The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen
Sean Sherman
With Beth Dooley
A TIME 100 MOST INFLUENTIAL PERSON
James Beard Award: best american cookbook
james beard award: best new restaurant, to owamni (co-owned by sean sherman)
CBS Sunday Morning segment
TIME Magazine
Named one of the Best Cookbooks of THE YEAR by NPR, The Village Voice, Smithsonian Magazine, UPROXX, San Francisco Chronicle, and others
MORE awards:
- INDIES Editor's Choice Prize Winner from Foreword Reviews
- Midwest Booksellers Choice Award (Nonfiction)
- Gourmand World Cookbook Awards (US Winner, Culinary Heritage)
- Nautilus Book Award (Silver Award in Food, Cooking, and Healthy Eating)
Award-winning recipes, stories, and wisdom from the celebrated indigenous chef and his team
Sean Sherman, the Oglala Lakota chef and founder of The Sioux Chef, dispels outdated notions of Native American fare; no fry bread, dairy products, or sugar here. The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen features healthful plates that embrace venison, duck, blueberries, sage, amaranth, and abundant wildflowers. This volume is a delectable introduction to the modern indigenous cuisine of the Dakota and Minnesota territories.
"Mr. Sherman is joining a vital group that stretches across North America and Canada, using food culture to celebrate and empower native people."—Tejal Rao, The New York Times
Here is real food—our indigenous American fruits and vegetables, the wild and foraged ingredients, game and fish. Locally sourced, seasonal, “clean” ingredients and nose-to-tail cooking are nothing new to Sean Sherman, the Oglala Lakota chef and founder of The Sioux Chef. In his breakout book, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen, Sherman shares his approach to creating boldly seasoned foods that are vibrant, healthful, at once elegant and easy.
Sherman dispels outdated notions of Native American fare—no fry bread or Indian tacos here—and no European staples such as wheat flour, dairy products, sugar, and domestic pork and beef. The Sioux Chef’s healthful plates embrace venison and rabbit, river and lake trout, duck and quail, wild turkey, blueberries, sage, sumac, timpsula or wild turnip, plums, purslane, and abundant wildflowers. Contemporary and authentic, his dishes feature cedar braised bison, griddled wild rice cakes, amaranth crackers with smoked white bean paste, three sisters salad, deviled duck eggs, smoked turkey soup, dried meats, roasted corn sorbet, and hazelnut–maple bites.
The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen is a rich education and a delectable introduction to modern indigenous cuisine of the Dakota and Minnesota territories, with a vision and approach to food that travels well beyond those borders.
$34.95 ISBN 978-0-8166-9979-7
240 pages, 6 b&w plates, 115 color plates, 7 x 10, October 2017
Chef Sean Sherman was born in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, and has been cooking in Minnesota, South Dakota, and Montana for the past twenty-seven years. He works as a caterer and food educator across the country through his business The Sioux Chef, based in South Minneapolis. He has earned plaudits and profiles in such venues as National Public Radio, Guardian UK, Saveur, and the New York Times.
Beth Dooley is author of many award-winning cookbooks, including Savory Sweet: Simple Preserves from a Northern Kitchen, Minnesota’s Bounty: The Farmers Market Cookbook, and The Birchwood Cafe Cookbook, all published by the University of Minnesota Press. She has also written a memoir, In Winter’s Kitchen: Growing Roots and Breaking Bread in the Northern Heartland.
Mr. Sherman is joining a vital group that stretches across North America and Canada, using food culture to celebrate and empower native people.
Tejal Rao, The New York Times
The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen is inspired and important. Sean Sherman and his team remake indigenous cuisine and in doing so show us all a new way to relate to food. This book and what it offers is nothing short of thrilling.
David Treuer
Sean Sherman is doing some of the most important culinary work in America. In The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen, he takes a forward-thinking approach to indigenous cuisine, bringing his culture into the light to share with the rest of the world.
Sean Brock, James Beard Award Winner, author of Heritage, and Executive Chef at Husk, Charleston, South Carolina
I am impressed by Chef Sean Sherman’s dedication to a cuisine that has long been lost, his respect for his heritage, and his passion to bring the beauty of this tradition into the world. This is remarkable work and I look forward to learning from this talented chef!
