Traditional Indigenous Recipes

Grits

Grits are ground from hominy, which is made from the varieties of corn with hard kernels. The kernels are dried on the cob, then removed and soaked in a solution of wood ash (although baking soda and lime can be used) which causes the kernels to swell and soften. Then the kernels are hulled and dried; afterwards the hominy is ground and the result is grits. This process causes the protein value to be decreased, but lysine and tryptophan are increased. Without this process of using wood ash, however, pellagra (a deficiency of tryptophan and niacin) can occur because the food becomes deficient. Obviously, tribes learned that to use wood ash would increase the nutritional value of the corn.

Grits are popular in southern states; there are hundreds of recipes featuring grits and just as many southern towns that host grits festivals. It is interesting to me that many people I know have never heard of grits.

The basic way to eat grits is not to buy the store-bought packages (like the oatmeal packs). The best are the freshly milled grits usually obtained from a health food store.

For breakfast:

1 cup stone-ground or other good quality grits

3 1/2 cups boiling water

Optional:

salt to taste

pepper to taste

Stevia for sweetness

raisins or dried cranberries, amount depends on how much you like them

*½ banana

Add grits, water and seasonings to pot. Stir well, cover tightly and cook over low heat from 45 minutes to an hour and a half, or more, depending on the coarseness of the grits. You will need to check them often to make sure they don’t scorch. Add more water if they become dry. When the grits are soft, add the fruit and serve.

Grits side dishes

The options for preparing grits are endless; you can add all kinds of sautéed chopped vegetables and meats to the cooked grits.

One option is Crock Pot Grits:

Ingredients:

1 cup of coarse grits

4 cups of turkey broth

1 cup sweet corn, grilled is best

½ cup roasted, peeled and chopped green chile

½ T pepper

½ T garlic

Add all ingredients to the Crock Pot and cook on medium for 4 hours.

Grits as Appetizers

While other families were eating cookies and sweet rolls on Christmas mornings, my Aunt Billie Mills made cheese jalapeno grits.

Ingredients:

1 cup cooked grits

½ cup pickled jalapenos and/or

½ cup roasted, peeled and chopped green chilies

*1/2 cup low fat shredded cheddar cheese

Optional:

Instead of peppers, use raisins

Put cooked grits into a bowl and add chopped jalapenos and cheese.

Stir, then put grits into a square cookie pan and refrigerate until set.

Slice and serve like you would brownies.

You also can eat the hot grits in a bowl instead of chilling.

*Old World ingredient

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Mashed Potatoes

Most people love mashed potatoes, but they love them with heavy cream and butter. Those dairy products unfortunately render the dish very high in calories and fat. This recipe is simple. By adding more herbs and spices the potatoes are still tasty, but with far fewer calories.

Ingredients:

6 large potatoes (3 Russett and 3 red; this provides interesting texture)

Note: you also can use sweet potatoes, but you need to peel them

1 cup turkey broth

Black pepper to taste

Optional:

½ cup sautéed and chopped onion

*Garlic to taste

*Parsley to taste

*Oregano to taste

Sage to taste

For smooth mashed potatoes, use the starchy Yukon Golds. You don’t have to remove their skins.

Peel the potatoes and remove the eyes. If you want the skins on for nutritional value, then only peel half the potatoes.

Cut the potatoes into small chunks.

Add potatoes to large pot and fill with water until it covers the top of the potatoes.

Bring to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes.

Completely drain the water.

Add turkey broth to potatoes and use a masher to create the desired consistency. If you want thinner mashed potatoes, add more broth.

*Old World ingredients

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Osage Yonkopin

By Andrea Hunter, Osage Tribal Historic Preservation Officer

Ingredients:

Chinkapin

The roots look like long sweet potatoes and the seeds like small round chestnuts. Large quantities of yonkopin roots are pulled up in the fall and eaten raw or boiled if they have been dried. The yonkopin seeds are collected and eaten raw or dried and stored for later use.

To process the roots for storage, scrape the outer skin off the long root. The bare root is then cut into 1 or 2 inch pieces and strung together by thongs in 30 piece strands. The strands of yonkopin roots are then hung up outside to dry on wooden frames like those used for jerking meat. To prepare the dried root, boil until tender and add salt.

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Pinto Beans

A crock pot of pinto beans is a winter staple. If you make too much, you can always freeze the leftovers in small containers for individual servings. Beans are a wonderful all around food that has no cholesterol, and is high in fiber, folate, protein and other vitamins and minerals, but low in fat and sodium.

