A look at some of the chefs who are transforming the Canadian culinary scene with their creative takes on Indigenous cuisine.
By Joann Pai
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Words and photography by Paris-based food & travel photographer Joann Pai (@sliceofpai) on assignment for Go Canada in partnership with the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC).
I had the honour of attending a spectacular event held by Destination Vancouver’s Dine Out Vancouver Festival as part of the World Chef Exchange. Four top Indigenous chefs from across Canada were invited to share their culinary culture with us. They each brought ingredients from their respective home regions with them, including herbs that were foraged as well as wild game such as beaver and narwhal. In addition to the excitement of discovering a cuisine that’s relatively new to me, I was looking forward to meeting the chefs and hearing more about their stories.
The dinner events took place over four nights at Vancouver’s renowned Indigenous restaurant, Salmon n’ Bannock Bistro. First up was Odawa chef Joseph Shawana, who infuses his classical French training with Aboriginal cooking. He wowed us with his pine ash crusted venison loin and finished with a sweet grass creme brulee, reminiscent of flavours from his childhood.
Next came chef Cezin Nottaway of Algonquin Anishinabe. We started by cozying up with a bowl of partridge and wild rice consomme. Cezin shared touching memories of preparing beaver with her mom, and how her kids helped forge the wild garlic used in the aioli. It was my first time tasting beaver meat and I really enjoyed it! The meal ended with a “maple delight tasting” - maple syrup enjoyed three ways. The syrup was brought from Cezin’s home.
Cree chef Shane Chartrand cooked up some recipes from his cookbook, Tawaw: Progressive Indigenous Cuisine. We were treated to Albacore tuna with creamed corn, beet cured salmon with Saskatoon sauce, bison striploin with celeriac and chocolate beet cake.
The grand finale was chef Sheila Flaherty of Inuvialuk. Sheila began the dinner by lighting the qulliq, a traditional seal- oil lamp used in the Arctic. We began with a local delicacy of grilled narwhal over rice, wrapped with seaweed. The texture and flavors were so specific, I’ve never tasted anything like it! Sheila also introduced us to Arctic clams, which have a texture like geoduck.
What an incredible experience it was to be a part of these four unique dinners. I learned so much about each chef, their part of the world and their relationship with and contributions to food culture.
During this experience, I stayed at Skwachàys Lodge, the first Indigenous-owned and operated hotel in Vancouver. The 18 rooms were all designed by different Indigenous artists, and the rooftop includes a sweat lodge and authentic smudge room to purify the body, heart, soul and spirit. The building also houses an Indigenous Art Gallery, and an Urban Indigenous Artists in Residence Program.
In addition to the dinners, my experience was enriched with the Talking Trees Tour around Stanley Park and a visit to the Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art. Candace, who led the Talking Trees Tour, led us through the park and showed us the local trees and plants harvested by Indigenous Peoples for food and medicine.
I learned so much during this short once-in-a-lifetime experience and I'm looking forward to being exposed to more Indigenous cuisine, culture and experiences. ~Joann Pai
To explore more Indigenous culinary experiences, visit: IndigenousCuisine.ca
Joann Pai
Contributor
Joann Pai is a Canadian food, interior, and travel photographer based in Paris. She first discovered her passion for food photography when she realized her love for food didn’t match her skills in the kitchen. Since then, she has travelled around the world on assignments, discovering food cultures through her lens. Her work has been featured in esteemed publications such as Condé Nast Traveler, and The New York Times, Bon Appetit, and AFAR.
