The chefs demonstrating in the Fieldays Kitchen for 2022 are Uelese Mua, Simon Gault, Nici Wickes, Michael Van de Elzen, Karena & Kasey Bird and Dariush Lolaiy. Photo / Supplied
Food innovation and the finest New Zealand ingredients will take centre stage when a lineup of renowned celebrity chefs
turn up the heat in the Fieldays Kitchen, debuting online on Fieldays TV on November 30, and coinciding with the start of
Fieldays at Mystery Creek.
Viewers will be able to watch from the comfort of their homes as epicurean experts Uelese Mua, Simon Gault,
Nici Wickes, Michael Van de Elzen, Karena & Kasey Bird and Dariush Lolaiy grace the screens.
New Zealand National Fieldays Society chief executive Peter Nation says the lineup is a testament to New Zealand’s
culinary talent. “It’s terrific to see such a high-calibre group of chefs coming on board to showcase their skills and teach
us about the connection between choosing what we eat and health and wellness”, says Peter.
Using fresh protein and produce sourced from throughout New Zealand, the chefs will create a variety of magical dishes right before your eyes that will tempt your tastebuds while also sharing the importance of knowing where our food comes from.
Understanding where food comes from and how it is produced has always been a key focus for Fieldays. With
New Zealand built on the foundations of dairy, meat and seafood, organisers are also excited to showcase new industries
that have a growing reputation, such as kiwifruit and a wide range of new crop industries.
“Our country has some of the freshest and tastiest produce in the world”, says Peter. “And our food safety and biosecurity measures have earned us a global reputation for quality products and ingredients”.
Ingredients in this year’s edition of Fieldays Kitchen include Bay of Plenty kawakawa and Fiordland wapiti. Many of
these ingredients can be found close to home — the recipes and demonstrations on Fieldays TV illustrate the ease of
garden-to-table cooking.
The Fieldays Kitchen has proved to be a popular feature of Fieldays. Fieldays Kitchen 2022 will debut on Fieldays.co.nz
from 5.30pm Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and will be available on demand after this. Demonstrations will include our celebrity chefs creating dishes using the best of New Zealand produce and products, using easy-to-follow recipes and giving viewers at home the opportunity to cook along with them in their own homes.
Uelese Mua
Uelese (Wallace) Mua began his journey in hospitality at 15, working at the Hilton as a housekeeper. He worked his way up the ladder to eventually become the youngest executive chef of a luxury hotel when he took this role at Hilton’s in-house restaurant Fish. Since then, he’s held many high-profile roles in restaurants such as Euro and Soul Bar and Bistro, and is now the head chef at Hotel Britomart’s Kingi restaurant.
Dariush Lolaiy
Dariush Lolaiy is the multi-award-winning head chef, author and co-owner of his family’s restaurant Cazador. The son of two chefs, Dariush grew up learning the tricks of the trade from his parents and continues to use their teachings in his cooking. Dariush grew up hunting with his family so naturally, Cazador’s menu focuses mainly on wild, organic, and free-range products.
Simon Gault
Simon Gault is a New Zealand celebrity chef, entrepreneur, food writer and television personality, known for appearing as a celebrity chef judge on MasterChef NZ. Simon has built an incredible culinary career spanning many years.
Nici Wilkes
Cooking enthusiast Nici Wilkes is a woman of many talents. From cookbook author to food stylist and everything in between, Nici is an accomplished chef and recipe developer who enjoys showing people how easy it can be to create healthy and delicious meals at home. Nici is the food editor for Viva at the New Zealand Herald and styles recipes for New Zealand Woman’s Weekly.
Michael Van De Elzen
Michael Van De Elzen is an internationally renowned chef and author, well known for his focus on healthy, great-tasting food. He featured as a chef on The Food Truck, a show that challenges the way we look at fast food and how we can recreate our favourite dishes at home.
Karena and Kasey Bird
Sisters with a passion for cooking, Karena and Kasey Bird are better known as the winners of Masterchef NZ 2014. They are experts in Māori fusion cuisine and are award-winning cookbook authors and publishers.
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