PAREKURA!!!!!!

We were alerted to this a few days ago. It's the work of the great chef and healthy eater of our times Parekura Horomia on TVNZ Good Morning Show. The former Minister of Food and Travel.

Anyway this is the show here - he claims the stew is healthy, using tinned corn beef , a few veges and some tinned spagetti..black sauce and mussels

My mum reckoned it looked truly hideous.. A bit like a chuck up after a Saturday nite beer and chinese takeaway.

And healthy ? Nah - its probably got your salt and fat intake for a week

And hell it would give you a serious case of flatulence.

For the brave and adventurous or perhaps the foolhardy - Heres the recipe

2 tins Hellaby's corned beef (or bully beef) 2 medium or 1 large onion, chopped) 2 potatoes, cut in small chunks 2 kumara, cut same size as potatoes 2-3 carrots, diced to same thickness of potatoes and kumara 3 zucchini, diced same as carrots 1 kg green tip mussels (fresh, not marinated)

Note: Cooking time will normally be 2 hours as time limit-may pay to half cook all veges (steamed) before putting in pot.

Place onions, and vegetables, into a medium- to large-size pot.

Break corned beef up into pieces and place into pot as well.

Add pepper for seasoning (no salt as beef is salty enough).

Cover with water and cook slowly until vegetables are done. Normally up to 2 hours. If vegetables are cut small, this will reduce cooking time.

Once all this is cooked add your mussels to the pot and simmer for about 10 minutes.

If you feel the stew is too watery, mix a tablespoon of cornflour a beef stock cube, and a quarter of a cup of water together. Stir this into the stew, until it thickens.

Best served with rewana bread.

FRIDAY ROUNDUP

Sala Sala is an exceptional japanese restaurant in Christchurch. We went there with the Wanaka Fishermen. Lovely sashimi and all went well with a nice bottle of Church Road Pinot Gris. We had the most succulent lamb for main. We highly recommend it.

One of the new sensations in the foody scene is Southern Glory Oysters. grown in the beautiful waters of Paterson Inlet on Stewart Island. They are huge. While not yet in huge quantities the owners expect to be producing a million a year in three years time. They are pricey $5 an oyster but we think that they will become legend. We have it on good authority that Simon Gault of Euro and Nourish Group Fame is also impressed with the same company's fabulous mussels.


We were interested to see the public face of TVNZ as it scambled to cover its arse over the fact that it informed staff that the razor gang was in the green room. We led with the story with NBR second out of the gate and the Herald following soon after. Interestingly TVNZ'a own website has the story that closely resembles the info given to us by a staffer.

In a message to staff, CEO Rick Ellis says its budget reduction may involve job cuts but this will not be decided until after the executive team works with 50 senior staff to identify all options.

This will take place over the next few weeks.

Which contrasts to what NBR dragged out of them

"Over the next couple of weeks, 50 senior managers will be working with Rick and going over all the options. Leaving the staffing levels alone is a priority but we have to acknowledge that they may not be unavoidable."

And for those who hate / love the gossip...


Is Parekura sick of politics ? Is that why he is dusting off his CV?

Which SOE could be in for some carving up and selling off?

Have we heard the full story on ACC yet?

Is it true that Maryann Street and her gal pal Kathryn Street are known as the intersection?

PORK ROAST,TIO TIO AND CHARDONNAY

Well it appears the ex Minister of Maori Affairs likes pork as well as oysters and chardonnay.

And apparently the place was none too tidy either but then again Parekura has never been a stickler for cleanliness and tidiness - the following a jibe from Tau Henare during the reading of the Maori Purposes Bill in Dec 2007

Hon TAU HENARE: Oh—market rents! That Minister can talk about market rents. He was one of the slum landlords down on the East Coast. He was trying to rent out his house to his whānau, and I would not have rented out a house that looked like that to a dog. But the Minister did, and we all know that. We all know he is a bit of a landlord down on the East Coast.

Hat tip Whale oil

KAPAI KAI

So where do ex Ministers go when they are in opposition?

They spend 3 hours at Dockside dining on Nelson oysters and drinking chardonnay with their very attractive ex secretary - kia ora Parekura kia ora ...

Minister with a big appetite

UPDATE
apparently the breakfast was muttonbirds, oysters and champagne --- no self respecting ngai tahu would have champagne with muttonbirds - they go best with Chianti or a pilsener!

I have been known to catch a few muttonbirds so can speak with a bit of authority.


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We know that Parekura likes a good feed but $75,000 for breakfast???????

Last oral question for today....

Hon TAU HENARE to the Minister of Māori Affairs: Can he confirm that the “breakfast bash” where he launched the new Māori dictionary cost taxpayers up to $75,000?

Reminds me of the time Parekura was in Invercargill for a seafood conference - he came out with a group of us for a kai - and it was oyster season --

He had:

one dozen raw for starters
one dozen raw for entre
one dozen cooked and another dozen raw for main and

yip a dozen for dessert!!!!