Alaska Native Culture - 2023
DEEP CONNECTION TO LAND & WATER
2022-08-28 17:27:13
ALASKA NATIVES BELIEVE THERE IS A STRONG CONNECTION BETWEEN WHAT WE EAT AND WHERE WE LIVE.
HUNTING & FORAGING
Throughout Alaska, subsistence hunting is central to the enduring customs and traditions of many Alaska Natives—especially those in more remote and rural locales where hunting is critical to their nutrition, food security, and economic stability.
Subsistence hunting of wild game is considered a cultural cornerstone that strengthens ties between people and the land. Depending on the community and region, families rely on moose, caribou, deer, bears, Dall sheep, mountain goats, and beavers, as well as marine species such as salmon, seals, sea lions, walruses, and whales. When an animal is harvested, the entire animal is used or eaten—as many cultures believe waste is offensive and disrespectful to both the animal and the people who depend on it.
Foraging is another time-honored tradition of Alaska Native cultures. One of the best parts of the long transition from summer to winter is the opportunity to fill up on nature’s sweetest treats—including a number of edible berries such as blueberries, highbush and lowbush cranberries, salmonberries, cloudberries, lingonberries, raspberries, and currants. Meanwhile, wild greens, herbs, and local plants are sustainably foraged for their natural medicinal purposes and healthful nutrients.
COASTAL CATCHES
Alaska has more coastline than the rest of the United States combined, so it’s no wonder we’re able to harvest a bounty of fresh-caught seafood from the hook to the table for both visitors and locals year-round. From sea urchin, mussels, octopus, and shrimp, to weatherwave scallops, four species of king crab, and 48 different species of fish—including five different species of salmon—many Alaska Natives rely heavily on subsistence fishing for personal or family consumption as food, sharing, or customary trade.
By Mary Goddard & Samantha Phillips
Heather Douville, Tlingit, hangs sockeye salmon with her father in their smokehouse. “I use spruce sticks to drape my fish over, as it is strong and does not affect the flavor of fish,” she stays. Smoked salmon, dry fish, or canned fish—ask any Alaskan Native and they might not share their secret smoked salmon recipe, but they will tell you this is soul food. A Tlingit saying goes, “As the tide goes out, the table is set” —a reference to the abundance of marine life sourced from our beaches and oceans.
taste nature’s bounty
KELP PICKLES
An easy snack with a superfood twist, crafted from ocean bull kelp, infused with dill, spices, and brine.
LOCAL SEA SALT
Sprinkle some hand-harvested flake sea salt using local water and flavor infusions with Alaskan ingredients to create a natural culinary seasoning.
BIRCH SYRUP
A pure and sweet flavor from Alaska’s forests, wild-harvested birch syrup is made from the sap of Alaska birch trees.
LOCALLY MADE JAMS
Jams and jellies are as Alaskan as it gets, taking on flavors from local ingredients such as berries, rhubarb, fireweed, and spruce tips.
DID YOU KNOW?
Alaska’s fisheries are among the best-managed and most sustainable in the world. Alaska resources provide jobs and a stable food supply for the nation while keeping overfishing at bay, and still supporting a traditional way of life for Alaska Natives and local fishing communities.
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