Matariki: Celebrate at home and host your own hautapu ceremony

Matariki Hautapu Ceremony at Te Papa in 2021. Photo / Wiremu Grace

The theme for Matariki 2024 is Matariki Heri Kai, the feast of Matariki, so why not celebrate with hosting a hautapu ceremony at home?

The rising of the Matariki star cluster is a marker of the Māori New Year, te Mātahi o te Tau. It’s a time to come together to honour those who have passed, celebrate the present and look to the future.

To celebrate this year’s theme, the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa has shared some special food stories with NZ Herald, including recipes by Uncle Pare.

Here Te Papa’s Maramataka Māori Programme Advisor Leroy de Thierry encourages everyone to celebrate the New Year.

“The Matariki public holiday is an opportunity for the whole nation to celebrate something that is unique to Aotearoa. There is no one way you can celebrate Matariki; you could spend time with your whānau to remember your loved ones who have passed away; enjoy a mid-winter feast with friends and whānau; discuss and write down your hopes, dreams, and aspirations for the year ahead; Go out and see the rising of the Matariki cluster in the morning sky, or partake in a traditional ceremony that’s conducted to open the New Year.”

The re-appearance of Matariki in mid-winter coincides with a pre-dawn ceremony called ‘whāngai i te hautapu’ – or hautapu for short. The ceremony involves cooking kai as an offering to the stars of Matariki while reciting karakia, and honouring those who have passed on.

The steam from the kai that is cooked rises into the sky where Matariki feasts upon the offering, thus opening the New Year. The ceremony ends with the rising of the sun.

“You could prepare your own one with your whānau by following the steps below,” says de Thierry.

Whāngai i te Hautapu in 2022. Photo / Erica Sinclair

How to host your own hautapu

You can cook your kai in the oven or on the stove, or even use a pot on a gas burner outside. The important thing is selecting the right kai, making sure there’s steam to release and giving yourself enough time to cook the kai before the sun rises.

Step 1: Selecting the right kai

Four stars of the Matariki cluster are connected to the kai that you will be cooking, and below are examples of what you can use, and which stars they are connected to. If you can only find some of these in a supermarket or can only gather one or two, kei te pai (all good)!

• Tipuānuku | food from the earth: kumara, rīwai (potato) and kāreti (carrot).
• Tipuārangi | food from the sky: heihei (chicken), tītī (muttonbird) and hua rākau (berries).
• Waitī | food from freshwater such as rivers: tuna (eel), kēwai (freshwater crayfish) and wātakirihi (watercress).
• Waitā | food from the ocean: tāmure (snapper), any type of shellfish and karengo (seaweed).

Step 2: Prepare your kai

• Once you’ve gathered your kai, chop any larger produce into small-sized pieces and place in your pot or oven tray.
• If using a pot, fill it with water so it covers the kai.
• If you’re cooking it in the oven, cover the tray with tinfoil. Optional: drizzle your kai with olive oil and sprinkle your preferred seasonings.

Step 3: Cooking your kai

• If using a pot, bring the water to a boil and then turn down the heat. Continue to cook at a medium heat until it looks like the kai is cooked through (40-50mins).
• If cooking in the oven, roast the kai at 180°C for 40-50 minutes, depending on your oven.
• It’s important to make sure you don’t let all the steam escape if checking the kai throughout the cooking process.

Step 4: Start your hautapu ceremony

• When your kai is ready and before the sun rises, gather everyone together outside and begin by reciting the first two Matariki karakia, Waerea (to clear the area) and Pōhutukawa (download the booklet of karakia from matariki.com).
• Call out the names of those who have passed in the last year.
• At the completion of the karakia to Pōhutukawa, uncover your pot or oven tray, letting the steam rise into the sky as an offering to Matariki.

Step 5: Complete the ceremony

• Recite the remaining karakia: Tipuānuku, Tipuārangi, Waitī, Waitā, Waipunarangi, Ururangi, Hiwa-i-te-rangi and Matariki.
• This brings to an end the ceremony and a period of celebration begins. The food that is cooked can be eaten and enjoyed.

Mānawatia a Matariki!

Commissioned by the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, the home of Matariki.