š„ Food People, Parent Picks: Crystal's Favorite Things
Crystal Wahpepah on Indigenous ingredients, weeknight soup, and cooking from the land youāre on.
Food People, Parent Picks: we ask our favorite chefs, food writers, and industry insiders who we interview in our Order Up! Series to share the products, books, and bites they canāt live without.
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Earlier this week in our Order Up! conversation, Crystal Wahpepah talked about building her restaurant, writing her new cookbook A Feather and a Fork: 125 Intertribal Dishes from an Indigenous Food Warrior, and carrying Indigenous foodways forward with intention and pride. If you havenāt read that interview yet, go back ā it offers important context for how she cooks, leads, and feeds her community.
Today, weāre getting practical. From the one cookbook she returns to again and again, to the three pantry staples she always keeps on hand, to the humble tool she swears by, Crystal shares the ingredients and habits that make her kitchen work.
One cookbook you return to again and again?
The Corn Dance by Loretta Barrett Oden [Bookshop, Amazon]. I go back to it constantly, maybe a little too much. Itās so precise and beautifully executed. The recipes say so much about the generations behind them. I also revisit food sovereignty books, depending on what phase Iām in. But The Corn Dance is the one I always return to.
Three Indigenous pantry staples you always have on hand?
Maple sugar.
Hand-harvested wild rice.
Dried corn.
Those three are non-negotiable for me.
One ingredient that instantly changes a dish?
Berries. Indigenous berries especially. Thereās so much you can do with them; they can be sweet or savory, used in sauces or as toppings. A lot of people donāt realize how versatile they are. Thatās why I highlight them in the book.
One kitchen tool you truly rely on?
A spoon! Thatās it. A spoon does everything.
When your daughters were younger, what did a busy weekday meal look like?
Soup. Always soup. I have three daughters. Two still love soup. One asks, āMom, are you making that soup again?ā Soup is such a good starting point. For example, you can make wild rice soup with vegetable stock, you can truly use whatever you have on hand.
Any time-saving shortcuts?
Meal plan. I donāt always love doing it, but it makes a difference.
And use what you have. Donāt rush to the store. Donāt overthink it. Sometimes we get picky and want something specific. Iāll tell my family, āThis is what weāre working with today.ā That mindset alone saves time.
A dish that consistently brings people together?
Our blue corn mush. Itās simple, but you can build on it however you want so itās really adaptable, and people love it. If you need something fast, you can top it with whatever you have.
A book or practice you recommend for helping kids understand where food comes from?
I love medicinal plant books ā books that explain how foods connect to the land and to healing.
And Iām always in independent bookstores. I love seeing whatās new on the shelves. Thatās my go-to. Walk into a bookstore and see whatās emerging, especially around Indigenous foodways.
From A Feather and Fork: where should someone start?
Start with the Three Sisters. Itās on the cover for a reason. Itās seasonal and flexible. A great entry point.
For families with younger kids or pickier palates? The chia pudding. You can rotate the berries depending on whatās in season. I use chokecherry when itās available in July and August, but you can swap in any berry. Kids love berries, and chia makes it fun and nourishing.
One dish that feels like a true reflection of you?
The sweet dried corn soup in the book. If you want to taste who I am, make that recipe.
What do you wish more families understood about Indigenous foodways?
Our foods have always been here. Theyāre not new. Theyāre not trends. These recipes have existed for thousands of years.
It just so happens that now theyāre showing up in cookbooks and on the forefront now, and thatās the exciting part. People are saying, āOh, I didnāt know that.ā
But this knowledge has always been here.
Anything else you want families to know?
Learn whose land youāre on. Explore the foods that are native to your region. Thatās where the connection starts.