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Traditional Thanksgiving fare may not have been as tasty as some of our more modern dishes. Nor were the ingredients easy and convenient to pick up at the local supermarket. For modern day cooks, cooking over the fire, in coals, and under ash may not be an ideal situation. In case you would like to explore cooking your Thanksgiving meal as the Native Americans probably prepared theirs, here are a few recipes to try cooking the traditional Native American way.
All recipes were taken from: Indian Cookin, Copyright 1973, Nowega Press.
Bean Bread
4 cups cornmeal
½ tsp soda (or lye water if you have it on hand)
2 cups cooked beans
2 cups boiling water
Put cornmeal and beans in a bowl. Hollow out a hole and put water and soda in the middle. Make stiff dough enough to form balls. Drop balls into a pot of boiling water. Cook about 45 minutes or until done.
Parched Corn
Put hot ashes in a pot, put in kernels, stir until brown. Clean ashes off with leaves or cloth, beat corn in beater. Make soup by stirring large pieces in boiling water, cook until done. (This kind of mixture was placed in a leather pouch and carried while hunting.)
Pumpkin
Cut ripe pumpkin in rings, remove the peeling, hang on a stick before the fire near enough to dry slowly. This may be stored until ready for use. To prepare it should be washed and cooked any way you like pumpkin.
Barbequed Fish
Cut fish into strips or chunks, string on pieces of sharpened sticks, hang over fire. Turn often. Keep before fire until fish no longer drips.
Baked Apple
Pick ripe apples. Cover the apples with hot ashes and live coals, cook until as soft as you want them.
Hominy Corn Drink
Shell corn, soak in lye until the skin can be removed. Beat corn in the beater until size of hominy. Sift meal from the husk particles. Cook corn particles until done. Drink hot or cold or wait until it sours. This will keep except in very hot water.
Quail
Dress bird, put on a stick before the fire or over hot coals and roast real brown. Put browned bird into a pot of water and boil until well done, thicken soup with cornmeal. Season with salt.
Indian Prayer
Here needy he stands,
And I am he.
All recipes were taken from: Indian Cookin, Copyright 1973, Nowega Press.
Bean Bread
4 cups cornmeal
½ tsp soda (or lye water if you have it on hand)
2 cups cooked beans
2 cups boiling water
Put cornmeal and beans in a bowl. Hollow out a hole and put water and soda in the middle. Make stiff dough enough to form balls. Drop balls into a pot of boiling water. Cook about 45 minutes or until done.
Parched Corn
Put hot ashes in a pot, put in kernels, stir until brown. Clean ashes off with leaves or cloth, beat corn in beater. Make soup by stirring large pieces in boiling water, cook until done. (This kind of mixture was placed in a leather pouch and carried while hunting.)
Pumpkin
Cut ripe pumpkin in rings, remove the peeling, hang on a stick before the fire near enough to dry slowly. This may be stored until ready for use. To prepare it should be washed and cooked any way you like pumpkin.
Barbequed Fish
Cut fish into strips or chunks, string on pieces of sharpened sticks, hang over fire. Turn often. Keep before fire until fish no longer drips.
Baked Apple
Pick ripe apples. Cover the apples with hot ashes and live coals, cook until as soft as you want them.
Hominy Corn Drink
Shell corn, soak in lye until the skin can be removed. Beat corn in the beater until size of hominy. Sift meal from the husk particles. Cook corn particles until done. Drink hot or cold or wait until it sours. This will keep except in very hot water.
Quail
Dress bird, put on a stick before the fire or over hot coals and roast real brown. Put browned bird into a pot of water and boil until well done, thicken soup with cornmeal. Season with salt.
Indian Prayer
Here needy he stands,
And I am he.
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