New Zealand

Māori earth-oven traditions meet British baking; lamb, seafood, kūmara and beloved dairy desserts. That is the short version of what New Zealand cooks. Look for Hāngī (meat and kūmara steamed underground on heated stones, Māori feast tradition), Pavlova (meringue cake with whipped cream and kiwifruit, hotly claimed from Australia) and Mince and Cheese Pie (flaky pie of savory minced beef and melted cheese, bakery staple). Steam cooking on heated stones came with Polynesian ancestors; in Rotorua, geothermal steam boxes and pools replace the pit entirely. This atlas has 38 New Zealand dishes catalogued below, from everyday cooking to food kept for festivals and special occasions.