In this article celebrated chef, Peter Gordon looks at how the long-standing Kiwi tradition of 'bringing a plate' and sharing food with others has changed.
When I was a boy, there were always a few tried and true favourites to be found at that Kiwi institution, the shared morning tea or pot luck dinner, where everyone 'brings a plate' of something delicious to enjoy together.
I remember platters of pikelets slathered in butter and sprinkled with hundreds and thousands, and the classic bacon and egg pie in various shapes and forms, usually brought to an event still in the dish it was cooked in.
Other times, we would get canned asparagus and roll them up in buttered white bread to pop in the freezer, ready for the next 'bring a plate' function, and if we were feeling really posh, we would make gooey chocolate eclairs (albeit topped with icing rather than the fancier melted chocolate).
And when I think back to those pikelets, asparagus rolls, and eclairs of my childhood – and so many other childhoods in New Zealand – I remember one brand being ubiquitous in the kitchen while we whipped them all up – Anchor.
Anchor butter is a quality brand that tastes good and will work perfectly - and it has done for decades. It's an authentic, quality ingredient that can be trusted to create something delicious and wholesome.
Anchor has been a kitchen staple throughout my own cooking journey and I know it's held a treasured spot in other cupboards and fridges around New Zealand, too, bringing delicious flavour to the cakes, biscuits, and pastries we've all shared over a cup of tea for many, many years.
But, of course, those shared plates look quite different these days.
As Aotearoa's population becomes more diverse, so too does its culture and cuisine, and that's often reflected in the plates now brought along to share with friends, neighbours or colleagues at an event.
We will likely still find those more traditional pikelets or pies on the morning tea table, but now there might also be plates of samosas, sushi, or little dumplings to share, beautiful flaky baklava, or cakes with flavours that go beyond just chocolate or carrot.
Such variety is one of the things I love about the shared plate in 2022. The whole tradition is a little unusual in that there aren't many other places in the world where you're expected to bring your own food to an event, but I think it's a great way for cultures to meet. It's a really egalitarian way of bringing people together while they share the food they enjoy and means something to them.
So while the 'bring a plate' gatherings around the country might vary depending on location and cultural and economic factors these days, the central theme remains the same – share the love and share the kai – and I hope it's a tradition that continues to bring New Zealanders together for many more generations to come.