Available online 12 August 2016
Open Access
Review Article
- a Hoseo Universtiy, Dept. of Food and Nutrition, 165 Sechul-Ri, BaeBang-Yup Asan-Si, Asan, ChungNam-Do 336-795, South Korea
- b University of Arizona, Dept. Nutritional Sciences, 1177 E. 4th Street, Tucson, AZ 85721 USA
- c Daily Manufacturing Inc., 4820 Pless Rd., Rockwell, NC, 28138 USA
- Received 24 July 2016, Revised 29 July 2016, Accepted 8 August 2016, Available online 12 August 2016
- Open Access funded by Korea Food Research Institute
- Under a Creative Commons license
Abstract
Approximately
12,000-15,000 years ago people from Northeast Asia crossed the Bering
Land Bridge to enter and inhabit North America beginning in Alaska but
rapidly spreading throughout North and South American and the Caribbean
islands. These people rapidly adapted to the available food sources and
soon developed new foods. It is estimated that about 60% of the current
world food supply originated in North America. When Europeans arrived,
the Native Americans had already developed new varieties of corn, beans,
and squashes and had an abundant supply of nutritious food. The foods
of the Native Americans are widely consumed and their culinary skills
still enrich the diets of nearly all people of the world today. This
article provides only a small sampling of the rich and highly varied
Native American food culture that has been passed down to modern
civilization.
Keywords
- Native American;
- American Indian;
- Corn;
- Beans;
- Squash
1. Introduction
When
Christopher Columbus first sailed into the Bahama archipelago he
believed that he had reached Asia – thus the name Indian for the Native
Americans. However, it soon became clear that he had entered a “New
World” previously unknown to Europeans with unfamiliar new people,
flora, and fauna. Probably the greatest impact on “Old World” culture
was the rapid introduction of “New World” ornamental and food plants.
Soon orchids from the tropical rainforests of Central and South America
were highly sought after additions to the greenhouse collections of
wealthy Europeans. Christopher Columbus had sailed to the Caribbean
region in search of a route for obtaining spices [1]. However, what he found was not the cinnamon and cloves he sought, but Jamaican allspice 2 and 3, the dried unripe berries of Pimenta dolce, and chili and other peppers of the genus Capsicum.
It was not long until the new foods from the Americas were introduced
around the world and corn, potatoes, new varieties of beans and
squashes, peppers and tomatoes and many other foods were rapidly
accepted into the cuisines of the entire world ( Table 1) 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16. Now approximately 60% of the food consumed worldwide originated from the New World [17].
However, the introduction of food from Europe and Asia also changed the
diets of the Native American people. Today, few if any of the
descendants of the early Native American tribes eat diets that closely
resemble those of their ancestors, although many indigenous foods are
still eaten and Native American foods have been incorporated into the
cuisines of almost the entire world. Here we describe the diets and
dietary culture of the indigenous North American inhabitants, and
discuss the nutritional quality of those diets and the contributions
they make to the diets of all people.
- Table 1. Common Foods that Originated in the Americas
Name of Food [references] Region of Origin How Prepared Major Nutrients Provided Vegetables Casava [1] Brazil Cooked vegetable or bread Carbohydrate Chili and Bell Peppers Central America Cooked, Raw, or Seasoning Vitamin C, Flavonoids Jerusalem Artichoke North America Raw or cooked Probiotic fiber, minerals, B vitamins Lima Beans South America Cooked Protein, B vitamins, minerals Pole Beans: black turtle, pinto, navy, kidney & cranberry beans Probably originated in South America but possibly North and South America Cooked and used in breads Protein, minerals, B vitamins, fiber Potatoes [6] Peru Cooked and baked Carbohydrate, potassium Pumpkin North America Cooked Vitamins A & C Squash varieties North America Cooked Variable Sweet Potatoes [7] South and Central America Cooked Vitamin A, Folate, Minerals Tomatoes South and Central America Raw & cooked Vitamins A,C,K, potassium, lycopene Fruits Avocado [8] Mexico Raw & sauces Essential Fats, B Vitamins & A,E,K, and potassium Black Raspberry North America Raw, cooked, juice Vitamin C, anthocyanins, ellagic acid, manganese Blueberry North America Raw, cooked Vitamins C & K, manganese, anthocyanins Cacao, Chocolate Central America & Mexico Prepared as chocolate B vitamins, minerals, polyphenols