Chef Sean Sherman Source: Commons Wikimedia
Chef Shawn Sherman says there are few restaurants that focus on the cuisine of native Americans or indigenous people. That is why he started The Sioux Chef a nonprofit organization located in Minnesota that focuses on the food and the diet of indigenous people. It is a catering business and has a food truck.
When Chef Sherman researched his Lakota ancestors, he discovered the used all types of plants in their diet. The grew, cooked, preserved, and processed these plants. As he learned more about their history, he set up a system to grow, preserve, and share his knowledge with the world. He founded the North American Traditional Indigenous Kitchen a food education business that researches and promotes Native American and indigenous food and diet.
Bison used in Indigenous Diet Source:
Photo Wuestenigle
In high school and college he worked in restaurants learning how to cook. After college he worked for a forest service and learned to identify plants located in the Northern Black Hills. He says that the Native American Cuisine is overlooked and lost because of reservations and the control the US government has on food.
Reservations have large grocery stores but no restaurants. Their diets are not very healthy they eat ultra processed food with too much sugar, salt, and fat. Chef Sherman wanted to promote their original diet that was low in salt and sugar. By interviewing different tribes in Minnesota and other areas of the country he learned they ate fish, game, and vegetables.
In his recipes he uses the food they cooked with long ago. The recipes are modern, and he uses squash, mushrooms. corn, bison, turkey, fish, and rabbit. Chef Sherman uses no dairy, wheat, sugar, beef, chicken or pork in the recipes.
Source: Roots Simple
It took him several years to research the recipes and he wrote The Sioux Chefs Indigenous Kitchen. He says poverty and lack of access to healthy food keep many people from getting proper nutrition. Many reservations are food deserts.
He was an executive chef in his mid 20s and involved in the farm to table movement. He sources food from local farmers and vendors and supports regional farming.
Wild Turkey Part of Indigenous Diet Source: Es Wikipedia
In 2021 he opened a restaurant called Owamni in Minneapolis, MN a full-service restaurant that hired Native American workers and showcased their diet and culture. It was acquired in 2023 by his nonprofit organization NATIFS and trains chef and promotes indigenous food.
Wild Rice Source: Public Domain Pictures
His menu serves corn chowder, wild rice, sweet potato, tomatoes, beans, mushrooms, fish, shrimp, scallops, turkey, elk, bison, and duck. He is a good example of a chef that is striving to improve the food system and who supports regional farming and a healthy diet.
Chef Sean Sherman Source: Flicker/National Museum of American History Smithsonian Institute
References:
Sean Sherman aka The Sioux Chef on Reclaiming Indigenous Cuisine by Ariel Knutson, The Kitchen, October 23, 2020
The Pioneer How Chef Sherman is Shining The Light on Native American Cuisine, by Delle Chan, National Geographic, August 2021
Traditional Native Foods Are Key Ingredients in Sioux Chef's Healthy Cooking by Fred de Sam Lazaro, PBS New, October 2019
Chef Sean Sherman Website NATISF 2024
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