Maine chef Joseph Robbins has been invited to cook at the 2024 White House Tribal Nations Summit taking place on December 9th. He’s planning to prepare what he refers to “indigenous sushi” for the summit’s welcome event. Robbins’ dish will make use of rice from the Red Lake Nations in Minnesota, smoked salmon from Cowlitz Indian Tribe in Washington State, and a reduction sauce of apple juice and maple syrup flavored with chili peppers.
Robbins is Penobscot and is one of a growing number of chefs across the country raising the visibility of Indigenous American cuisine. He was a 2024 Beard Awards semifinalist in the Emerging Chef category.