Cranberry Northern North America Cooked, medicinal herb Vitamins A, E, & K Guava Mexico to Northern South America Raw, cooked, juice Very high in Vitamin C, and lycopene Papaya Mexico to South America Raw, cooked Vitamins A, E & K, potassium, lycopene Pineapple South America Raw, cooked, Vitamin C, folate Strawberry [9] Eastern North America Raw Vitamin C, fiber, minerals Grains Amaranth [10] Mexico Baked breads and cooked B vitamins, protein, minerals Corn [11] Mexico, Central America Cooked as vegetable and grain, Baked and fried grain breads Proten, B vitamins, fiber, magnesium, potassium Quinoa South America, Andes Cooked cereal Protein, B vitamins, fiber, minerals Wild Rice [12] North America Cooked cereal Protein, B vitamins, minerals Nuts and Seeds Black Walnut Eastern North America Raw, cooked, medicinal extracts Protein, B vitamins, fiber, minerals, essential fatty acids [13] Cashew Brazil Eaten semi-raw or cooked Protein, minerals, B vitamins, Peanut Argentina Raw, cooked, roasted Protein, B vitamins, fatty acids, Vitamin E, minerals Pecan [14] Southern USA, Mexico Raw, cooked, baked Protein, Fatty acids, B & E vitamins, minerals Sunflower North (most species) and South America Raw, cooked, roasted Fatty Acids, Protein, B & E Vitamins, Minerals Meats Bison (Buffalo) North America Cooked Protein, B Vitamins, Iron Turkey North America Cooked Protein, B Vitamins, minerals Sugar and Spices Allspice Caribbean, Mexico, Central America Seasoning Maple Syrup Northeastern USA Sweetener Sugar, minerals Vanilla Mexico, Central America Flavoring - Data in the table was obtained from numerous references 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16. The foods listed are not a comprehensive list of foods consumed by Native Americans, but list the major foods that originated in the Americas and are still commonly consumed by people throughout the world.
2. The Origins of Native Americans and their food
It
is commonly believed that the first Native Americans crossed from the
“Old World” into the “New World” across the Bering Land Bridge that
joined Siberia to Alaska at least 15,000 years ago [18],
but disappeared shortly thereafter. Although the passage of time
renders it is impossible to know for certain how, when, or why the Asian
ancestors of the Native Americans first appeared in North America, it
seems apparent that they either brought no animal or plant foods with
them, or that none survived. By the time Christopher Columbus first
entered the New World the Native Americans were relying on foods that
were indigenous to the region, although many had been improved by
hybridization or selection. Those foods became important to the entire
world, as Samuel Beck said: “The American Indian’s greatest contribution
to our civilization is, in the eyes of many experts, the patient
cultivation from their original wild state of the food plants which are
now more than half of our agricultural wealth.” [19].
There were numerous regional tribes with distinct diets, customs, and languages throughout the Americas (Fig.1),
but many of the foods spread among the regions due to well-organized
trade routes that were facilitated in part by a common hand sign
language used by many tribes [20]. Of the staple foods in North America known as the “three sisters” [21]
only squash was of North American origin. Corn and beans probably
originated in South America, but their use spread throughout North and
South America. As is obvious from Table 1,
the wealth of foods in North America made possible a balanced and
highly palatable diet. Many of the berries that are popular today for
their functional properties were also valuable additions to the Native
American diet; they would include phytochemical-rich blueberries,
elderberries, chokeberries, black raspberries, blackberries,
serviceberries, buffalo berries, and cranberries 22 and 23.
Animal foods were also a major part of the Native American diet. When
humans first arrived in North America they appear to have been
predominantly hunter-gatherers and megafauna including mastodons and
giant ground sloths were an important part of the diet 15 and 24.
However, their extinction an estimated 10-12,000 years ago is believed
to have resulted in major changes to the flora and fauna of North
America. This may have resulted in the transition of many Native
American tribes to at least a partial reliance on agriculture as a means
of obtaining a stable food supply. Whether the disappearance of the
approximately 60 species of megafauna at that time was the result of
human activity or rapid climate change that occurred during that period
is still unknown 17, 24 and 25.
