Cooking with The Sioux Chef Sean Sherman - Tea | Bison | Squash

[@KooblyK]

Non-native (U.S.) here. I'm so glad I've found this part of KZbin, and Sean Sherman in particular. When I was a teenager, I LOVED cooking and learning about all kinds of different cuisine and the history and anthropology of food and food culture from around the world (Food Network was my go to, and Good Eats my favorite show, especially his food history segments). I would often go out with a field guide trying to find edible plants in my portion of Kentucky, where I lived surrounded by woodland on a home farm. Pawpaws, poke greens, tubers, nettle, etc. And one day I had this realization, that I had tried so many different cuisines from all over the world, but never anything from Native American cuisine, which surely would have recipes for all these edible plants I was finding. This was the aughts, so the internet was still new, and there just wasn't as much info about native tribes widely available, and we certainly weren't taught much in school. But even so, I'd always been very interested in native culture and history and legends (not very especially more than I was other things, I was just a very curious, knowledge-greedy kid lol, but it did hold a fascination for me), and would scour libraries for books on the subject only to be disappointed at the lack. So yeah, then it hit me in the face that day where I was like, wait... Where are the Native American restaurants? The people are still around, right? (No reservations near me at the time, I barely even knew what that word meant). So where's THEIR cuisine? Why haven't I ever seen a cookbook from them? And so I got on our dial up internet and spent HOURS of hyperfocus trying to find those things. And there was just...so little. I found a single website made by one person, probably a native, that seemed like something they'd made just to catalogue some stuff so they could share it with other native peoples? It had that vibe. But even that was bare bones. More than anything else I'd found in a book, but still nothing super in depth. No recipes. And I remember being so confused and frustrated. Eventually I had to give up. I consoled myself by making some vegetarian pemmican, which was so simple and well documented by European explorers, that I could at least make THAT. Sort of. Didn't know where to get an adequate supply of quality jerky, let alone bison, so I made do with nuts and coconut oil instead 😅 It was...fine. Made little bars and kept them in the freezer, and that was my travel snack for a year. I was absolutely heartbroken when I eventually learned the details of what really happened to and what had been stolen from the native tribes, and thus from the world. My parents thought I'd been injured when they found me sobbing in my room. So now after all this time, to be learning how this diverse and beautiful portion of the human tapestry is being preserved and rediscovered despite so much tragedy and loss fills me with such joy. And videos like this?? Chock full of all the knowledge I'd looked so hard for? My inner child is ecstatic. Hopefully soon I'll be able go to one of the Indigenous restaurants that I'm finally hearing about -- maybe even yours, Mr. Sherman -- and fulfill my childhood wish 🙏 (And in the meantime, I'm gonna get a cookbook and try making some myself 😊)

[@MsDieynaba]

I'm not Native American, but your comment fills me up with so much love and joy! I also love learning about the different NA tribes and their cultures, so I'm happy I stumbled across videos such as these!

[@IndigenousFoodLab]

Thanks for watching!

[@miccigoox13]

Very happy to be here to learn the indigenous cuisine!😀

[@IndigenousFoodLab]

Thanks for watching!

[@lendonpartain8200]

This channel is so needed!!!

[@trock8930]

I appreciate you sharing your skills with us so we may further learn not only our N’de culture but how to eat as our ancestors did as opposed to the typical American diet of basically processed flour and fat. May we all celebrate Indigenous day with nutritious meals as these. Ashoge

[@henryanderson7533]

I’m Scottish and known as the Highland Chef your food and work is brilliant

[@katrussell6819]

I am not native yet I want to clean up my food for health reasons and for MORE FUN! These are great ideas. Thanks.

[@ladykaydoesart7702]

Got the cookbook a while ago, great to see some of the recipes here to see done! Didn't even know you could make cedar tea😮

[@tinadaugherty9073]

Thank you from Moses Lake, Washington. ❤

[@beverlyhelm5287]

That is my favorite squash! So sweet and creamy. Roasting brings out the flavors so well too!