Maneet Chauhan, Food Network Celebrity Chef, founder & CEO, Indie Culinaire
The Sioux Chef provides food for thought as well as for the body. The recipes will teach cooks everywhere how to pay attention to the world around them for sources of ingredients and how to prepare those ingredients. The personal stories—the wisdom they share—will teach all readers about sustainable living—the interdependence of beings, living with the earth instead of on the earth.
Indian Country Today
There are cookbooks from which one simply cooks the recipes, and cookbooks from which one learns how and why to cook. Chef Sherman’s book is in the latter. It is a cookbook meant to be studied, one where the recipes are not its most important feature, but rather a part of an overall call to reclaim the history and culture of indigenous peoples. Chef Sherman observes that controlling food is a means of controlling power. With this cookbook, he is taking that power and giving it back to its rightful owners.
Foreword Reviews, starred review
The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen offers more than just delicious recipes - it offers empowering historical, cultural, and environmental lessons that may hold a key to our future.
Permaculture
Sherman appears less a culinary historian than an avant-garde chef. He succeeds in making authentic Native American cuisine approachable for the home cook.
Booklist
Readers willing to venture beyond the bounds of convenience cooking can learn much from this thoughtful title. Highly recommended for food history collections.
Library Journal
I admire Sherman’s dedication to continually learning, educating others, and innovating on native cuisine before it is lost to us.
New York Magazine
More than just a cookbook, this is an act of reclamation of Native Americans' history – and their future.
National Public Radio/NPR
An edible connection to the gifts of this land—and a celebration of the culinary culture of its indigenous people.
The Washington Post
This is an essential book for any kitchen shelf.
Uproxx
Contents
Introduction
How to Use This Book
(Not) Fry Bread
Fields and Gardens
Roasted Corn with Wild Greens Pesto
Three Sisters Summertime Salad with Smoked Trout
Wojape Mint Sauce
Locavores and Trade-a-vores
Salad of Griddled Squash, Apples, Wild Greens, and Toasted Walnuts
Maple Dressing
Spring Salad with Tamarack Honey Drizzle
Hopniss
Deviled Duck Eggs
Duck Egg Aioli
Wild Greens Pesto
Wild Greens
Stuffed Squash Blossoms
Corn Mushrooms
Sautéed Corn Mushrooms with Fresh Corn and Fried Sage
Braised Sunflowers (or Sunchokes)
Griddled Maple Squash
Gete Okosomin—Big Old Squash
Cedar-Braised Beans
Beans
Crispy Bean Cakes
Three Sisters Mash
Smoked Whitefish and White Bean Spread
Sunchokes
Maple–Sage Roasted Vegetables
The Language of Corn
Simple Corn Cakes with Assorted Toppings
Blue Corn Cake Variation
Hominy Cakes
Teosinte
Kneel Down Bread
Sioux Chef Tamales
Old-Fashioned Cornmeal Mush with Poached Eggs
Amaranth
Amaranth Crackers
Wild Rice Cakes
Sorrel Sauce
Summer’s Vegetable Soup with Wild Greens
Missouri River Pozole
Hearty Mushroom, Sweet Potato, and Bean Soup
Fish Head and Wild Rice Soup
White Bean and Winter Squash Soup
Wozupi—An Indigenous Farm of the Mdewakanton Tribe, Minnesota
Smoked Turkey and Acorn Soup
Squash and Apple Soup with Cranberry Sauce
Black Bean and Yucca Soup with Warming Spices
Prairies and Lakes
Wild Rice
Real Wild Rice
Tatanka Truck Fried Wild Rice Bowl
Wild Rice Pilaf with Wild Mushrooms, Roasted Chestnuts, and Dried Cranberries
Mushrooms