Although the early food sources are difficult to identify with
certainty, it is almost certain that virtually all possible plants and
animals were used as foods. One of the best early records of Native
American customs and culture was published by James Adair, who spent
much time from 1735 until around 1770 working and living with the
natives of the area that is now the Southeastern United States [26].
In his book, James Adair describes the hunting of deer and bear, and
the methods of fishing. The main staple food he mentioned was corn,
which was often mixed with beans and chestnuts and baked to make a corn
bread (Fig.2).
We know from other sources that small game, turtles, turkeys, and
grouse were also commonly eaten by the Eastern Native Americans [27].
Of course, the exact makeup of the Native American diet depended to a
large extent on the indigenous plants and animals in the area where they
lived. For instance, saw palmetto berries were a unique common food of
the Florida tribes, desert tribes used the fruit and leaves of the
prickly pear cactus, and bison was an important food of the Native
American tribes of the western Great Plains, and is one of the few large
mammals used for food by the early Clovis people that avoided
extinction [28].
- Fig. 1.
Map of North America depicting the location of major Native American tribes. Asians first entered North America by crossing from Siberia into Alaska using the Bering land bridge, but soon spread throughout the Americas. This map shows some of the larger and better known tribes of the USA.
- Fig. 2.
Varieties of Native American Corn and Beans. The Native Americans developed a wide variety of foods by selective breeding and probably hybridization. Corn was available as white, yellow, red and blue varieties. Corn, beans, and squash provided a stable food supply that was augmented by hunting, fishing, and gathering of wild foods. Photo by Zachary Young, photo rights purchased from dreamstime.com.
3. Food collection: Hunting, gathering, agriculture
The
early Native Americans were all hunter/gatherers, living off the
abundance of plants and animals they found nearby. Because they remained
a largely stone age culture until Europeans arrived with metal tools,
very little remains of most of the early cultures other than stone
tools, pottery shards, and occasional bone fragments from butchered
animals. Most of their tools and dwellings were made of perishable
materials such as reeds for baskets, wood, animal skins, and vines.
Almost all had decomposed before becoming available to archeologists.
Much of what we know about the Native Americans we have learned from the
Europeans who first arrived and passed down records of their encounters
with various tribes. Of course, at that time the culture was already
thousands of years old, and had undoubtedly undergone many changes. What
we do know is that they had adapted very well to their environment and
were thriving as was described by an eyewitness, James Adair: “They (the
native Americans) are acquainted with a great many herbs and roots, of
which the general part of the English has not the least knowledge. If an
Indian were driven out into the extensive woods, with only a knife and a
tomahawk, or small hatchet, it is not to be doubted but he would
fatten, even if a wolf would starve. He could soon start a fire, by
rubbing two dry pieces of wood together, make a bark hut, make earthen
vessels, and a bow and arrow; then kill wild game, fish, fresh water
turtles, gather a plentiful variety of vegetables and live in
affluence.” [26].
3.1. Agriculture
The
“three sisters” (corn, beans, and squash) were the major staples of
Native American agriculture, and were always grown together. Corn was
the most important staple food grown by Native Americans, but corn
stalks also provided a pole for beans to climb and the shade from the
corn benefited squash that grew under the leaves. The beans, as with all
legumes, provided nitrogen for the corn and squash. Finally, the shade
from large squash and pumpkin leaves held moisture in the ground for all
three plants. Although other plants such as potatoes, tomatoes, peppers
were cultivated, the “three sisters” gardens were the backbone of North
American Indian agriculture and provided the primary dietary staples of
many tribes, and horticulture remains an important pare of modern
Native American life (Fig.3).
Early Native Americans did not divide their gardens into sections of
just one plant as is typical on today’s farms, but used companion
planting in rows of mounds about 12 inches (30 cm) high in which they
would plant the corn beans and squash or other garden plants together 29 and 30.
Between the mounds were troughs that were made by digging the soil to
make the mounds, these troughs served as reservoirs to collect water for
the garden. The system of agriculture developed by the Native Americans
would not be practical for use with modern tractors and harvesting
equipment, but was highly efficient for use in gardens prepared and
harvested by hand.
- Fig. 3.
