A cookbook with dishes of the Pacific including Fiji has won the Best Cookbook of the Year award in the New Zealand category as well as the Best Foreign Book award.
The book named Me'a Kai which has the Food and Flavors of the South Pacific has been written by Robert Oliver with the assistance of New Zealand academic Dr Tracy Berno and a well known Fiji photographer Shiri Ram.
Me'a Kai is to subsequently qualify to represent New Zealand in the Gourmand World Cookbook Awards which are extremely prestigious.
Two years ago, New Zealand born chef Robert Oliver came to Fiji, where he grew up to rediscover the art of Pacific cooking.
He traveled to Tonga, Niue, Tahiti, Samoa, Vanuatu and the Cook Islands to track down the most skilled local cooks.
Oliver, Berno and Shiri Ram began the journey that has led to the creation of the stunning Me'a Kai with the goal to improve the quality of food offered to the South Pacific region's tourism market and to contribute towards rural prosperity in the Pacific by creating an increased demand for locally grown foods.
The book which celebrates six South Pacific nations, their culture, cooking and traditions brings together the "farm to the table" has 90 plus recipes and photos that capture the essence of the Pacific.
Story by: Sneh Chaudhry
Source : Samoa Observer
Stay tuned for the latest news on our radio stations
