Researchers in the University of Otago's food science department are preparing to analyse what a panel of culinary experts will decide is the South's best cheese roll.
The roll will be chosen from entries in the Ultimate Cheese Roll Competition, being run as part of the New Zealand International Science Festival this month.
Food science head of department Prof Phil Bremer, who prefers his rolls with elastic but not stringy cheese, said his team would subject the winning roll to a raft of tests to determine what makes it the best there is.
[comment caption=What makes a great cheese roll?]Among the myriad scientific and consumer perception tests, they will consider how the ingredients affect flavour, colour and texture, and how their combination and quantity contribute to the melt, flow and cohesion of the cheese.
The tests would be helped by knowing the ingredients of the roll. Prof Bremer accepted there was a very good chance that the winner would guard jealously their recipe, and assured they would be handled with "absolute discretion".
Judging panel member and Otago Polytechnic hospitality programme manager Tony Heptinstall, a British migrant who had his first cheese roll in Tekapo in the early 1990s, said he would not be surprised if some entrants deviated from the basic condensed milk, onion soup, and cheese mix.
But there really was no need: "This is a familiar comfort food, a favourite that stimulates the five or six areas of taste on the tongue, and with that taste and tradition, it works well."
Many other countries had their own cheesy snacks, but the lower South Island was the only place where a cheese mix was combined with rolled, sliced bread, he said.
"It really is something to be proud of and celebrated. The North Island might have cheese on toasted bread, but you have to come south to see that bread rolled up into the authentic cheese roll."
Cheese rolls have been an important part of the Little Hut Cafe's menu since 1955, close to the time when the all-important sliced bread became commercially available.
Owner Daphne Wells said her till receipts showed the southern delicacy was always among the most popular dishes. That may be because they are such a southern institution - or it may be because of the way she makes them.
However, the long-time proponent is keen on keeping the best bits a secret.
"And that's the thing: we do guard our recipe very closely, so I'm not sure how keen I would be to reveal our own special twist to someone else. It'll be very interesting to see what the scientists say, but I wonder how many people might prefer to keep their recipe a secret."
Either way, festival associate director Chris Green urged anyone who could make a cheese roll to enter the competition.
The entries will be judged by a panel of judges, including Mr Heptinstall, Otago Daily Times food and wine writer Charmian Smith, radio host Damian Newell and Jason Moore from Mojo Cafe.
Mr Moore's cafe plans to make and sell cheese rolls based on the winning recipe, with the profits given to an organisation chosen by the winner.
WHAT'S A SOUTHERN CHEESE ROLL?
• It's a toasted snack of rolled, sliced white bread with a cheesy, savoury, precooked filling.
• There are three basic recipes for the savoury cheese filling: tasty cheese and egg; tasty cheese and chopped onion; and cheese, evaporated milk and onion soup mix.
• They are virtually unknown in the North Island, where flat cheese-topped snacks are the norm.
• They have been a staple in community fundraisers for decades, but some worry about their future as cheese prices continue to rise.
• The three most popular cheese roll recipes and a video on how to prepare them can be found here.
