Canada Aboriginals

Recipes

Geographic Setting and Environment

The phrases "Native Canadians" or "Aboriginals" describe the descendants of the people who were living in what is modern-day Canada before European colonists, explorers, and traders arrived in the 1600s. Giving labels to these groups is complicated by emotional and historical issues. Aboriginals inhabited all regions of Canada and the United States, and dozens of tribal groups, lived, hunted, fished, and foraged (gathered native plants) all across North America. The provinces of modern-day Canada obviously did not exist when the Europeans arrived on the east coast of Canada.

The Inuit inhabit the northernmost parts of Canada. On April 1, 1999, Nunavut (pronounced NOON-ah-voot) became Canada's newest territory, created from about half the land that made up the Northwest Territories.

History and Food

In general, most Canadians agree that the approximately 800,000 Aboriginal Canadians counted by the 1996 Census of Population may be identified as belonging to one of three groups: First Nations (554,000), Métis (210,000), and Inuit (Innu, 40,000). The First Nations people are members of the approximately 50 recognized "First Nations" or tribal groups in Canada, and they inhabit all parts of Canada. The Métis are descendants of the intermarriages that occurred between the men employed by the early European fur trading companies (Hudson's Bay Company and Northwest Fur Company) and Native Canadian women.

The Inuit are the descendants of the Thule people who migrated from the Canadian arctic 700 to 800 years ago. They have been inhabiting the territory of modern Canada for thousands of years. They were historically hunters and fishers. Because of the harsh climate of their northern homelands, the Inuit diet included very few fresh vegetables or fruits. In the short summers, they would gather berries, both for eating fresh and for drying to eat during the long, cold winter. They would also gather seeds and nuts to store to supplement the winter diet. Grains such as corn, wheat, and wild rice were harvested and dried. Grains would sometimes be ground to produce flour, or mixed with water and cooked.

Pemmican is a nutritious, high calorie food that can be prepared in quantities and stored. The French and English explorers, trappers, and traders, bought large quantities of pemmican from the Aboriginals, and even learned to make pemmican. Pemmican would be sealed inside an animal skin or stomach cavity to preserve it. Europeans carried these pemmican stores on long furtrading expeditions.

See Pemmican Cakes recipe.

Foods of Native Canadians

The traditional diet of Aboriginal people was made up of the animals and plants found on the land and in the sea around them. Seal, whale, buffalo, caribou, walrus, polar bear, arctic hare (rabbit), all kinds of fish and many species of bird were hunted or fished. Raw blubber (fat) was enjoyed or mixed with meat or berries. Every part of the animal was consumed or used to make clothing or shelter. Because the foods were eaten raw or with minimal processing, the Aboriginal people were generally well nourished.

Modern-day First Nations, Métis, and Inuit people have added processed foods and convenience foods to their traditional diet, and are experiencing the health problems that come from consumption of foods rich in sugar and additives (such as tooth decay and obesity).

Their traditional diet was nutritious and high in calories, but the calories were needed to help keep their bodies warm through the long, frigid winters. During the short summers, Aboriginals (mainly the women) would plant small gardens and gather wild berries and seeds. Corn, beans, and squash were common vegetables grown in the small gardens of Manitoba and Alberta. These vegetables were often simmered to make soups or stews, such as Three Sister Soup (the "sisters" are corn, beans, and squash).

Snacks were often enjoyed right on the trail—a few berries or dried seeds plucked from the wild plants. Some were eaten right on the spot, and some may have been carried home to share or save for another day.

See Saskatoon Berry Snack recipe.

See Three Sisters Soup recipe.

See Bannock recipe.

See Bannock on a Stick recipe.

See Man-O-Min (Ojibwa Wild Rice) recipe.

Food for Religious and Holiday Celebrations

The traditional feasts held by Aboriginal peoples usually revolved around a harvest, or seasonal excess of food. For example, if there was a large salmon catch, a feast would be held. When a youth killed his first seal or caribou, a celebration feast might be held.

In western Canada, Aboriginal peoples held ceremonial parties called potlatches to celebrate the birth of a child, a young woman reaching puberty, or the marriage of a son. Modern-day potlatches are held to celebrate and preserve Aboriginal culture.

In 1996 an annual National Aboriginal Day was proclaimed, to be celebrated on June 21 each year. There is no specific menu associated with the celebration of this holiday, but many traditional foods, such as salmon, wild rice, and even buffalo, are enjoyed during the festivities staged by many of the Aboriginal groups.

See Wild Rice Cakes recipe.

Mealtime Customs

Aboriginal peoples are hospitable, and always have stews or teas simmering and available to serve to guests. Historically, cooking utensils were fashioned from natural materials and cooking was done over an open fire. Food preservation methods included smoking, drying, and encasing in melted animal fat or whale blubber.

Politics, Economics, and Nutrition

The substitution of packaged and fast foods for the nutrient-rich traditional Aboriginal diet has contributed to health problems among Aboriginal children.

The Canadian Government's Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development continues to work to address the concerns of the Aboriginal peoples. Addressing historic wrongs and developing modern-day programs is challenging, and representatives of the government and the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples are striving to communicate and design goals to meet the needs of all Canadians.

Further Study

Books

Alexander, Bryan and Cherry Alexander. What Do We Know About the Inuit. New York: Peter Bedrick Books, 1995.

Bruemmer, Fred. Arctic Memories: Living With the Inuit. Toronto: Key Porter Books, 1993.

Harper, Judith E. Inuit. Mankato, MN: Smart Apple Media, 1999.

Jackson, John C. Children of the Fur Trade: Forgotten Métis of the Pacific Northwest. Missoula, MT: Mountain Press, 1996.

Lutz, Norma Jean. Nunavut. Philadelphia: Chelsea House, 2000.

Mercredi, Morningstar. Fort Chipewyan Homecoming: A Journey to Native Canada. Minneapolis, MN: Lerner Publications, 1997

Morrison, David A. Arctic Hunters: The Inuit and Diamond Jenness. Hull, Quebec: Canadian Museum of Civilization, 1992.

Santella, Andrew. The Inuit. New York: Children's Press, 2001.

Web Sites

Aboriginal Awareness Week. [Online] Available http://www.aboriginalawarenessweek.gc.ca/ (accessed August 17, 2001).

Liboiron, Henri and Bob St-Cyr. "Making Pemmican." [Online] Available http://collections.ic.gc.ca/notukeu/pemmican_e.htm (accessed April 17, 2001).

Métis Nation. [Online] Available http://www.metisnation.ca (accessed August 17, 2001).

Métis Nation Ontario. [Online] Available http://www.metisnation.org (accessed August 17, 2001).

National Aboriginal Day. [Online] Available http://www.ainc-inac.gc.ca/nad (accessed August 17, 2001).