Real food of the gods: Southland cheese rolls
Northerners should open minds and mouths to southern treats
There is a growing consensus that South Island food is better than North Island food. (Matt and Jerry Breakfast Poll, 6/10/2017, 5 call sample).
As a proud southerner living in beautiful Auckland City I believe I am in a unique position to weigh in on this key issue.
First some background. The cornerstones of South Island cuisine are of course the mutton pie, the cheese roll and the dagwood sandwich. While most know the first two, the third is shrouded in mystery.
Every light news cross to Otago or Southland mentions the cheese roll. Even the skinniest of reporters will claim they love them. Even though you know they didn’t actually eat one. Cheese, onion soup powder, evaporated milk and white bread.
So good for you. Natural and delicious too, especially on a cold day.
In the South it makes perfect sense to eat mutton pies. But for some reason they’ve never made it across the Cook Strait. Recently, when asked about the mutton pie, Auckland broadcaster Jeremy Wells claimed “I’d rather be smashed in the face with a mutton pie than put one in my mouth.”
This attitude is disappointing. Northerners are missing out.
There’s nothing like a good South Island mutton pie or two. Especially on a cold day. They’re so good for you. Even healthier as the filling of a pie sandwich. (Interestingly my mate Ricky the Rooster reckons the pie sandwich originated in West Auckland.)
The third cornerstone of South