EAT WILD
Introducing Eat Wild.
Eat Wild is a foraging journey across Aotearoa, where you’ll meet incredible wild foodies – hunters, gatherers, chefs, foragers, and fishers – and discover the wild ingredients that grow all around us. Across its pages are stories, practical tips, and over 40 adaptable recipes to inspire your own adventures. Click the link below to learn more or pop into your favourite local bookstore to grab a copy.
A beautifully illustrated guide to sourcing wild ingredients, with detailed recipes showing how to cook with them.
From the coast to the mountains to the native bush, set off on a delightful wild food adventure across Aotearoa.
Eat Wild is a guide to getting your wild ingredients, then cooking with them. This beautifully illustrated book showcases some of New Zealand’s most widely known yet underutilised wild foods: plants, including flowers, fungi and seaweed; kai moana, including pāua, kōura and snapper; and even hunting tips, such as what to do with your ethically obtained rabbits.
Sophie Merkens takes us on the trip of a lifetime, sharing her own story, recipes and advice from across the country, as well as the generous wisdom of the chefs, divers, hunters and kaitiaki she meets along the way.
Whether you’re a seasoned hunter-gatherer looking for new recipes, or simply curious about our natural world, Eat Wild offers a joyful reflection on our connection to nature and the nourishment it provides.
“Merkens includes the wisdom and voices of those she meets along the way. From chefs to divers, kaitiaki to hunters, every person offers up pearls of wisdom about their own journey. I loved reading about mahinga kai and about the tītī harvest, but even more, I loved that Merkens left it to those she met to tell those stories.
Merkens’ enthusiasm, respect and gratitude for the wild, and her sense of curiosity, burst from the pages. As a forager, I found her recipes wonderful, but it was her stories that really popped. It is clear her passion is in sharing local stories, as a means to connect kai, people and place. ”
“In this fascinating “foraging journey across Aotearoa”, Sophie Merkens writes about her wild-food road trip from north to south and season to season. Alongside engaging photos are recipes, stories of hearty meals shared with friends, insights into Māori connections with the whenua, and information about plant-based healing practices. To forage well, suggests Merkens, you need “curiosity, caution, respect and a sense of adventure”. She encourages reflection on our responsibilities to the land and to the people who cultivate it. Other practical, ethical, cultural and environmental considerations are also outlined. Recipes based on foraged food include appetisers, meat, fish, vegetable dishes, drinks, dressings, and sweet treats – with tips on how, where and when to find essential ingredients. An excellent guide for Aotearoa-based foragers, especially those seeking a deeper connection to our land.’”
