DBNSMORB] 



PLANTS AS FOOD 



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(e) Rice (parched when gathered) was prepared as follows: Boil- 

 ing broth, either of meat or fish, was poured over parched rice, which 

 was then covered and allowed to " steam " for a time until softened. 



(/) The chaff from the treading of the rice was cooked similarly 

 to the rice and was considered a delicacy. 

 Zea mays L. Corn. 



Corn was cultivated in gardens by the Chippewa and prepared for 

 use as follows : 



(a) Fresh ears were roasted in the husks. 



(b) The corn was cut before it was fully ripe. It was then 

 shelled and dried by spreading it on sheets of birch bark. This was 

 boiled and seasoned with maple sugar. 



(c) The. husks were turned back and the corn dried by suspending 

 the ears by the husks from the ceiling. 



(d) Corn was parched in a hot kettle, some of the kernels popping 

 open and others drying. The corn was then put in a leather bag, 

 laid on a flat stone, and pounded with another stone until it was like 

 meal. This was made into " parched corn soup," to which deer 

 tallow or deer meat, either fresh or dried, was added. 



(e) Corn was made into "hominy." A lye was first made from 

 hardwood ashes. The corn was boiled in this, rinsed, and boiled in 

 clear water. Bones were sometimes boiled with it, and grease was 

 added as seasoning. In addition to using the corn, the water in 

 which it was boiled was considered very palatable. 



Vegetables 



Pumpkins and squashes were cultivated in gardens and either 

 eaten fresh or cut in pieces or in strips for drying. These were laid 

 on frames or were strung on long pieces of basswood cord and hung 

 above the fire where the drying was slowly accomplished. They were 

 stored in bags and sometimes kept for two years. Dried squash and 

 pumpkin were boiled with game, or boiled alone and seasoned with 

 maple sugar. The flowers of the latter were dried and used in broth 

 for seasoning and also for thickening. 



Other vegetable foods were obtained without cultivation, among 

 them being the following : 



Helianthus tuberosus L. (The original of the cultivated Jerusalem artichoke.) 



The root of this plant was eaten raw like a radish. 

 Sagittaria latifolia Willd. Arrowhead. 



This is commonly called the " wild potato," and grows in deep 

 mud. At the end of the tubular roots are the " potatoes " which are 



