Wanganui teams cook up TV treat

Nevak Rogers and Te Kohe Tuhaka are the judges and presenters. Photo/File

Wanganui iwi have made it to the grand finale of Maori Television's cooking show Marae Kai Masters.

Te Atihaunui a Pprangi and Ngati Ruaka iwi are competing in the show, which began on May 27.

Ranana Marae featured in an episode on Wednesday last week and will be in this week's finale at 8.30pm.

The show involved presenters Nevak Rogers and Te Kohe Tuhaka travelling around the North Island to visit 10 teams of cooks at their home marae.

Eight teams are selected depending on the quality of their food and continue on to Auckland for a head-to-head competition with a prize pool of nearly $130,000.

The celebrity chef judges - Karena and Casey Bird, Cameron Petley and Rex Morgan - were "blown away by the calibre of contestants" this season, Ms Rogers said.

A highlight was travelling around the country experiencing the hospitality of each marae and judging kai unique to each area, she said.

"We loved it - the flip side was that it made it a lot harder to eliminate teams. As judges, we really struggled with that."

Producer Kay Ellmers said the series was about celebrating the efforts of those keeping marae functioning.

"We get to see the determination, skill, grace and humility they bring to the table; at home and in the competition."