Timpsula Cakes with Cedar-Braised Beans
Timpsula
Smoked Whitefish or Trout
Cattails
Wild Rice–Crusted Walleye
Red Lake Walleye—the Good Fish Story
Herb-Roasted Fish
Tatanka Truck Sunflower-Crusted Trout
Maple–Juniper Roast Pheasant
Grouse with Cranberry and Sage
Sweet and Sour Roast Goose with Autumn Squash and Cranberries
Seared Duck Breast with Cider Glaze
Sage and Rose-Hip Roasted Duck
Crispy Duck Legs
Rendering Duck or Goose Fat
Duck Pâté, with Dried Apple
Duck and Wild Rice Pemmican
Smoked Duck or Pheasant
Roast Turkey, Wild Onions, Maple Squash, and Cranberry Sauce
Maple-Brined Smoked Turkey
Cider-Braised Turkey Thighs
Rabbit
Old-Fashioned Rabbit Stew
Rabbit Braised with Apples and Mint
Bison
Bison Tartare
The Noble Way to Hunt
Bison Ribs
Braising, an Ancient Method
Cedar-Braised Bison
Grilled Bison Skewers with Wojape
Indigenous Tacos
Tanka
Bison Wasna
Taniga
Hunter’s Stew
Lamb Sausage
Venison Chops with Apples and Cranberries
Venison or Elk Stew with Hominy
Nature’s Sweets, Teas, and Refreshing Drinks
Sunflower Cookies
Edible Flowers
Corn Cookies
Autumn Harvest Cookies
Amaranth Bites
Chocolate Pecan Bites
Chestnuts
Raspberry–Rose-Hip Sauce
Acorn and Wild Rice Cakes
Popped Amaranth Cakes (Alegría)
Wild Rice Pudding
Ricing Moon
Sunflower Milk Sorbet
Sunflowers
Sweet Corn Sorbet
Hazelnut Maple Sorbet
Wild Rice Sorbet
Maple Squash Sorbet with Cranberry Sauce
Blueberry–Raspberry–Bergamot Spoon Sweet
Wild Apple Sauce (Savory or Sweet)
Caramelized Seed Mix
Roasted in the Shell Sunflower Seeds
Seed Savers Snacks
Roasted Maple Seeds
Toasted Pumpkin and Squash Seeds
Toasted Sunflower Seeds
Indigenous Granola
Native Granola Bars
Maple Bruleed Squash with Blueberries
Tobacco
Teas and Refreshing Drinks
Labrador Tea
Cedar Tea
Mint Tea
The Firewater Myth
Bergamot Tea
Raspberry Leaf Tea
Chaga
Sumac Lemonade
The Indigenous Pantry
Sunny Butter
Indigenous Flours
Wild Rice Flour
Vegetable Flour
Acorn Meal Flour
Hazelnut Flour
Chestnut Flour
Indigenous Stocks
Wild Rice Stock
Corn Stock
Cedar Bean Stock
Fish, Game, Meat Stock
Wojape
Sprouts
Wild Onions and Ramps
Puffed Wild Rice
Corn Nuts
Dried Mushrooms
Dried Apple Slices
Tapping Trees—More Than Maple
Maple Wine and Vinegar
Native Herbs and Seasonings
Staghorn Sumac
Mineral Salt
Smoked Salt
Culinary Ash
Indigenous Partners and Guides
Chef Rich Francis
Scallops with Three Sisters Reduction and Four Medicines
Chef Karlos Baca
Labrador Tea–Smoked Quail with Manoomin Fritter and Wojape
Chef Lois Ellen Frank
Juniper-Cured Elk with Dried Chokecherry Sauce
Chef Andrea Murdoch
Inca Trail Mix
Chef Freddie Bitsoie
Corn Broth
Chef Brian Tatsukawa
J. D. Kinlacheeny’s Chilchin (Sumac) Pudding
Terri Ami’s Blue Corn Mush
Felicia Cocotzin Ruiz
Two-Fruit Jam Scattered with Seeds
Valerie Segrest
Wild Berries with Amaranth
Nourishing Tradition
Feasts of the Moon
Spirit Plate
Dinner of the Flower Moon, Waabigwanii-giizis
Dinner of the Chokecherry Moon
Dinner of the Midsummer Moon, Moningwunkauning and Aabita-niibino-giizis
Feast of the Wild Rice Moon
Dinner of the Great Spirit Moon, Gichi-manidoo-giizis
Feast of the Sorcerer and the Eagle
Owamni and the Buffalo Sky
Acknowledgments
Resources
Photography Credits
Index
About This Book
Related Publications
Related News & Events
Minnesota Daily: Redefining local, indigenous cuisine in Minnesota and beyond
The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen wins 2018 James Beard Foundation Book Award
Minnesota Daily: Redefining local, indigenous cuisine in Minnesota and beyond
The Sioux Chef is revitalizing Native American cuisine.
