Māori Sourdough · Potato-Leavened Loaf
Rēwena Bread
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The rising agent isn't commercial yeast at all — it's a living 'bug' fermented from potato, flour, water and sugar, kept alive and fed for days before it's strong enough to leaven a loaf.
A potato-based sourdough starter, known as the 'bug,' leavens a dense, slightly tangy wheat loaf baked until deeply crusted. It's traditionally served warm and buttered alongside boil-up or hāngī at Bay of Plenty marae kitchens, and sold at local bakeries and roadside stalls around Rotorua.
Why it's made this way: Māori adapted rēwena from wheat and potatoes introduced by European settlers in the late 1700s, folding two colonial crops into a distinctly Māori bread through home-baking techniques passed down rather than professional recipes.
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