Ingredients:

4 cups dried pinto beans

8 cups of unsalted chicken broth or water

Optional:

*Three large sliced carrots

*One large chopped white onion

*Garlic

Black pepper

Salt

Soak dried pinto beans in large pot over night (placing beans in a spaghetti colander then putting them in the pot of water makes it easier to drain).

In the morning, rinse and drain then place ingredients in crock pot along with chicken broth and spices. The longer you can cook this, the better the beans taste.

Serve over corn bread and top with salsa and shredded cheddar cheese.

*Old World ingredient

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Pumpkin as a Bowl

Pumpkins can serve as interesting containers for other ingredients and, you can eat it. Roasted pumpkin has a rich and delicious flavor. Options are numerous and you can experiment to see which dishes are most appealing to your family.

Prepare the Pumpkins

For all of these recipes, pick pumpkins that weigh approximately 1 pound. Sugar pumpkins are of good size.

Cut the tops off so that you have a “covers” or “lids” that can be replaced

Scoop out the seeds and the stringy portions

Use a paper towel and lightly coat the insides with vegetable oil

Preheat oven at 325 degrees and cook on cookie sheet until outer skin lightly tender. This takes about 30 minutes

Remove pumpkins from oven and set aside

Fill with mixtures such as Vegetable Saute or Wild Rice

You can also eat the meat of the pumpkin along with the inside ingredients. It is especially tasty with additional sprinkles of garlic, onion and/or chili power. Try chopped sweet tomatoes or a small amount of brown sugar.

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Spaghetti Squash

This is a perfect dish for anyone who cannot digest gluten or wheat, or for anyone counting calories. Although this does not taste exactly like pasta, the texture and appearance is close. Add spices and you’ll have a meal more nutritious than a plate of real spaghetti.

Ingredients:

1 spaghetti squash (about 3 lbs.)

3 T vegetable or turkey stock (options are butter or olive oil)

2-3 c marinara sauce (tomato based, not cream based, like Alfredo sauce)

1 T olive oil

Place squash in 13 x 9 baking dish. Add one inch of water.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour or until tender. Using fork in scraping motion, slice squash in half, remove seeds and remove squash from shell (it will come out in spaghetti-like strands).

Fluff squash with a bit of olive oil or vegetable stock (some recipes call for butter).

Top with sauce.

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Stuffed bell peppers

This is another good recipe to ensure your family gets their Vitamin A and C and when you have too many peppers in your garden. A week after the monsoons arrived when I lived in Flagstaff, I almost drowned in squash and bell peppers.

Ingredients:

4-6 bell peppers

½ pound ground meat (elk, deer, turkey, etc.)

1 cup mushrooms

1 cup cooked wild rice

1 cup onions

1 cup summer salsa

Optional:

*Garlic

pepper to taste

chopped jalapenos

*cheddar cheese

Place peppers in a pan deep enough to cover the peppers.

Fill the container with water until the peppers are covered.

Put on the stove to bring the water to a boil, then simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the peppers are softened (but not soft enough to split).

While the peppers are softening, sauté the meat, mushrooms, rice, onions and salsa in a pan until meat is brown.

Place peppers in a baking dish and add stuffing mixture to the empty peppers.

Add some of the mix around the base of the peppers to make sure they stay soft.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Depending on your caloric intake for the day, you can add some grated cheddar cheese over the top.

*Old World ingredient

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Succotash

Succotash is primarily comprised of lima beans (Native to Peru) and corn. EuroAmericans altered the recipe by cooking the vegetables with lard, meat drippings, and/or butter. There are many variations on how to prepare succotash; I prefer the optional method below.

Very Basic Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups lima beans

2 cups seared sweet corn

½ cup turkey stock (or vegetable stock)

Cook the lima beans and the corn in separate pots of boiling water until tender, then drain.

Put the beans and corn together in one pot along with turkey stock and cook on medium for about five minutes.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Optional Method:

Add to the lima beans and corn in the one pot:

1/2 cup chopped and sautéed tomatoes

1/2 cup chopped and sautéed onions

1/2 cup chopped and sautéed red bell pepper

*3 crushed cloves garlic

*Old World ingredient

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Sweet Potatoes

My daughter loves sweet potatoes and this is the way she eats them. Although she insists on using a sprinkle of brown sugar, I refuse to argue with a kid who loves a food so full of vitamins A, C plus niacin and potassium.

