Native American Frybread

  • Some of the links on this forum allow SMF, at no cost to you, to earn a small commission when you click through and make a purchase. Let me know if you have any questions about this.
SMF is reader-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.
Great historical post! I spent 10 yrs. off and on growing up in Taos, N.M. (actually a small ranching community about 20 miles north of Taos), and had a lot of friends from school that lived on the reservation and at Taos Pueblo. I still can smell and taste the fresh fry bread I would get when I spent the night at my friend Jason Little Crow's house.... brings back some great childhood memories. I was even lucky enough in that all the local schools would serve fry bread and chilli at least 1x per week.... mmmmmmm.
drool.gif


.... and I'm with your wife... butter and honey! Ooooh yeaahh!
 
g'morning, and thanks for the kind words! i'll have more for y'all, hopefully right after this weekend!

>>>Did you know that ground deer antler is a leavening agent?<<<

i didn't know that, but it makes sense, considering the minerals that are in deer antlers!
 
The food police tell us this is one of the worst things you can eat!

My taster tells me that I love it once in a while.

Good luck and good smoking.
 
That is really interesting to read and sounds like for how simple it can be that it would be amazingly tasty.  Of course I am something of a fan of flat bread style breads for most things.  Thanks for the information about fry bread and the history behind it.
 
venture and nicky - thanks!

hi, janet -

basically, it is very easy. you want:

3 cups of flour

1 tablespooon baking powder (not soda)

1 teaspoon salt

1 to 1.25 cups warm water

mix this into a dough that is not stiff, but fairly soft. not sticky, but not dry, either. rather like good bread dough or pizza dough.

meanwhile, heat your fat/oil in a cast iron or other heavy pan over medium heat. you want 1.5 to 2 inches of oil, so that you can deep-fry the bread.

break it off into 8 or 12 equal sections, depending on the size you want.

take a section and make it into a flat ball, then flatten the ball and stretch it, turning it so that it stays round, until it is fairly thin but not ripping.

if you wish, you can cut a hole or slit in the middle. this is not mandatory but some people prefer to do it.

drop it in the oil for a few minutes, until it is golden-brown on one side, then flip it over and cook it until the other side is also golden brown.

remove it and place it on a layer of paper towels to drain and cool a little bit.

the frybread should be slightly crispy on the outside, tender, and soft on the inside.

top it with just about anything you want, sweet or savory - or nothing at all, and enjoy!

i will be posting step-by-step pictures of this process soon which will help make this concept more clear, along with four of our favourite ways to enjoy frybread.
 
I've posted this before, but it is worth doing again. The tradition of native fry bread in Maine is different from elsewhere, although the "Western" version is gaining favor here as well. The recipe is the same but the bread is cooked in a lightly greased cast iron skillet and is often enjoyed with molasses. I'll post a pic the next time my wife makes some.
 
Last edited:
cliff - i'd be interested in seeing how it's done in maine - when you post it, please put a link here, and i will take a look at it and hopefully give it a try.

alesia - sorry it's been taking me so long to get going on this - my #2 son is home visitng, and it's been pretty busy around the house!

will try to get the tutorial posted ASAP
 
Always great recipes!--I'm waiting for the book!

...and great hostorical comments as well--since you don't mention your profession in your profile, I'm going to assume writing is involved somewhere?  :D
 
Great informative post.  We live between 3 reservations here and indian tacos are an item served at most diners.  Also have had it with chili, definately a favorite. 
 
thanks for the replies, guy -

rh - i lived in spearfish for a few years andwent to school at bhsu. met a lot of good folks there from the reservatins in south dakota- great people.

scc - beieve it or not, i'm in insurance! but history, writing and cooking have always been interests of mine (degree in history), so i combine them at FotW.
 
Last edited:
Found this thread and made them instantly... We dipped in Sicilian herbs with garlic oil mixed together... Kinda tasty... left overs I brushed with melted butter and sprinkled the cinnamon sugar concotion on em... good stuff man.. thanks
 
good morning, jack ~ glad that you tried it and liked it ~

those sicilian herbs and garlic oil sound incredible - i may have to try that!
 
SmokingMeatForums.com is reader supported and as an Amazon Associate, we may earn commissions from qualifying purchases.

Latest posts

Hot Threads

Clicky