Honoring Indigenous Recipes

 November is Indigenous People month. It's time to honor their contribution - which is a very big one - to the American table. These recipes can be made for Thanksgiving or even for a celebratory meal.

My state, New Jerse,y was home to the Lenni Lenape or Delaware tribe. One of their  recipes that could easily fit on a breakfast table is Sa'Pan or corn hominy.It's sort of like a sweet polenta with fruit and butter added.it's mixing a cup of white or blue cornmeal with a cup of very cold water. Two cups of boiling water and a pinch of salt is added. Dried fruit is blended in too in this stove top creation.A tablespoon of butter or lard is stirred in and blended .Beat the corn mix until smooth and serve with maple syrup.One of the biggest tribes, the Aligonquian has a dish honoring  The Three Sisters. This is corn, squash and beans ,Lima beans corn and squash are combined with red and green peppers, zucchini, tomatoes and eggplant.Onion garlic and parsley flavor it as does pepper and paprika. The onions, garlic and peppers are sauteed in butter or oil while the squash zucchini and lima beans are steamed and them added to the mix. The Wampanoag tribes of Massachusetts have an excellent stew made from turkey or chicken called sobaheg The birds are mixed with ground corn meal or hominy along with green beans, winter squash, onions and garlic.Ground sunflower seeds are added to thicken it.

The Navajo of the Southwestern US have also contributed to the American table. Their most famous dish, fry bread comes with a sad history. This was created in 1864 when the US government gave  the tribe   flour, sugar, salt and lard as they made their long walk from Arizona to Bosque Redondo, New Mexico. This new land couldn't sustain their traditional crops of vegetables and beans. The recipe is similar to the sopapllas to  the Pueblos and Hispanos of New Mexico. Yeast is added for rise and it's fried in melted shortening or vegetable oil. You could add a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg for flavor. The Pacific Northwest and British Columbia had the Tlingit tribes. They survived on the famous salmon of the area and made chowder with it. Yelloweye chowder , a often made soup is a mix of yelloweye salmon, carrots and celery, Clam juice and chicken stock are the base while bacon, oregano and onions also add flavor.  Heavy cream and milk are also added to give it a New England clam chowder vibe It would make for a nice holiday meal starter or served in small bowls or cups at a holiday party,

The Indigenous tribes have always will have contributed to the American table. Honor them by featuring a dish at your Thanksgiving table. These are the recipes of a true America and represent the country's ancient cultures.