Ingredients:

One sweet potato

1 tablespoon brown sugar

Scrub the skin of the potato (no need to peel it) and poke a few holes in it with a fork.

Wrap in foil and bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Or, microwave (without foil) for 7-10 minutes or until soft.

Cut open and sprinkle with brown sugar. I think the potato is sweet enough by itself.

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Vegetable Saute

This is a quick and easy way to eat your vegetables. Take any combination of vegetables (or just one vegetable) you like:

Ingredients:

2-3 yellow squash sliced lengthways

2-3 zucchini sliced lengthways

2 cups yellow, orange and red bell peppers

1-2 cups sliced mushrooms

3 large sliced tomatoes

*1 cup broccoli florets

*1 cup cauliflower

Spray a non-stick pan with Pam vegetable spray or drop in a few tablespoons of vegetable oil.

Cover the pan with one layer of vegetables, sprinkle with a favored condiment such as pepper, garlic, oregano, etc., then cook over medium heat and turn after two minutes.

Turn to low, cover and simmer until vegetables are tender.

These vegetables also work well in a George Foreman grill. Spray the thin-sliced vegetables with PAM spray and sprinkle with spices before cooking.

*Old World ingredient

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Wild Onions

Each spring Choctaws head out to look for the 6 to 12 inch stems of wild onions that feature one-inch wide clusters of small white blossoms. Wild onions go into a variety of dishes and you can decide what you like best. I prefer them on top of baked potatoes, with scrambled eggs and mixed with squash.

Many people loathe wild onions and consider them—along with wild garlic, leeks and dandelions--to be weeds. Some claim that they are poisonous to cattle, horses and to humans. One site that discusses the latter is “Notes on Poisoning: Wild Onion: http://www.scib.gc.ca/pls/pp/ppack.info?p_psn=161&p_type=all&p_sci=comm&p_x=px

A useful site that shows through photographs how to cook wild onions is from Wild Food Foragers of America: http://www.wildfoodforagers.org/wgonion1.htm

Ingredients:

1 cup of chopped wild onions (cultivated well away from cattle and pollution); be sure to peel the tough outer portion of the bulb and cut away the roots (although some say the roots can be used in your stock pot)

PAM cooking spray (or one tablespoon of butter if you must or liquid from meat)

1 cup of vegetable stock

In heated frying pan or skillet, cook the onions in the stock until the water is almost gone, then spray with PAM or butter and add desired seasonings (pepper and garlic is what we use).

Add stirred eggs and cook until done, or add just the onions to your other dishes.

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Wild Rice and Cranberries

Almost anything can be added to wild rice, but basic rice with only a bit of spices sprinkled on top makes a perfect side dish and this works well as stuffing for bell peppers, poblano chiles or pumpkins. Try to avoid using butter if possible.

Learn more about wild rice at the Native Harvest site: http://nativeharvest.com/native_harvest

Basic Ingredients for Wild Rice:

1 cup uncooked wild rice
3 cups water (or turkey stock for more flavor)

Optional:

Raisins to taste
Cranberries
Pepper to taste
Crushed garlic to taste
½ cup chopped white onions
½ cup mushrooms
½ cup cooked and shredded turkey breast or other lean meat
Olive oil (to lightly drizzle over top of finished rice)
If use you the Native Harvest rice, just follow the instructions on the box.

For other rice:

Boil the water in large saucepan or a pot.
While it is boiling, clean the rice (rinse and pick out impurities)
Add rice to boiling water, bring back to boil.
Cover and simmer for about an hour (or until the rice kernals split/puff)
Fluff the rice, add cranberries then cook at simmer level for another five minutes (but don’t overcook)

In separate skillet, sauté the onions, mushrooms and other optional ingredients

Mix all the ingredients together in large bowl and serve.

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Zucchini Canoes

Almost anything can be added to wild rice, but basic rice with only a bit of spices sprinkled on top makes a perfect side dish and this works well as stuffing for bell peppers, poblano chiles or pumpkins. Try to avoid using butter if possible.

Learn more about wild rice at the Native Harvest site: http://nativeharvest.com/native_harvest

Basic Ingredients for Wild Rice:

1 cup uncooked wild rice

3 cups water (or turkey stock for more flavor)

Optional:

Raisins to taste

Cranberries

Pepper to taste

Crushed garlic to taste

½ cup chopped white onions

½ cup mushrooms

½ cup cooked and shredded turkey breast or other lean meat

Olive oil (to lightly drizzle over top of finished rice)

If use you the Native Harvest rice, just follow the instructions on the box.

