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| Native women preparing crops for a long winter. |
The indigenous people of the Chicago region and of the eastern woodlands were farmers, or at least they were during the summer months. After spending the winter hunting in the forest, these natives returned to their summer camp in time to set out their crops. Corn, beans, pumpkins, squashes, and other things were planted close to the village in natural clearings or in patches that their people themselves cleared.
The women did all the work in the fields. They planted the crops, tended them, and finally harvested them. About the only thing the men did was to guard and protect the fields when enemies were close by or if enemies attacked.
Corn was the most important crop that their women raised, and it was a very big part of their diet. It was harvested late in the summer when the ears were almost ripe. The natives prepared corn in a number of ways for eating. Some of our corn dishes today, such as corn bread, succotash, and hominy, are prepared in much the same way as they were by their ancestors a long time ago.
Roast corn on the cob was a favorite dish. The hot coals of a fire were scraped away and the unhusked green ears were placed on the hot ground and covered with ashes. Then the hot coals were pushed back over the ashes and the fire was built up and kept going until the ears were thoroughly roasted. A less troublesome way of roasting corn was simply to build a fire between two logs that were set close together and then lay the ears of corn across the logs.
Parched corn was a favorite on the trail food because it was light, took up very little space, and could be made into a nourishing gruel without cooking. The kernels of raw corn were parched slightly in the hot coals of a fire. A little maple sugar was mixed with the kernels, which were then pounded into a fine meal. Sometimes dried berries were added and ground up with the corn, and sometimes chopped meat was added to this mixture. Whenever the natives had time to eat, they simply added a little water to the mixture and had a plain but satisfying snack. Maple sugar, however, was never added when the corn was to be eaten on the trail by the hunters or the warriors, for the Indians believed that, because the branches of the maple trees were tossed about by the winds, the maple sugar would make the men dizzy! Parched corn mixed with bear fat was another on-the-trail food, as was popcorn, which the natives either ate whole or ground into flour and cooked with venison and wild rice.
Indigenous people cultivated several kinds of beans. The most common were lima beans and kidney beans. Beans were planted in the corn fields along with pumpkins and squashes. Beans were grown by almost every tribe of farming Indians in North America. The many varieties and names of beans tell us that beans have been grown from very early times.
Squashes and pumpkins were sometimes eaten fresh, but they were usually preserved. The Natives removed the seeds and the rind and then cut around the pumpkins and squashes in large circles to make long strips about an inch thick, which were hung up on racks to dry. When the strips were dry they were tied together and stored away. Cooked with meat and corn to make a flavorsome dish.
Native Americans generally ate one regular meal a day, although it seems that often they ate whenever they were hungry. The men, as a rule, were served first by the women. Svoboda
Read more about the gifts from Native Americans:
The women did all the work in the fields. They planted the crops, tended them, and finally harvested them. About the only thing the men did was to guard and protect the fields when enemies were close by or if enemies attacked.
Corn was the most important crop that their women raised, and it was a very big part of their diet. It was harvested late in the summer when the ears were almost ripe. The natives prepared corn in a number of ways for eating. Some of our corn dishes today, such as corn bread, succotash, and hominy, are prepared in much the same way as they were by their ancestors a long time ago.
Roast corn on the cob was a favorite dish. The hot coals of a fire were scraped away and the unhusked green ears were placed on the hot ground and covered with ashes. Then the hot coals were pushed back over the ashes and the fire was built up and kept going until the ears were thoroughly roasted. A less troublesome way of roasting corn was simply to build a fire between two logs that were set close together and then lay the ears of corn across the logs.
Parched corn was a favorite on the trail food because it was light, took up very little space, and could be made into a nourishing gruel without cooking. The kernels of raw corn were parched slightly in the hot coals of a fire. A little maple sugar was mixed with the kernels, which were then pounded into a fine meal. Sometimes dried berries were added and ground up with the corn, and sometimes chopped meat was added to this mixture. Whenever the natives had time to eat, they simply added a little water to the mixture and had a plain but satisfying snack. Maple sugar, however, was never added when the corn was to be eaten on the trail by the hunters or the warriors, for the Indians believed that, because the branches of the maple trees were tossed about by the winds, the maple sugar would make the men dizzy! Parched corn mixed with bear fat was another on-the-trail food, as was popcorn, which the natives either ate whole or ground into flour and cooked with venison and wild rice.
Indigenous people cultivated several kinds of beans. The most common were lima beans and kidney beans. Beans were planted in the corn fields along with pumpkins and squashes. Beans were grown by almost every tribe of farming Indians in North America. The many varieties and names of beans tell us that beans have been grown from very early times.
Squashes and pumpkins were sometimes eaten fresh, but they were usually preserved. The Natives removed the seeds and the rind and then cut around the pumpkins and squashes in large circles to make long strips about an inch thick, which were hung up on racks to dry. When the strips were dry they were tied together and stored away. Cooked with meat and corn to make a flavorsome dish.
Native Americans generally ate one regular meal a day, although it seems that often they ate whenever they were hungry. The men, as a rule, were served first by the women. Svoboda
Read more about the gifts from Native Americans:
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