Loretta Barrett Oden is an American chef, Native foods historian, food writer, and television show host. She is an enrolled member of the

Potawatomi The Potawatomi , also spelled Pottawatomi and Pottawatomie (among many variations), are a Native American people of the western Great Lakes region, upper Mississippi River and Great Plains. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a m ...

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 ''Native Peoples Magazine'' is an American magazine which was started as a 32-page quarterly magazine in 1987. It was sent to the members of The Heard Museum. History In 1987, the Heard Museum of Anthropology and Primitive Art, in association wi ...

''.

Early life

Oden was born in Shawnee, Oklahoma. She is a member of the

Citizen Potawatomi Nation Citizen Potawatomi Nation is a federally recognized tribe of Potawatomi people located in Oklahoma. The Potawatomi are traditionally an Algonquian-speaking Eastern Woodlands tribe. They have 29,155 enrolled tribal members, of whom 10,312 live in ...

Career

Oden spent three years traveling around the United States learning recipes from many different Native American tribes. In the early 1990s when she was 50 years old, Oden opened a restaurant, ''Corn Dance Café'' in

Santa Fe, New Mexico Santa Fe ( ; , Spanish for 'Holy Faith'; tew, Oghá P'o'oge, Tewa for 'white shell water place'; tiw, Hulp'ó'ona, label=Tiwa language, Northern Tiwa; nv, Yootó, Navajo for 'bead + water place') is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. ...

, with her son Clayton. The dishes were inspired by the many tribal traditions she learned in her travels. She returned to Oklahoma in 2003. Oden is a native foods historian, food writer, and television show host. She is the chef consultant of the

First Americans Museum The First Americans Museum (FAM) is a museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, U.S. It was previously known as the American Indian Cultural Center and Museum. It officially opened on September 18, 2021. Background The center was initiated in the 1990s ...

in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. She is working with

AARP AARP (formerly called the American Association of Retired Persons) is an interest group in the United States focusing on issues affecting those over the age of fifty. The organization said it had more than 38 million members in 2018. The magazin ...

on an elder meals program, ''Native Origins''. Oden wrote and hosted the PBS series ''Seasoned With Spirit: A Native Cook's Journey'' for which she won a

New England Emmy New England Emmy Awards are a division of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The division was founded in 1977 and in addition to granting the New England Emmy Awards, it recognizes awards scholarships, honors industry veterans ...

. 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. Oden writes a column, ''Spirit of the Harvest,'' for ''

''.

Personal life

Oden was first married to Jerry Vandegrift, whose father started Van's Pig Stand, Oklahoma’s oldest single family owned barbecue restaurant. She has two sons and two stepdaughters from her second marriage.

References

External links

*
The Movement to Define Native American Cuisine
* https://archive.jsonline.com/features/food/native-american-chef-shares-indigenous-culinary-traditions-b99373455z1-281482041.html * https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/restaurant-highlighting-diversity-history-native-223914430.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Oden, Loretta Barrett Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Shawnee, Oklahoma Citizen Potawatomi Nation people Native American women writers American women chefs Native American chefs Chefs from Oklahoma American food writers American women columnists American women food writers 21st-century American women writers Food historians American women historians 21st-century American historians Historians from Oklahoma American television hosts American television chefs Historians of Native Americans Journalists from Oklahoma Native American journalists 21st-century Native American women 21st-century Native Americans American women journalists