For other rice:

Boil the water in large saucepan or a pot.

While it is boiling, clean the rice (rinse and pick out impurities)

Add rice to boiling water, bring back to boil.

Cover and simmer for about an hour (or until the rice kernals split/puff)

Fluff the rice, add cranberries then cook at simmer level for another five minutes (but don’t overcook)

In separate skillet, sauté the onions, mushrooms and other optional ingredients

Mix all the ingredients together in large bowl and serve.

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Breads

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Chahta (Choctaw) Banaha

Corn and most of the dishes we can create with corn are at the top of my list of food favorites. What I like the best about tamales is the corn, not the filling. Banaha is similar to a tamale, but with no filling.

For purists:

Two cups of cornmeal

1 ½ cup boiling water

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. salt

corn shucks

Boil corn shucks for ten minutes.

In a large bowl mix together the cornmeal, soda and salt until it is doughy.

Roll into longish shape that will fit into the corn shucks.

Wrap the shucks around the dough and tie with a shuck string, then boil in pot of water for 30-40 minutes.

We eat it with salsa on top.

To make banaha more interesting, I add a variety of things to the cornmeal mixture: chopped onions, *green sweet peas, *spinach, *garlic, pepper. I prefer to boil the banaha in unsalted *turkey, chicken or vegetable broth instead of water for added flavor.

*Old World ingredient

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Corn Bread

Corn bread goes a long way in our house. We put it in a bowl and pour pinto beans or chili on top; we match it with yogurt and fruit for a dessert, use as a “side bread” with almost every entrée. Traditional con bread is different from bread made with milk and eggs and that is how we prefer it. This is, therefore, a “semi-traditional” dish.

Ingredients:

1.5 cup cornmeal

*2 chicken eggs (or duck eggs for thicker consistency)

*1 c skim milk (or goat milk for thicker consistency)

1 c cooked sweet corn (drained if you use canned corn)

¾ t salt substitute

4 t baking power

For variety, add chopped green chilies, ham, apples, cheese or bacon (minus the fat)

Mix ingredients in large bowl.

Pour into 12 x 8 pan greased with non-stick vegetable spray.

Bake 25 minutes at 400 degrees or until knife comes out clean.

Instead of covering with butter, drizzle honey on top.

*Old World ingredient

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Corn, Bean and Turkey Bread

This is a bread, but like the Everything Salad, it actually can suffice as a meal.

Ingredients:

4 c corn meal

1 lb. lean ground turkey

2 cup hot water

2 cup cooked and drained pinto beans

½ t baking soda

½ cup chopped sweet onions

salt to taste

pepper to taste

*garlic to taste

In a skillet or frying pan, sauté the turkey until brown along with spices.

Mix together the turkey with the other ingredients and form into desired shape (balls work best) and drop into boiling water.

Cook approximately 30-40 minutes.

Using a spaghetti pot with a colander that fits into the pot makes it easy to drain—just lift the colander out after cooking and hold over the sink to drain.

Serve with a salsa or marinara spaghetti sauce. This dish is nice paired with the vegetable sauté.

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Corn Tortillas

There are two ways to make these: the first is easy because you simply take corn tortillas from the store, cut each into strips or into pie-piece-shaped wedges and spray each lightly with cooking spray (PAM is what I use) and sprinkle with spices such as garlic, salt, cumin, etc., then place on cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees or until tortilla chips are brown.

Another option is to grow and grind your own corn.

An easy way to make the tortillas yourself:

Ingredients:

1.5 cups Masa harina (flour made from dried corn and is found in many grocery stores)

1 ¼ cup water

2 t salt

2 t vegetable shortening

Waxed or parchment paper

Stir together the masa harina and salt in a bowl. Heat the shortening and water in a saucepan and bring to a bowl; stir until melted.

Add the melted mixture to the dry mix and blend either with a fork, or use a pastry blender.

Put mix onto floured cutting board and knead for 5 minutes.

Cut the dough into 12 portions then roll each portion into a ball (these should be about 1 inch in diameter)

Put one portion at a time between the waxed or parchment paper and use rolling pin to roll out dough until it reaches 6 inches across.

Heat a large skillet on high until pan is hot.

Take one rolled-out dough-piece at a time and put in skillet.

Cook on each side for about half a minute or until brown.

Place the cooked tortillas in a tortilla warmer or inside warm towel until ready to serve.

