There are two words guaranteed to send our hearts a-fluttering and our mouths watering: Toasted. Sandwich. Moreish, comforting and often a tad gluttonous, the hot snack is beloved by many, and lucky for all of us a country-wide event revolving around the savoury delicacy is back.
Now in its fourth year, The Great New Zealand Toastie Takeover presented by Cook & Nelson and McClure’s Pickles, sees eateries from Auckland to Dunedin put their own unique spin on the humble favourite in a bid to be crowned the ultimate toastie champion.
The criteria is simple: Every toastie that takes part in the takeover must feature pickles from the McClure’s range, two slices of bread, cheese (obviously), and be able to be eaten by hand. The rest of the ingredients are up to each individual eatery — which is where creativity comes to play.
From Daily Bread’s pork and pickled puha toastie with fire-roasted ham hock, kale cooked in pork stock, cheddar, horseradish and McClure’s pickles béchamel to Wise Boy’s totally vegan sloppy joe toastie with jackfruit mince, mushroom and lentils topped with gooey mozzarella, McClure’s pickles and jalapenos — there is a combination that speaks to your toastie tastes. Find the full list of tempting creations here, available on the menu at each participating eatery.
Starting on Thursday, 13th May, a total of 125 entries will be judged by a panel of experts, who have the tough job of choosing a top 12, before crowning a supreme winner on Friday, 30th July.
You also get to have your say. The new People’s Choice Award allows the public to vote for their favourite toastie. Simply by remembering to snap a pic of your toastie before you devour it (a tough ask, we know) and tagging it on Facebook and Instagram with @cookandnelson and #toastietakeover, your picture will count as one entry for the participating eatery’s creation.
Ready, set, eat.