Native American gardens. Farming and gardening remains an important part of many Native American cultures, and corn and beans are still important foods to the modern descendants of early Native Americans. These pictures depict Native American farmers still cultivating the same foods grown for thousands of years by their ancestors. A. Dora Marian’s field of beans and corn. B. Dora Mariano picking green pinto beans. C. Lola Lopez picking corn. All were taken at Meneger’s Dam Village, Tohono O’odham Reservation, November 1977. Photographer – Helga Teiwes (Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona). Pictures are published with the kind permission of Arizona State Museum, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ USA
3.2. Hunting
Most
people think of American Indians as relying on the bow and arrow for
hunting and warfare. Indeed, that was the weapon of choice when the
Europeans first arrived. However, the bow and arrow had only been in use
for about 1,000 years at that time [31].
Spears were the first tools we are aware of, and their exact methods of
construction are not known since the stone points are all that remain
since the shafts and other organic parts of them decomposed over time.
The atlatl was also developed early in Native American history, or may
have been brought with them when they first arrived from Asia. The
atlatl is a sling-like device to assist in throwing a spear to give it
more power and distance [32].
Finally, the bow and arrow were developed in the Americas, apparently
independent of outside influence, although the bow and arrow were first
developed in Alaska suggesting some possibility that there was contact
with Asians at that time, and the knowledge of crafting bows and arrows
may have been learned from others cultures. By the time Europeans
arrived bows and arrows were the weapons of choice, although spears and
atlatls were still in use. The atlatl was a more powerful weapon, but
less accurate, and may have been more effective for hunting the early
megafauna such as mastodons. The bow and arrow were well suited for
hunting deer, antelope, turkey and most of the other animals used for
food.
3.3. Fishing
Fishing
appears to have been a major source of food for the majority of Native
Americans. Most Indian villages were located close to rivers or large
streams where there was a dependable water supply, fish, and water fowl.
James Adair, described the importance of water to most of the tribes:
“Except the Choctaw, all of our Indians, both male and female, above the
late infancy, are in the watery element nearly equal to amphibious
animals, by practice…” [26].
He also described some of the fishing methods that impressed him the
most, such as wrapping one's hand with a cloth and putting it into
underwater holes where catfish waited and would swallow their hand,
allowing the Indian fisherman to pull the catfish onto the bank of the
river or stream. Probably the most common fishing method employed by
most native Americans was using a spear to “gig” the fish, but also nets
fashioned from vines, traps, and fish hooks made from bone were used. A
novel fishing method was using ground black walnut hull to spread into
pools, which would temporarily stun the fish and cause them to float to
the surface where they could easily be captured [33].
Although it is not a part of the popular lore of Indian culture as is
hunting, fish appear to have been an important part of the early Native
American diet.
4. Food preparation
It
is important to keep in mind that many Native Americans were largely
hunter/gathers until the Europeans arrived. Although many Native
American tribes had well-developed agriculture, they did not have
domesticated animals, and they still depended heavily on the wild plants
and animals for food. Also, James Adair mentioned that the Indians did
not use any kind of milk, he also stated that “None of the Indians
however eat any kind of raw salads, they reckon such food is only fit
for brutes.” [26]
Berries and fruits were eaten raw, but most other foods were cooked.
James Adair was impressed with the culinary skills of the Native
American women and said: “It is surprising to see the great variety of
dishes they can make out of wild flesh, corn beans, peas potatoes,
pumpkins, dried fruits, herbs and roots. They can diversify their
courses, as much as the English, or perhaps French cooks: and either of
the ways they dress their food, it is grateful to a wholesome stomach.” [26].
Cooking
methods included baking, frying, deep frying, boiling, and roasting
over an open fire. Corn was used in a variety of ways; succotash was a simple corn and beans dish with almost unlimited variations [21]. A simple recipe is shown in Recipe 1 in Table 2 (Fig.4A)
with a picture of the dish. This was a wonderful food that could
provide a balanced meal alone, with the corn and beans providing a
complete protein. Corn was also cooked as a porridge [34] known as sofkee
by the Seminole tribes in Florida. It was usually just corn flour
boiled in water. It could be eaten as a soup or drunk as a hot beverage.
Cornbread was also a very common food among all Native Americans [35]
and could be thin flat breads like tortillas or thick breads more like
modern cornbread or pancakes made from corn. Interestingly, all major
varieties of corn (red, blue, white, yellow) that are available today
were already available to the Native Americans when the Europeans first
arrived in the New World. Another way corn and beans were frequently
combined was to make “bean bread” [36] which is a corn bread with beans (Recipe 2 in Table 2, Fig.4B).
