Native American Foods: Technology and Food Sources: Staple Grains and Starches

Apart from domesticated corn, staple grains and starches were gathered from the wild and in some cases were cultivated. Acorns (genus Quercus) were used universally but in greatest concentration among the western tribes, especially those of the hunter-gathering cultures of the Northwest, for whom they were staples. America’s sixty-nine native oak varieties produced acorns of different qualities. Acorns of the white oak (Quercus alba) were sweet, flavorful, and highly prized as an important staple starch. Other acorns, such as those of the northern red oak (Quercus rubra), contained large amounts of bitter tannic acid. The Paiute, Winnebago, Dakota, and Apache, among others, removed this acid by treating the acorns with basswood or hardwood ash, rinsing them, or cooking them in repeated changes of water. Some tribes leached or “ripened” acorns by storing them in mud. Some acorns, such as those of the interior live oak (Quercus wisilzeni), were considered inferior.