prepping for a traditional Maori Hangi
which includes digging a big hole and stacking firewood across it
you stack rocks or irons on top of the wood and burn it off. (don't use river rocks, they explode) the red hot rocks fall into the hole. Clear out any debris from the burnt wood to leave only the rocks.
Lower trays of food- pork, lamb, whole chickens with stuffing, beef, kumara (sweet potato), potato, pumpkin and cabbage. All the veges are wrapped in cheese cloth, the meat in tinfoil. the trays are covered in soaking wet hessian sacks and sheets then cover and fill the hole in with soil until there is no steam coming through.
For the next 3 hrs or so, make sure no steam is cming through and plug steam with more soil. poke your finger into the soil and feel how hot it is!
You've essentially made a huge pressure cooker.
3hrs later, open her up and serve! we fed about 50-60 people this night!
