WASHINGTON — If you think your kitchen is busy on Thanksgiving Day, you should see Freddie Bitsoie’s.
On Nov. 24 and the days leading up to it, he’ll be preparing Thanksgiving dinner for about 1,000 guests. And all eyes — and taste buds — will be on the new dishes he introduces to Mitsitam Native Foods Cafe’s award-winning menu.
Bitsoie is the National Museum of the American Indian’s new executive chef. In October, he replaced Jerome Grant, who recently left to oversee the kitchen at the 400-seat Sweet Home Cafe at the National Museum of African American History and Culture.
As a Navajo chef, Bitsoie has devoted his career to educating others on Native American foods and getting indigenous dishes on the menu at restaurants and schools throughout the country. At Mitsitam, his goal is less about championing Native cuisine and more making sure what’s served is an accurate reflection of Native cooking traditions.
“I think we need to pull back a little on what we define as Native foods. We’re progressing to be more simple,” said Bitsoie, who wants to get away from the traditional French influence.
“We’re not going to have a lot of spices; we’re not going to have a lot of different types of herbs. Only when they are necessary,” he added.
That’s not to say the menu at Mitsitam will lack flavor. Bitsoie says fewer ingredients will help to showcase the natural flavors of the proteins and vegetables.
For example, his brown sugar and juniper-glazed West Coast salmon calls for just four ingredients: gin (which he flambés to burn off the alcohol), shallots, garlic and brown sugar. He combines all of the ingredients and reduces them to make a syrup, which he uses to glaze the salmon.
“I guarantee you it’s going to be one of the best salmons you have,” he said.
The turkey on his Thanksgiving menu is rubbed with red chile and orange. Bitsoie explains this preparation is a nod to tribes in New Mexico who add sweet flavors to the chile to help cut its heat.
Drawing inspiration from Native Americans in Vancouver and Alaska, Bitsoie roasts yellow beets in a seaweed vinaigrette, since seaweed is a common ingredient in the region.
“We tend to think of seaweed as something consumed by mostly Asian cultures, Hawaiians, Pacific Island cultures, but that’s not the case,” he said.
Finally, Bitsoie is showcasing a clam soup — a dish that originated in the mid-Atlantic area.
“From here, all the way up to Nova Scotia, the tribes would harvest clams … they had clams, Jerusalem artichokes and sea water, so they’d combine the ingredients and make a simple soup.”
Bitsoie doesn’t use seawater in his recipe, but he does use leeks, sunchokes, garlic, clams and chicken stock to create a clear-broth soup like the Native Americans used to eat.
“And when the English came, they added their cream and butter to that particular soup and it became what we now know as New England clam chowder,” he said.
“Again, it’s pulling back to simplicity, but still having a very complex flavor.”
Thanksgiving Day is one of the busiest days at Mitsitam. Visitors often stop by the cafe for a bite to eat before or after their own Thanksgiving meals at home. Bitsoie also prepares several “take home” meals for patrons.
“No one knows me on this side of the country, so I might as well introduce my flavor and what I like personally, and use the Thanksgiving menu to present that,” he said.
The holiday is also the kickoff of the Northwest Coast dance celebration, which is part of American Indian Heritage Month. Dancers from Vancouver and Alaska will perform at the museum throughout the weekend.
Chef Freddie Bitsoie’s Clam Soup
Ingredients:
- 3 leeks (chopped)
- 1 onion
- 5 garlic cloves
- 1 ounce sunchokes
- 4 potatoes (small, diced)
- 4 sprigs thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 can clams
- Chicken stock
Place the leeks, onions, garlic, bay leaves and thyme in a pot. Cook until clear (do not brown, add water if onions start to caramelize). Dice the potatoes and sunchokes and add them to the mix, then add enough chicken stock to cover the product. Cook the potatoes and sunchokes, reduce heat to a summer. Add the clams with juice.
Can’t make it to the museum for Thanksgiving? You can order your Thanksgiving meal from Mitsitam by Nov. 18 and pick it up on Wednesday, Nov. 23. View the menu and details here.
