Surprise! Native American Food Helped Today’s Menu! Order Please!

Surprise!  Native American Food Helped Today’s Menu! Order Please!

From acorn bread to fry bread, succotash to beef stew, Native American cuisine has been a staple in homes across America for centuries.

Today, these traditional dishes are still consumed in homes and restaurants throughout the country, some stick to the classic recipes, and some put a modern twist on the old favorites. Many staples in our daily diets, like tomatoes, wild rice, and peanuts are often credited to the Europeans, when in fact the Indigenous people of the Americas are to thank for it.

Depending on the region and tribe, the food varies quite a bit. Different tribes had to cater their menus with the foods native to their regions back in the day. Today, traditional meals are still enjoyed and prepared all over the country.

Keep reading to learn a bit about the different tribes, and which Native American foods are known to them.

Southeast

One of the main staples of the southern diet, corn, came from the Southeast Native American tribes.

Still today, much of the food consumed in the south got its roots from the Native Americans. We can thank them for cornbread, grits, and whiskey. While our cornbread and grits may taste a bit different today, the inspiration behind the dishes dates back centuries. The Southeast Native Americans were mainly hunters and gatherers for smaller animals like rabbits and turkeys. The Southeast of the United States is quite warm and was ideal for farming. Crops like tomatoes, sweet potatoes, tobacco, peppers, and cotton were among the most common. They incorporated these foods with their hunted meat to create their main dishes.

Southwest

From Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado the southwest, tribes coming from the present-day Four Corners area of the United States, relied heavily on agriculture. Commonly known as Ancestral Pueblans, they are famous for their pottery, basket weaving, and clay pot cooking. Corn (maize), beans, squash, and sunflower seeds are the most common ingredients in their dishes.

They were also sure to utilize their local pinyon pine trees for pine nuts. For their meat sources, they relied heavily on hunting game, including deer, rabbits, and squirrels. Most of the time they would cook the meat on an open fire or in hand-crafted tools, which are variations of our modern-day cooking ware.

Northeast

The Northeast is today commonly referred to as the New England region of the United States. One thing to remember about this region is the drastic change in seasons.

Famous for having harsh winters and hot summers, the Native Americans in this area had to cater their diets to the current season. Many Native Americans farmed in this area, mostly corn, beans, and squash, also known as “the three sisters.”

Do you like maple syrup over your pancakes or how about maple sugar candy?

The Native Americas from the Northeast to thank for these tasty treats we still eat today. Although they most likely didn’t sweeten their waffles with syrup, they mainly used it season vegetables, fish, game, and grains. The Northeast is also cranberry heaven; the Native Americans used to grow the berries and eat them dried or mixed into different dishes. Sometimes they would even use them raw to flavor their drinking water.

Plains

In the plains region, Native Americans relied on a very meat-heavy diet. They hunted turkeys, ducks, deer, buffalo, elk, and bison for their families. Berries and other dried fruits were also often consumed. Usually, berries would be consumed raw while they did cook the meat into various stews and savory dishes. Pumpkins, herbs, and root vegetables were also heavily used in this region.

Northwest

Native Americans from what is now known as the Northwest region of the United States, relied heavily on salmon, other kinds of fish, and seafood as their primary source of protein. Mushrooms and berries were also abundant in their area, so they used the berries to sweeten their bread and desserts.

They were primarily hunter-gatherers, and their warmer climate made it easier to rely on year-round food supplies. For other sources of protein, they hunted deer, duck, and rabbit and made various stews from the game meat. Only during the summer were they able to dry meat, so dried deer and rabbit meat were often consumed during the warmer months. To make loaves of bread, cakes, and other baked goods, the tribes from the Northwest region would grind acorns down into a flour.

How did Native Americans influence modern cuisine?

Do you love a good turkey dinner with all the fixings?

How about cornbread, cranberries, blueberries, and grits? While these may only be consumed during the holiday seasons in the United States, we do have to give credit to the Native Americans for this food.

Without the Native Americans, we would not have the same corn, beans, squash, wild rice, avocados, peanuts, sweet potatoes, and even chocolate. Today, many Native American families will serve fry bread at their social gatherings, and it’s a commonly known staple in the south. In the last decade, people have been health-conscious than ever before.

While quinoa and spirulina may sound like new foods to you, the Native Americas have been eating them for centuries. Today, they are known as ‘superfoods’ or foods with an ample amount of nutrients. Quinoa has the highest protein content of any grain, and some tribes even used the leaves of the plant in soups and stews. Back in the day, they would also toast and grind up the quinoa seeds to make it into bread. The Native Americans bread, cultivated and domesticated some of the many plant species we still use to today in our daily lives. These crops originating from the Americas are now everyday staples in diets worldwide.

Can you imagine a world without vanilla, potatoes, or peppers?

Without Native Americans, we would not be able to enjoy so many of the favorite foods we have today.

It might not be surprising to know that the “first Thanksgiving” didn’t resemble what we were often taught in school. There was likely no stuffing, turkey, or pumpkin pie. But there was definitely no shortage of options, as Native Americans marked celebratory meals with plenty of fish, produce, and wild rice. Want a fully Indigenous-inspired Thanksgiving meal? Pair our whole roasted trout with roasted turnips, fried cornbread, and wild rice pudding for dessert.

Indigenous Americans originated many classic dishes that just might surprise you too, like fried green tomatoes, succotash, and tamales. Did you know? Grilling salmon on cedar planks also has roots in tribes of the Pacific Northwest, where salmon is revered as a sacred food to tribes all across the region.

Succotash

Tribes across the country enjoyed this super nutritious dish long before more folks relied on it as a cheap meal in the Great Depression.

Ingredients:

2 lbs. fresh or dry lima beans

3 cups fresh corn cut from cob

4 to 6 wild or pearl onions

2 Tbsps. melted bacon fat

2 pieces smoked ham hock

3 quarts water

Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Soak dry beans for three to four hours to soften. Drain and add to a pot of boiling water. Let them cook for about 10 minutes, then add corn, ham hocks, salt and pepper, and onions.

Reduce the heat and cook on low for one hour.

This is an excellent side dish for the holidays or anytime.  May even be eaten with a piece of cornbread as a meal.  I love this.  It is one of my favorite recipes and it is totally Native American