Clarke Gayford and Nins Bin owner Johnny Clark. Photo / Mike Bhana
Clarke Gayford and Nins Bin owner Johnny Clark. Photo / Mike Bhana
Clarke Gayford savours the essence of Kaikōura food and calls for more examples of a taste of New Zealand
A good bed and good food are the essential foundations of a great holiday. Get those two right and everything after becomes the sprinkles that transform it into a magic one.
It's often overlooked how much people travel on their stomachs. A food experience, whether described or previously realised can well be the trigger to embark on a journey.
Although we have come a long way as a country in waking up to the gastronomic potential we have on our doorstep, we still have huge untapped opportunities when it comes to harnessing the concept of a "taste of your area". Unique food experiences that become indelibly linked to the destination. Unique experiences that showcase the best of a region, so good that people will think nothing of sitting in a car, or plane for many hours just to savour.
Clarke Gayford collects his meal at Nins Bin, Kaikoura. Photo / Mike Bhana
At first blush, a caravan on the side of the road selling cooked crayfish in Kaikōura. But there is a good reason that Lonely Planet called this one of the world's top food experiences, listing it at No 7 out of 500 on their Ultimate Eatlist in 2018.
Because let's be honest - crayfish, although largely inaccessible to most New Zealanders now because of its prohibitive cost, can be found in plenty of restaurants, with presentations far fancier than at Nins. But it's the totality of experience that sets Nins apart. The very name Kaikōura translates as "To eat crayfish", connecting the product to the location.
Nins is now run by Johnny, the grandson of the man who created it, providing a rich history with an intergenerational link. Johnny can be found most calm days in his boat right out the front of Nins working his craypots, and customers are often treated to the sight of the boat being hauled by tractor past their lunch table as Johnny drags more crays up to the big custom boiling pots across the road.
The location itself could not be more perfect, sharing a rocky coastline with seals, the caravan looks out over the coast with the Kaikōura Ranges looking down from above.
Smell is another sense we often subconsciously experience and there is something about sitting at an old picnic table being hit with salty wet seaweed-infused air from the very water from where your meal has just come, that is the icing on the cake. These elements together become part of this food experience and the very reason Nins has been so popular locally and internationally all these years.
Sadly, places like this are rare and Nins exists only because Johnny's grandfather was wise and hung on to his crayfish quota. A ton of quota to own now costs more than a million dollars and almost all our spiny red rock lobster (crayfish) are sent to China. I know NZ chefs who refuse to serve it because of way they feel squeezed out of the market, a lack of access to fresh NZ seafood being a huge complaint of many of our restaurant owners, who struggle to source locally.
It's part of the reason why we are starting to see innovation in other areas, with dishes such as aged kahawai, baked butterfish heads, cured albacore, pickled pilchards, and kina chawanmushi all popping up on menus. A case of taking what local produce they can get and bringing a whole new twist to previously overlooked kaimoana.
We are heading into an exciting era of New Zealand's culinary journey, and I believe in coming decades we will really start to develop a proper sense of a what a taste of New Zealand actually is. It's my great hope that places like Nins become the norm and not the exception as we develop not just our national food identity, but our local regional specialities as well.
Kina and paua chawanmushi, by chef Shaun Clayton. Photo / Mike Bhana
Shaun Clouston's kina and paua chawanmushi
Kina and pāua
• 15-20 kina roes • 3 whole eggs - size 7 • 1 tsp soy sauce • 1 tsp mirin • ½ tsp salt • 480ml dashi broth
Blend together the kina, eggs, soy, mirin, salt and dashi. Pass through a sieve and leave to rest for an hour to release air bubbles. Place the diced paua & spring onions into 8 ramekins or similar, then top up with the kina chawanmushi mix. Steam for 15-20 minutes, until just set. Serve immediately and garnish with some wild beach herbs if you wish.
Bacon fat paua
• 1 large fresh paua, shell and hua removed • 4 rashers free-farmed streaky bacon • 1 tsp sesame oil
Method
Place bacon on to a baking parchment-lined baking tray and place under a hot grill in the oven. Cook until beginning to crisp, then turn and cook for a further couple of minutes. Cool Place the paua, cooked bacon and rendered fat into a heatproof bag. Add sesame oil and vacuum seal. Place into a water bath that has been preheated to 85C, then cook for 12 hours. Remove the paua and leave to fully cool before cutting.
Basic dashi
• 500ml cold water • 10g dried kombu or wild foraged kelp • 10g bonito flakes
Method
Pour the kombu into a pot then pour the water over the konbu. Leave the kombu until softened (30 minutes to an hour), then remove and slice small slits on either side. Place back into the water and leave to sit for another few hours. Place over a high heat and bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Add the bonito flakes and bring back to a simmer. Immediately remove from the heat and leave to sit and infuse for 5-10 minutes before straining.
Clarke Gayford is the host of Fish of the Day, tonight at 5.25pm on THREE