Bean bread is easy to make and, like most Native American recipes, the
ingredients and cooking methods can be varied according to what is
available as long as the basic cornmeal and some kinds of beans are
available. Cooking methods could also be varied, it could be baked, pan
fried or even deep fried. Fry bread is a very popular food of
most modern North American Indians, partly because it is a symbol of
their ability to survive under adverse conditions of being forcibly
removed from their homes to live in new areas where they were unfamiliar
with the local foods. The fry bread was what they survived on
by using rations provided by their white oppressors who forced them to
relocate to new areas and live on reservations. Fry Bread is easily prepared from simple, but not very nutritious, ingredients [37]. A recipe for fry bread is shown in recipe 3 in Table 2 (Fig. 4C).
Squash is the third of the 3 sisters and was also a major food, though
not as ubiquitous in the diet as corn. Many varieties of squash and
pumpkins were available to Native Americans including summer squashes
such as the yellow crookneck squash and hard squashes such as pumpkins,
acorn and butternut squashes. The hard, fall squashes could be stored
and used as fresh vegetables in the winter. Squashes could be prepared
by cutting into chunks and baking, adding to soups and stews, or baked
whole as in the recipe for baked acorn squash (Recipe 4 in Table 2, Fig. 4D).
There were also many ways to prepare meat and fish. The most common and
simple method was to cook them skewered over a fire. A simple way to
cook fish was to clean fish, salt fillets and let them stand overnight.
The next day they would be strung on a stick and roasted over a fire
with frequent turning until evenly cooked. Fish could also be fried in a
pan, but would not taste as good without the smoke flavor from the fire
[19].
Fish, birds, and meats could be cooked as soups, stews, and stir-fry
with vegetables. The stir fry would be much like fajitas, a popular
Mexican food, which consists of vegetables like peppers, onions, cooked
with strips of meat and served on a flat corn bread. Fish was popularly
prepared as a soup and served with corn mush (Recipe 5 in Table 2, Fig 4E) and was especially fed to sick people as a nutritious and easily digestible meal [19].
A simple menu for Cherokee fish and corn mush is shown in recipe 5.
Baked beans are a Native American food that has withstood the test of
time to be a popular food in many parts of the world [38].
Baked beans like most Indian recipes have many variations, but a basic
recipe using ingredients that would have been available to Native
Americans is shown in Recipe 6 in Table 2(Fig 4F).
Of course, what we have provided here is a small sampling of foods that
would have been eaten by Native Americans. Acorns were also used to
make bread and dumplings. For some Native Americans, acorns were an
important part of the diet [39]
although they required extensive washing with hot water to remove the
tannins. There is no single Native American diet. The diets of different
tribes varied considerably, according to the foods available in their
region. There are currently 567 officially recognized Indian tribes in
the USA. Each had their own language and food preferences, making it
impossible provide details about every tribe. However, each tribe
appears to have adapted well to the region in which they lived and were
able to obtain a wide variety of nutritious foods.
- Table 2. Recipes of Native American foods
Components
Substitutes Recipe 1. Succotash Recipe 2 cups fresh corn 2 cans of corn 2 cups fresh beans 2 cans of lima beans 1 Tablespoon Fat 1 Tablespoon of butter OptionalChopped wild or green onions, tomatoes, garlic cloves, peppers, juniper berries, fish or meat.Mix all ingredients in a pot and bring to a boil over a campfire or on a stove. Recipe 2. Bean Bread Recipe 2 Cups Yellow Corn Meal White or Blue Corn 1 Cup Cooked Pinto Beans Any Beans or Peas 1 Teaspoon Baking Powder 1 Teaspoon of Salt 6 Beaten Quail Eggs 2 Chicken Eggs Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl. Add beans with broth and beaten eggs and stir until well mixed. If more liquid is needed to make a soft dough. A little clean spring water can be added if needed. Heat a flat rock by the campfire or skillet on a stove at home and cover with bear grease or a vegetable oil at home and press down the dough to make a flat bread. Allow to cook well without burning. It should be able to stick a knife into the bread and remove it and not see any uncooked batter on the knife. Recipe 3. Fry Bread Recipe 3 cups white flour 2 teaspoons of baking powder 1 teaspoon of salt 1 tablespoon of animal fat or shortening 1½ cups of warm water Mix dry ingredients then add fat and cut in and finally add water gradually and mix to form a soft dough. Divide into balls of dough and allow to rise for about 20 min. Deep fry in bear fat or other oil. Carefully remove the fry bread when it is a golden brown color. Recipe 4. Acorn Squash Recipe 1 Acorn Squash 2 Tablespoon Maple Syrup Honey 2 Tablespoons walnuts pecans Raspberries & blueberries dried fruit Cut acorn squash in half, bake face down or covered in a hot oven until soft [about 1 hour]. Divide the maple syrup, nuts, and berries between the two halves and serve. Recipe 5. Fish and Corn Mush 2 Mediums sized fish cooked on a stick 1 cup corn meal Pinch of lye or soda Pinch of salt Place finely chopped fish in a pot, cover with water, and boil until a thick soup is formed. In another pot place corn meal with 3 times as much water add lye and salt and cook until a thick liquid. Serve together as a meal. Recipe 6. Baked Bean Recipe 2 cups dried beans 2 cans of beans ¼ cup maple syrup honey, sugar 1 chopped onion 1 cup cubed venison Bacon, ham, beef 1 teaspoon salt Optional ingredients: peppers, root vegetables and fish.Cook beans until well done, add other ingredients and place in a covered dish to bake by a campfire or in a stove at medium heat for at least 1 hour.
