the country's founding document,  between the Maori chiefs and representatives of the British Crown.

While much of New Zealand's cuisine follows British or other western cuisines, or else combines with Maori techniques, it has a couple of unique breads that are all its own.

One thing the Kiwis (the people, not the bird!) have all to themselves is a national favourite - the cheese roll, sometimes referred to as 'southern sushi'. On our last trip to New Zealand, we found it proudly offered on the blackboard menu at a Dunedin beachside cafe. It has to be the simplest snack served anywhere: a slice of bread spread with a mixture of cheese and onion soup mix or, simply with onion, which is then rolled up and toasted in the oven or a sandwich maker. It is served with a slap of butter, as you can see.

The other, Maori bread (rēwena, from rēwa the maori word for potato) is far more complex, combining a potato starter which results in a finely textured loaf, readily available in New Zealand.

Rēwena bread uses a pre-ferment starter, also called a ‘bug.’ It is created by boiling and mashing potatoes, then adding flour and sugar. Kumara, or sweet potatoes, may also be used. The mixture is then allowed to ferment from one to several days, depending on the ambient temperature and humidity. 

As with most sourdough breads, the starter can be maintained and used indefinitely, as long as the yeast is kept alive with regular feeding. The potato starter and fermentation lends rēwena bread its characteristic sweet and sour taste. The starter is then mixed with flour and water, kneaded, and baked- frequently in a round loaf.

Here is one recipe for Maori bread, and a Youtube video of Maori fried bread.