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Drinks

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My cheap blender has lasted almost daily use for over a decade.

Fruit Smoothie

This is a great drink on mornings when you’re not really hungry but need something, or when you’re not feeling well. I make one at least four days a week.

Ingredients:

*½ cup sliced peaches
½ cup blueberries
1 cup strawberries
*½ banana
*½ cup orange juice
*½ cup carrot juice
*1 scoop protein power (optional; I use a whey-based protein powder)
*½ cup low-fat vanilla yogurt that has sat in the freezer and is frosty, but not frozen

Combine all ingredients in blender.

I use frozen fruit, then allow the fruit to thaw slightly so my blender blades won’t get stuck on the hard fruit; slightly frozen ingredients makes a colder, creamier smoothie.

Blend until smooth.

*Old World ingredient

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Desserts

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Fruit Salad

These desserts are perfect for any time of the year. They are sweet, filling and full of vitamins and minerals. You can prepare a larger amount of fruit on Sunday and have it for the next three days.

New World Ingredients

½-1 cup each of:

Black raspberry

Blueberry

Concord grapes

Papaya

Passion fruit

Pineapple

Strawberries

Options:

1 tablespoon peanut butter dolloped on top

3 T sunflower seeds

3 T chopped pecans

Old World Ingredients

1 apple chopped

1 orange, peeled, seeded and sectioned; a can of drained Mandarin oranges works well when you are in a hurry

1 cup of sweet, unseeded grapes

1 ripe (but not squishy) mango, peeled, deseeded and cubed

1 banana-sliced into thin sections (like quarters)

Options:

1 cup low-fat vanilla yoghurt

3 tablespoons raisins

3 T chopped walnuts

Chop fruits into desirable pieces (cubed, sliced, etc.) and put in large serving bowl.

Cover leftovers tightly and refrigerate. You’ll need to eat it within two days.

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Fruit Cookie

There are many variations of the dessert on the web, but this recipe tries to keep the focus away from fat and sugar and to focus on the fruit.

My 11-year-old daughter, Ari, created this cookie, topped with blueberries, strawberries, raspberries and kiwis.

Ingredients:

1 roll of low-sugar cookie dough
*1 8 ounce pack no-fat cream cheese
Juice of ½ lemon
½ to 1 cup of sliced fruit such as:
strawberries
blueberries
raspberries
*kiwis
Mandarin orange segments (pat dry)
[Note that bananas will turn brown and pineapple is too acidic to work well on this cookie]
Allow cream cheese and cookie dough to warm to room temperature.
Roll out dough onto small pizza pan
Cook in 350 degree oven until dough turns light brown—only about 5-9 minutes. Remove and let completely cool.
Mix cream cheese with lemon juice until the cream is smooth. When cool, spread the cream cheese over the top of the cooked dough.
Use your imagination to decorate the top with the sliced fruit. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

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Grilled Pineapple

Grilled pineapple is an easy, sweet treat and you can quickly prepare it to cook after the steaks are done. This can be served as a separate dessert, or along with your meat dish.

Ingredients:

One pineapple
1 cup pure maple syrup (much of the sugar ultimately burns away, but the flavor remains)
½ T cinnamon

Cut off the pineapple top and bottom (see picture below left)
Cut the fruit down the center lengthways, then quarter it.
Slice off the tough middle section from each quarter
Cut off the tough skin. You may need to use the end of a potato peeler to dig out the embedded eyes (although fingernails work, too).
Cut into long slices (right)
Marinate the slices in a large bag or bowl with one cup of maple syrup.
Soak the fruit for at least four hours, but no longer than 24 hours.
Place on hot grill; cook each side for about 1-2 minutes.

Don’t overcook!

Many like this with ice cream, but it is perfect by itself.

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Osage Persimmon Cakes

By Andrea Hunter, Osage Tribal Historic Preservation Officer

Ingredients:

Persimmons
Buffalo grease

Go to the woods and collect as many persimmons as you can. Build a fire. Using a small woven screen made from saplings, separate the seeds from the pulp. Do this by grating the persimmons against the screen, this causes the seeds to fall through the screen leaving the pulp behind. Mold the persimmon pulp into small cakes. Take a wooden drying board, about 9 inches wide and 18 inches long with a handle, and apply buffalo grease. Layer three or four persimmon cakes on the drying board and hold over an open fire until the first persimmon cake layer is about cooked. Then remove the cake and cool. When the cake is completely cooled they can be stored. These cakes will last until the next season.

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