Tourists to taste right Royal kai with a little hint of te reo Maori

Matthew Martin | 26th July 2010

The language of food crosses international borders and for Maori chef Charles Royal, there's nothing better than sharing his culture and traditions over a hot fry-pan.

Of Te Whanau Apanui and Ngati Pikiao descent, he takes tourists on guided food tours around Rotorua.

What's special about his Soda Springs Maorifood Adventures is that he not only cooks for his guests, he finds and gathers his own ingredients.

"We go out, we talk about the history of the area on the way while using a lot of the Maori language. While we're there I show them where I can collect some of the foods I use in my cooking. They can hardly believe I can find it on the side of the road," he said.

Te Wiki o Te Reo Maori - Maori Language Week runs all of this week and this year's theme is Te Mahi Kai - The Language of Food.

Mr Royal said the language of food broke down barriers and connected people, no matter where they were from.

"People are recognising that kai [food] is a form of identity. A lot of our traditional knowledge about gathering was becoming lost ... everyone was focusing on te reo and kapa haka so I thought to myself I could go out there and find something else to focus on - and that was food."

He was quick to point out that traditional Maori food was not just hangi.

"I'll prepare a hangi, if that's what people want, but I'm still learning the old ways even now. The hangi is just one of the ways we use to prepare our food ... did you know we can caramelise kumara?"

Mr Royal has researched Maori food and developed his own company, Kinaki Native Herbs, supplying traditional Maori food products to restaurants and food producers worldwide. He uses pikopiko (native bush fern), horopito (native bush pepper), kawakawa (native bush basil), piripiri (another bush pepper) and hakeka (native ear fungus) in many of his recipes.

Mr Royal said he did not learn to speak Maori at school but made sure his children were bought up with the language and sent them to Rotorua's Te Kura o te Koutu. "I'm not fluent [in te reo Maori] but thought it was very important for my kids to know about who they are. One of the best ways to achieve that was by learning their language," he said.

Mr Royal will appear on TV One's Good Morning tomorrow and Wednesday, showing off some of his recipes as part of Maori Language Week.

WHAKATAUKI (PROVERB) OF THE DAY

"Te anga karaka, te anga koura, kei kitea te Marae."

* Translation: The shells of the karaka berry and the shells of the crayfish, should not be seen from the Marae.

* Explanation: This proverb refers to both hygiene and discipline. It means a tribe that disregards organisation and has no concern for where it leaves its rubbish opens itself up to the dangers of poor leadership and ill-discipline.