Good chef, bad chef! MANU & COLIN'S KITCHEN RULES

They're TV's food police - and they're taking no prisoners!

- Catherine Milford

They may have arrived at Auckland’s picturesque harbour drinking Champagne on a flash yacht in the opening episode of My Kitchen Rules, but the TVNZ 2 show’s judges Colin Fassnidge and Manu Feildel aren’t here to play. They are here to find some of the nation’s top cooks – and we’ve got all the ingredients.

“You have the best produce in the world,” says Colin, 50. “We filmed MKR Australia straight after we finished filming MKR New Zealand, and I thought, ‘We need to lift our game in Australia.’ New Zealand is far ahead when it comes to being proud of their heritage and bringing their food to the table.”

“There are some beautiful flavours in this country,” agrees Manu, also 50. “New Zealand and Australia are often compared to each other, as both are seen as melting pots of the world when it comes to food. But how the two nations use and cook food are very different.”

This season of MKR NZ started with Tauranga-based friends Nada and Pops serving up fresh seafood – exactly the kind of ingredients Manu and Colin love.

“I love New Zealand seafood – the clams, the pāua, kina, oysters, crayfish… You really do have it all,” says Colin. “It comes from a different environment, different water – it tastes different. New Zealand seafood is unique.”