[@judiceynowa1631]

I love that you are sharing the blessings of your indigenous lineage with the whole. Embracing the beauty of your people with food and supporting and integrating the oneness of unification of all people into the oneness that we are all headed towards. Celebrating the unique piece of the all… Much love and blessings to you and your people. ✌️💜🙏😢

[@nycbklynrmp]

awsome, you made squash into an entree, cant wait to make for winter holidays. when composting no waste becomes grown for soil new plants

[@stephaniebrady31]

Non-indigenous showing my ignornace: Cedar off a tree? What is the spice? Is it a blend? What is pepita? Chef Sherman, I offer genuine respect in my desire to learn more. Please keep making videos. 🎉🎉❤

[@IndigenousFoodLab]

Yup, cedar from the tree! And pepitas are sunflower seeds that have been dried or toasted. Thanks for watching!

[@donsuggs4150]

That looks like a wonderful meal! Thank you so much for sharing it!

[@comanchewarriorsoursacredg482]

I just started in the culinary world I’m loving seeing the possibilities to come

[@ariannammason]

Please 🙏 taste and eat the delicious food you’re making so that your description allows us to enjoy the experience with you.

[@normadenys8089]

Amazing recepe hard to find cedar & pine without pesticides

[@ChefStache]

I love this! Although, I'm curious about the use of dandelion. They are endemic but not native, so is their inclusion a compromise or an oversight? Or is it more about following the 'ethos' of indigenous cooking and using what is around?

[@CricketsBay]

He might be using horned dandelion aka alpine dandelion. It's native to Wyoming.

[@VelvetCrone]

OH WOW! Thank you so much!!!

[@kimdodd6677]

Yuumm❤

[@nurseguardian]

Sumac and hemlock look similar how do you tell the difference? How did you get this idea to share your knowledge? Thank you for sharing your history! Yummy.

[@IndigenousFoodLab]

Hi! Thanks for your comment. Poison hemlock, or Conium maculatum, is a member of the carrot family with white flowers. Sumac, or Rhus typhina, is a shrub with show spikes of red berries (sometimes referred to as “staghorns”). You can use the scientific names to find photos and more info!

[@henryanderson7533]

Please let me know the title of your cookbook

[@IndigenousFoodLab]

The title of Sean's book is "The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen"

[@nurseguardian]

Thank you for sharing your gifts. How do I know I have identified the right tree for this recipe?

[@CricketsBay]

There's lots if books showing how to identify trees. Also, various websites and even the County Extension Office can help.

[@JenniferGee-t4k]

Hi Sean. Any recipes for quail? I'm a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and have been studying our state bird, California Quail, and their sister species (and their hybrids) since 1997. I am thinking of publishing a piece that follows their culinary history.

[@dominicwynter4805]

Is white cedar actually safe to use in food? A google search suggests that it contains neurotoxins...

[@CricketsBay]

Eastern White Cedar (Thuja Occidentalis) is safe for humans to consume. Notice he used it to season food and make tea. He's not taking handfuls and eating it like a big lettuce salad.

[@Bradimus1]

The sunchokes look like ginger at a glance. I'm sure the smell is very different.

[@rachelstark2391]

Very interesting, as a chef myself, I would have appreciated that you would have tied those braids back away from the food. Cheers, Upstate NY

[@ctwatcher]

We appreciate him eating the bugs and staying happy. Now leave everyone alone that doesn't listen to people like this, if he'd not have told a stupid story I'd not be here leaving my mark. But he did and I laugh. Happy Thanksgiving!

[@carolynblakeney966]

I know there is an aversion to using wheat and soy products by some in 21st century America, but as a vegan, and one who respects the cuisines of Eastern Asia (the people who colonized the North, Central, and South American land masses many, many thousands of years before the Europeans did), I can see many traditional recipes calling for animal slaughter being replaced by wheat and soy proteins instead. I understand that the Native American ancestors did not have those options, as they migrated to areas far from home before widespread cultivation of wheat and soy, and likely brought few ingredients with them (if any, meaning plant seeds and/or animals from their places of origin), and had to utilize local ingredients. The take home message for me is the European invasion tried to suppress the existing food culture in the Americas and that is what we have to remedy. The utilization of wheat and soy is not a simple yes/no question.

[@nimkiibinesiikwe]

Gitchi miigwech for these videos, they really inspire me. I can’t wait to try these recipes. 🥹🤍

[@IndigenousFoodLab]

I hope you're still watching and making these recipes 💚