Savour Pacific Flavours

Media release

1 March 2013

Savour Pacific Flavours

Western Springs Park will come alive next weekend with aromas and flavours guaranteed to tantalise your Pacific tastebuds.

Mouth watering dishes including tunu puaka, palusami and fai kai will showcase culinary delights from 10 Pacific nations as part of the annual Pasifika Festival.

Organised by ATEED (Auckland Tourism, Events and Economic Development ), Pasifika Festival will this year be held over two days, 9 and 10 March, and is a celebration of food, craft, culture and heritage from the Pacific region.

“Pasifika is a real treat for the taste buds. There’s something for every palate – whether you already love traditional Pacific Island foods, or you’re keen to try the delicious flavours for the first time,” says Stan Wolfgramm, ATEED’s Festival Producer.

“You’ll leave the festival with a taste of what the Pacific Islands offer, and wanting more.”

Preparing delicious dishes is at the root of Pacific culture, and the food available at the two day festival is focused on tradition and authenticity.

With more than 150 traditional and authentic Pacific dishes available to buy at reasonable prices (the average cost is around $7), the food is sure to be a highlight.

Keep an eye out for these specialties at the festival’s villages:
• Cook Islands Poke – a divine dessert made from ripe banana, pia and coconut cream
• Fiji Lovo – a range of fish, meat and vegetables cooked in the ground for several hours
• Niue Fai kai – fish baked with coconut cream
• Aotearoa Kai mikimiki, boil-up and hangi-cooked food
• Kiribati Fish dried in the sun and served with taro
• Samoa Palusami – taro leaves baked in coconut cream
• Tahiti Chestnuts eaten fresh or cooked in a variety of ways
• Tuvalu Tolo talo – mashed baked taro in coconut cream and served with fish
• Tonga Tunu puaka – a whole pig roasted on a spit
• Tokelau Sua ika – fish boiled in coconut cream

When visiting the villages, be sure to stop by the umu in Samoa, the hangi in Aotearoa or lovo in Fiji to see, and taste, underground cooking at its best.

Visit www.aucklandnz.com/pasifika to find out more.

ENDS

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