“These are our go-to cakes for breakfast, as a snack, and as the base for a well-seasoned bison braise or duck. They’re especially good topped with smoked fish. Make them tiny for an appetizer or big for dessert slathered in maple-berry sauce."
Huffington Post: This Thanksgiving, Make These Native Recipes From Indigenous Chefs
“I think we could do so much better [by having] a holiday that’s not focused on something that just dismisses so much intense history for a large group of people,” he said. “It should really be about giving thanks for the harvest season and [exploring] an indigenous dinner.”
Uproxx: It’s Native American Heritage Month — Here’s How To Support And Learn
November is Native American Heritage Month. This month gives us an opportunity to connect to the Indigenous communities throughout the United States. There are 326 Indian Reservations with 567 different tribes across the United States. Yes, some reservations hold multiple different nations on them. See, we’re already learning.
Yes! Magazine: The Disruption of White Supremacy
The white male-centric colonial system is incapable of the leadership we need, and Indigenous knowledge is essential for the innovation that will follow this disruption.
Southwest Journal: An evolving cuisine
Sean Sherman’s new cookbook describes the philosophy behind his culinary projects
Uproxx: The Best Kitchen Gifts For The Wannabe Chef In Your Life
This is an essential book for any kitchen shelf.
WTIP: Sean Sherman on The Roadhouse
Sean Sherman is an Oglala Lakota chef and founder of The Sioux Chef. His new cookbook, "The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen," shares award-winning recipes, stories and wisdom, and was named one of the best cookbooks of 2017 by NPR, Smithsonian Magazine, and more. Jay spoke recently with Sean about his book and his work.
The Field Museum blog: Reinvigorating Indigenous food systems
For chef Sean Sherman, aka the Sioux Chef, cooking with Indigenous foods and repurposing those ingredients goes beyond the paleo diet.
NPR comic and interview with Sean Sherman: "If we can control our food, we can control our future"
Sean Sherman, author of The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen, discusses his research and reclamation of indigenous ingredients and techniques, illustrated in this NPR comic.
Hello Giggles: It's time to start paying attention to indigenous foods — especially on Thanksgiving
Food sovereignty — the right to grow, make, and eat culturally-appropriate foods — is an important component of the indigenous rights movement, but native foods aren’t just for indigenous people.
PRI: Indigenous chef Sean Sherman wants you to know the truth behind Thanksgiving
"When you read about history, you read a lot about the hardships that happened between the colonists and the Native peoples that were living there on the East Coast," said Sherman. "And a lot of really brutal stories come out of that history."
Minnesota Monthly: Indigenous-Inspired Feasts for Thanksgiving
Sioux Chef founder Sean Sherman on cooking Indigenous-inspired feasts for Thanksgiving, from forest to table.
San Francisco Chronicle: Sean Sherman’s Maple-Juniper Roast Pheasant
From THE SIOUX CHEF'S INDIGENOUS KITCHEN.
San Francisco Chronicle: American Indians strive to restore nearly lost tribal food traditions
To present modern ideas of indigenous food that also recognize precolonial traditions, native chefs from across the continent are flying to New York City over Thanksgiving weekend to participate in a series of pop-up dinners. Oglala Lakota chef Sean Sherman of Minneapolis is probably the most visible symbol of the current native foods resurgence, with a new cookbook, “The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen.”
If you're foraging in Duluth this time of year, think chaga, highbush cranberries — not to mention cedar, which Sean Sherman would use for tea, cedar-braised beans, soup stock. In fact, whenever someone is coming up this way, he said he asks them to bring some cedar back to Minneapolis.
NYT: Podcasts for Thanksgiving: 11 Episodes That Go Beyond the Bird
Mention of Sean Sherman's THE SIOUX CHEF'S INDIGENOUS KITCHEN in the New York Times.
CBS Sunday Morning: The Sioux Chef
"You can throw a dart at a map of North America, and wherever it lands, there's gonna be culture, food, people and flavor to play with right there, and so many stories to tell you can write a book," said chef Sean Sherman. And he's done just that.
Heirloom Gardener: Different Types of Beans with Three Sisters Mash Recipe
Learn about different types of beans and its role in Native American cuisine. Recipe from The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen.
