Kai Māori - Home Economics

Growing and Gathering:
In New Zealand, the temperature was much cooler than the places around them o when it came to planting food they managed to find a technique to help adapt them to the surrounding environments. They were prepared in huge communal gardens where they sometimes used gravel, sand, shells, and charcoal to the soil. This helped to hold onto the plants' nutrients and it slowed down the leaching of nutrients by rain or watering. They brought in more birds by bringing in some native trees, flax, and flowering shrubs which attracted the birds into the civilization. The Maori mostly ate seafood as there was plenty of fish and it was high in protein. Each tribe had its own fishing grounds which was very important as some may have called it sacred ground. 

Preserving Food:
Maori preserved large amounts of food so they could trade with other tribes or save the food for leaner times. Some of the food that was most commonly dried was kumara, shellfish, and fish (Such as shark and eels). Meat, fruit, and seeds were also dried. Some birds and meats were preserved in their own fat after it is boiled into a hot substance. Another thing that they did was ferment the fish and corn. 

What food sources did the English bring to the Maori when they settled into their country?
When the English settled in the Maori quickly accepted the food that they brought with them, some of the foods include potatoes, pork, wheat, corn, Ect. Even though they brought the crops over to the Maori, they still had the problem of the climate changing for the crops. In the end, the Maori managed to adapt the crops to the different weather and so they managed to grow the sid crops.

What was the English cooking style? How did it compare to the Maori?
The English mainly used ovens to bake their food like bread and chips. Compared to the Maori, their method of cooking was healthy and helped to bring on more flavor to their food.

At the end of last week, we had a look at or of the foods that the English ate. Scones.