All About Haida Food
© Mary M. Alward
The Pacific Ocean was the grocery store for natives of the northwest coast. It also acted as their roads. Salmon was a staple food and great numbers of fish were caught at the mouths of the streams during the salmon run. Since the natives had no way of freezing the fish, salmon was smoked by hanging it over fires. This preserved the food and prevented it from rotting.
Along with these foods, the Haida ate cod, smelt, herring, whale, seal, sea otters, sealions and other creatures found in the sea, plus deer, elk, moose, beaver, wolves, bear, fox and mountain goat.
Seals were killed with clubs, which was not easy to do. Seals are intelligent. The Haida had to sneak up on them in order to have a successful kill. This was done when seals lay sunning themselves on rocks along the shore.
Fish were caught in a variety of ways. Spears were used, as were hooks, lines and nets. Baskets were woven and placed in the water so the fish could swim in, but couldn't escape. Women used sticks to dig in the sand for clams and crabs.
Food was prepared by boiling it in wooden "bent boxes." This was done by filling the box with water and adding rocks that had been heated in the fire. Food was also roasted over open fires, or cooked in a pit that had been dug in the ground. If the natives wanted to steam their food, they sprinkled water on hot rocks.
The Pacific Ocean provided a variety of food for the natives of the northwest coast. Roe, clams, mussels, crabs, oysters, halibut, herring and seaweed were easily obtained, providing a wide variety in diet. Cranberries, huckleberries, plus many more varieties grew in abundance in the region and were picked in season. However, they were hard to preserve. Today, we make jams or jellies and use freezers. The northwest natives had none of these luxuries. Berries were stored in bottles of whale or seal oil made of dry kelp. They were also cooked into a mass and dried in the form of cakes.
Along with these things, the natives of the northwest coast ate birds, roots, shoots and the bark of the cedar tree. All of these things were rich in nutrients and provided them with all the essentials of life.
Photo Courtesy of The Library of Congress
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