- Fig. 4.
Native American Foods prepared according to the recipes included in this article. A. Succotash is based on boiled sweet corn and beans, and is still a popular food in the Southern USA. B. Bean bread is corn bread with beans and can be quickly prepared to make a highly nutritious meal or side dish. C. Fry bread is a signature food of many contemporary Native Americans. It was developed out of hardship when tribes were forcibly relocated and provided little food other than flour and lard. D. Baked acorn squash. Squashes could be prepared many ways, and baking was one of the more popular. Other local foods could be combined to make highly palatable and nutritious main dish as show here. E. The Cherokee tradition of eating fish and corn mush, especially when sick, was a simple yet nourishing way to have a simple and easily digested meal. F. Baked beans, are a commonly eaten food by many people today, and can include many other ingredients, just as was common among the early Native Americans.
5. Native American Dishes that are still eaten today
Holiday
Foods in the USA (Thanksgiving and Christmas especially) traditionally
include turkey, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, baked beans, and mashed
potatoes; all of which originate from Native Americans. The original
Thanksgiving feast in the year 1621 was a gathering of English colonists
and local Indians. The records reveal that the feast which lasted
several days included deer, water fowl, turkeys, shellfish, eels,
squash, corn, and beans [40].
Other foods were probably eaten as well; chestnuts would have been
available as would some berries. However, what is known for sure is that
most of the traditional Thanksgiving foods of today were available at
that time even if they were not a part of that first Thanksgiving meal
almost 400 years ago.
Foods of the American South are greatly influenced by Native Americans: grits, cornmeal mush, cornbread, succotash,
and fried green tomatoes are all uniquely southern but with Native
American origins. Some people in the South still hunt raccoons,
opossums, and squirrels, as did the Native Americans. Of course venison,
deer meat, was and still is eaten throughout North America [28]. It is hard to imagine American breakfast foods without pancakes and maple syrup. James Adair [26]
described the local Indians tapping maple trees to obtain the sap which
would be concentrated by boiling to make a syrup. Southwestern and
Mexican foods are also heavily influenced by Native Americans. Nopal
(prickly pear cactus) leaves are frequently included in Mexican cooked
vegetables, but were first consumed by the Indians. Corn tortillas are a
thin fried corn bread used to make tacos and enchiladas which are
commonly filled with beans and meat. In what is widely known as the Columbia Exchange [41],
the foods of the Native Americans spread throughout the world, and the
foods of the rest of the World were introduced to the Native Americans.
This
account of North American aboriginal foods is limited in its ability to
convey the full scope of foods and food cultures that were developed by
Native Americans. There are well over 500 recognized Indian tribes in
the USA and some of the original tribes no longer exist. Each tribe had
its own language and foods. Figure 1
depicts just a few of those tribes. Therefore, we have provided only a
small sampling of the rich and highly varied Native American food
culture that has been passed down to modern civilization and enriches
the diets of people around the world. However, the reader can find much
additional information in the references we have provided.
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© 2016 Korea Food Research Institute. Published by Elsevier B.V.
