Loretta Barrett Oden

Loretta Barrett Oden is an American chef, Native foods historian, food writer, and television show host. She is an enrolled member of the Potawatomi tribe. She wrote and hosted the PBS series Seasoned With Spirit: A Native Cook's Journey. Oden writes a column, Spirit of the Harvest, for Native Peoples Magazine.

Loretta Barrett Oden
Born
Shawnee, Oklahoma, U.S.
Occupation(s)Chef, Native foods historian, writer, television show host
AwardsNew England Emmy

Early life

Oden was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma.[1] She is a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.[2][3]

Career

Oden spent three years traveling around the United States learning recipes from many different Native American tribes.[4]

In the early 1990s when she was 50 years old,[5] Oden opened a restaurant, Corn Dance Café in Santa Fe, New Mexico with her son Clayton. The dishes were inspired by the many tribal traditions she learned in her travels.[4]

She returned to Oklahoma in 2003.[5]

Oden is a native foods historian, food writer, and television show host.[6] She is the chef consultant of the First Americans Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.[7] She is working with AARP on an elder meals program, Native Origins.[8]

Oden wrote and hosted the PBS series Seasoned With Spirit: A Native Cook's Journey for which she won a New England Emmy.[9]

She is a founding council member of the not-for-profit organization, Native American Food Sovereignty Alliance, for the food security of Native peoples; that they can continue to produce their own food in traditional ways.[8]

Oden writes a column, Spirit of the Harvest, for Native Peoples Magazine.[1]

Personal life

Oden was first married to Jerry Vandegrift, whose father started Van's Pig Stand,[5] Oklahoma’s oldest single family owned barbecue restaurant. [10]

She has two sons and two stepdaughters from her second marriage.[5]

References
  1. "Cheyenne River Will Learn to Eat Like the Ancestors With Chef Loretta Barrett Oden". Indian Country Today. 13 September 2018. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  2. "Fry Bread, Casinos and Mexican Cuisine: Native American Food in California". LA Weekly. November 21, 2016.
  3. "Native American chef shares indigenous culinary traditions". www.jsonline.com.
  4. King, Lesley (21 June 1995). "At the Nation's Table: Santa Fe, N.M.; Serving Indian Dishes with Ritual and Flair". The New York Times.
  5. "Loretta Oden: Native Tastes". 27 March 2019.
  6. Dowell, Sharon (15 November 2006). "Tradition rules Thanksgiving meal Chef to use regional, seasonal ingredients". The Oklahoman. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  7. "'So it's kind of my way of teaching a history lesson,' How one Oklahoma woman uses Native American cuisine to educate others on the diversity of tribes". November 25, 2021.
  8. "Cultural Cooking: Acclaimed Potawatomi Chef Loretta Barrett Oden Finds Inspiration in Her Roots". Citizen Potawatomi Nation. 20 November 2017. Retrieved 25 November 2021.
  9. "Loretta Barrett Oden's spirited journey on PBS". Oklahoman.com. 2007-08-08. Retrieved 2021-11-25.
  10. "Business: Van's Pig Stand celebrates 91 years of barbecue".
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