Heirloom Gardener: Different Types of Wild Greens with Pesto Recipe
Add zest to salads and pesto by using wild greens found in your backyard. Recipe from The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen.
Kitchn: The New Cookbooks We're Most Excited About This Fall
Kitchn's Fall Preview includes The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen.
Food & Wine: Sean Sherman on Decolonizing the American Diet
From his home base in Minneapolis, Oglala Lakota chef and educator Sean Sherman's reach extends into many areas. He is studying and promoting indigenous North American foods with projects that range from pop-up dinners to plant taxonomy.
Publishers Weekly: The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen
An illuminating guide to Native American food that will enthrall home cooks and food historians alike.
'It's what paleo wants to be': Star Tribune interview with Sean Sherman, Beth Dooley
What’s a quintessential Native American dish? Lee Svitak Dean asks the author of The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen.
James Beard Foundation blog: The American Cuisine You Should Be Eating
American cooking is often celebrated as a melting-pot cuisine, but what about the foods and traditions that came before all of Lady Liberty’s huddled masses stepped into our nation’s kitchens? Oglala Lakota chef Sean Sherman has made it his mission to revive public interest in the food systems of North America’s indigenous populations.
Cowboys and Indians: The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen
Sean Sherman’s cookbook urges us to wake up to the past and to the actual American food.
Muskogee Phoenix: The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen
Recipe excerpt of The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman, with Beth Dooley
Modern Farmer | Earth Mover: Sean Sherman
“It’s not like I could go to the library and check out Joy of Native American Cooking,” quips Sean Sherman, author of the recently released The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen cookbook.
Kitchn: The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen
Recipe excerpts from The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen by Sean Sherman
Iowa Public Radio: The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen
For the last decade Sean Sherman, also known as the Sioux Chef, has been on a mission to educate Midwesterners about indigenous food and the recipes of his ancestors. Sherman is Ogalala Lakota, and his new cookbook is called The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen. During this Talk of Iowa interview, he talks with host Charity Nebbe.
TIME Magazine: The Thanksgiving Tale We Tell Is a Harmful Lie.
Every November, I get asked an unfortunate, loaded question: “You’re a Native American—what do you eat on Thanksgiving?” My answer spans my lifetime.
The Splendid Table: Exploring indigenous kitchens of North America with Sean Sherman
For his new book, The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen, Sherman and co-author Beth Dooley pulled from his travels to and experiences cooking with native cultures all over North America. Sherman talked with Francis Lam, and shared with him some unique food and ingredients. You can make Sherman's recipes for Maple-Juniper Roast Pheasant and Cedar Tea.
The Post and Courier: Three Sisters Mash recipe
Wagmíza na Omníča na Wagmú Patȟáŋpi (Three Sisters Mash), from "The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen" by Sean Sherman with Beth Dooley.
City Pages: Rediscover a bounty of Midwestern flavors with 'The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen'
“What did my ancestors eat before the Europeans arrived on our lands?”
(Not) Fry Bread: The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen
Sean Sherman’s latest cookbook, The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen, offers recipes mixed among wisdom about sustainable living.
Foreword Reviews: The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen
There are cookbooks from which one simply cooks the recipes, and cookbooks like Chef Sherman’s, from which one learns how and why to cook.
Indian Country Today | Exclusive First Look: Two Recipes From ‘The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen’
In honor of the upcoming Maoominike-giizis, Feast of the Wild Rice Moon in late summer, Sherman shares two indigenous recipes from ‘The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Kitchen’
LA Times: 10 of the best new cookbooks of 2017
Featuring Sean Sherman's 'The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen.'
Great Big Story: The Chef Bringing Native American Food to Your Table
Sean Sherman's creations are truly gourmet. And with each beautiful dish, this chef is helping re-educate the American palate.
Minnesota Monthly: “Sioux Chef” Challenges Definition of Local Food with Indigenous Restaurants
Chef Sean Sherman is revitalizing indigenous food traditions with two upcoming restaurants, a cookbook, and a nonprofit—using only food native to Minnesota
Sierra Club Magazine: Sean Sherman Feature
Feature on Sean Sherman, author of The Sioux Chef's Indigenous Kitchen