How to Cook a Hungi

A hungi, also called a hangi, is similar in many respects to a clambake. New Zealand Maoris usually "lay down" a hungi only for special occasions due to the amount of work involved. The flavorful meats and vegetables produced by a hungi make it all worthwhile. Follow these steps to learn how.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Place to dig a pit
• Wet burlap sacks to cover the pit twice
• Wet muslin or white sheets to line baskets
• Firewood to build a lattice in the freshly dug pit
• Shovels
• Garden hose with spray attachment
• Igneous rocks or bricks
• Two wire baskets, one for meat and one for vegetables

1. Dig the pit. Make it wide enough to accommodate the baskets with about 4 inches of free space on the sides, and deep enough to hold the baskets just below the dirt line.
2. Choose rocks for the pit. Igneous rocks like basalt and granite hold heat best. If they are not available, bricks also work well in a hungi.
3. Build a lattice of wood over the pit and place your stones on top. Stones will fall into the pit as the wood burns away.
4. While the fire burns, line the wire baskets with soaked muslin or white sheets. Place food inside the cloth-lined baskets. Traditional meat choices for a hungi include pork, chicken, mutton and lamb. You can also add cabbage, pumpkin and root vegetables like sweet potato, potato and onions to the baskets.
5. Quickly remove ash and coals from the rocks when the fire dies down. Spray the rocks briefly with the hose to steam away any loose ash.
6. Rapidly cover the rocks with half of the wet burlap sacks. This provides extra steam and additional protection to the food baskets. Promptly arrange food baskets on top of the burlap sacks in the pit. Swiftly place remaining wet burlap sacks on top of the food baskets for protection from the dirt.
7. Shovel the dirt back onto the pit to trap in the steam as fast as you can. Let the food cook from 3 to 4 hours. The larger the hungi, the longer it will take to cook.
8. Dig up the dirt one more time. Remove the top layer of burlap. Carefully raise up the baskets and take the cooked food out of them. Arrange the meat and vegetables attractively on platters and enjoy your meal!

Tips & Warnings

• Vegetables are usually peeled, but other items are simply tossed in whole.
• Spices aren't traditionally added, but garlic and rosemary can give your hungi meal a nice flavor.
• Some people leave a few coals in for a smoky flavor, but do not leave ash behind. The flavor it gives the food is not good, and hungis are known for being flavorful and delicious.
• If steam escapes, shovel some dirt on top of the leak.