Ramona and Terry Button began farming in 1974 on a ten-acre allotment near Sacaton, Arizona, on the Gila River Indian Reservation. Their first crops included barley and alfalfa; the Ramona Farms line of products has since grown to include wheat and corn products, black eyed peas, garbanzo beans and Tepary beans. Ramona’s father, Francisco ‘Chiigo’ […]
Name: Crystal Wahpepah Location: Oakland, California Business name: Owner, Wahpepah’s Kitchen Tribe: Kickapoo What led to your passion for Indigenous foods? I always loved Native foods and I got to cook at a young age with family. It came so natural for me to be in the kitchen, like it was my gateway to […]
This post is inspired by the book “The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen” by Sean Sherman Keep these herbs and seasonings in your pantry to add flavor and depth to your indigenous recipes.Some of these grow in the wild and can be foraged. For those that aren’t available, visit your local organic market or health food […]
SweetGrass Trading Company is proud to offer a variety of black, brown and white Tepary beans from Ramona Farms in Sacaton, AZ. Tepary beans have been part of the Native way of life for years. They have been cultivated for at least a thousand years by the Natives of the Sonoran desert, the Akimel O’odham […]
Looking for inspiration on how to cook indigenous recipes? We’ve compiled a list to help you begin. Check out the cookbooks below (in no particular order) for indigenous recipes, cooking tips and tricks, and even traditional stories! Keep in mind there are many other authorized indigenous cookbooks available. These are eight to help you get […]
SeaBear Smokehouse was founded in 1957 by fisherman Tom Savidge and his wife, Marie, in Anacortes, Washington. The pair began selling smoked salmon to local taverns and cafes and their product became quite popular. The company, now called SeaBear Smokehouse, was originally named Specialty Seafoods. The name was changed in the early 90s to ground […]
Name: Sean Sherman Location: Minnesota Business name: The Sioux Chef Tribal affiliation: Oglala Lakota What led to your passion for Indigenous foods? Basically, I had just been in restaurants my whole life. I started working in restaurants when I was just barely 13. So, I worked at restaurants all through high school and college. After […]
What is SweetGrass Trading Company? We are an online store that offers Native American food, gifts and health and beauty products. We are a subsidiary of Ho-Chunk Trading Group, a division of Ho-Chunk, Inc., the economic development corporation of the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. We are solely owned by the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. Where […]
Sakari Botanicals was founded in 2014 by Spring Alaska Olson, under the Department of Agriculture’s USDA Inter-Tribal Agricultural Council. The word “Sakari” means “sweet” in the traditional Inupiaq language Olson uses traditional practices she learned from her Inuit family to grow local plants, flowers and herbs and create oils, salves, teas, and more. Olson grew […]
Name: Hillel Echo-Hawk Location: Seattle, WA Business name: Birch Basket Tribe: Pawnee and Athabaskan What led to your passion for Indigenous foods? I grew up in rural Alaska in the upper Athabaskan area in the town of Delta Junction. Our neighbors were an Athabaskan family who lived in Mentasta Lake Village. My family would travel […]
For thousands of years, Native people inhabited the oak forests and rolling hills of Capay Valley, nestled in northern California. Today the land is planted with olive trees, vineyards and a bounty of other crops. Seka Hills is the line of agricultural products that come from this land. The Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation chose the […]
The Ho-Chunk Village Farmer’s Market 2020 season will begin on Wednesday, June 17 and will be held every Wednesday until Oct. 14. There will be certain protocols and regulations in place to ensure the safety of community members. The protocols are as follows: Shop and exit. Stay 6 feet apart. Wash produce when you return […]
Major Robinson, an enrolled Northern Cheyenne from Montana, and his wife Michelle, a transplant from Orlando, Florida, with Irish/Scottish ancestry, met in their former career of designing and building theme parks for Universal Studios. Two years ago, they launched a boutique gift shop, Sage & Oats Trading Post, in downtown Helena to help bridge a […]
The chaotic times during the COVID-19 pandemic have left a lot of us feeling lonely, bored or unable to help. If you’re healthy and able, there are many ways you can support your community during these times. Below are just a few examples of how you can get involved while still maintaining a safe social […]
Yaupon is the only naturally caffeinated plant native to North America. Yaupon is native to Florida and the southeastern United States, and has been used for thousands of years by indigenous communities for ceremonies, as a food and as a medicine. For example, descendants of the Timucua tribe, which has been extinct since 1800, lived […]
ArXotica, a natural bath and beauty company, was founded by triplets Michelle, Cika and Amy Sparck in Bethel, Alaska. The sisters grew up in Chevak, a small Alaskan village surrounded by the Arctic tundra near Kokecheck Bay, which leads to the Bering Sea. The area known as Kashunak, is a vast, treeless land mass that […]
Native chefs play an important role in revitalizing indigenous cuisine and restoring Native food systems. Here are a few chefs who are making an impact on education, restoration and accessibility of traditional Native food. Sean Sherman (Oglala Lakota)– James Beard award-winning chef Sean Sherman may be one of the most well-known indigenous chefs today. He […]
Last year, SweetGrass Trading Company, a member of Ho-Chunk Trading Group, launched a scholarship program awarding funds to a Native student planning to attend college. The funds are given to students who are attending, or planning to attend, a four-year college, two-year college, or technical school. Any Native student is encouraged to apply at https://sweetgrasstrad.wpengine.com/native-scholarship-program/. Nationwide, […]
The story of WoodenKnife fry bread mix began when Mary WoodenKnife taught her son, Ansel, her Indian Taco recipe using her homemade mix. In the past, Mary sold the tacos out of the back of her station wagon in Rosebud, South Dakota. The fry bread mix became popular in the region, combining flour with […]
