Today the Native American Curriculum Team spent the morning training our chefs on the cultural significance, history, and traditional processing of corn. This included shelling, nixtamalizing, and pounding white corn with a mortar and pestle. After processing, the chefs learned to prepare traditional Seneca corn bread with the flour they pounded. Next, they learned to make frybread which is not a traditional Seneca dish, but is a contemporary dish enjoyed all throughout Indian Country today.
Lastly everyone sampled their cornbread, frybread, and green corn soup. This training supports the district's initiatives to include Seneca dishes alongside other menu options throughout the entire school year beginning this fall.
SCCSD and NACT would like to express our gratitude to Ganondagan State Historic Site for allowing our district to borrow the mortar and pestle for trainings offered to the staff this summer.
