Chef Sherry Pocknett at Branch Line

Watertown’s first-ever Indigenous Food Week ends Monday, October 10th with an Indigenous People’s Day celebration and tasting of Wampanoag cuisine. For the town’s first celebration of the day Pigsgusset Initiative, a working group of Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice and the Environment, partnered with Branch Line, where Chef Ivan Conill consulted with award-winning Wampanoag Chef Sherry Pocknett, chef-owner of Rhode Island’s Sly Fox Den to develop a special menu featuring three Sisters Garden Succotash, Corn Cakes and Cranberry Chutney.

With Dr. Mishy Lesser of Upstander Project, Chef Pocknett wrote up a page about the cultural heritage and meaning of the dishes to use as a menu inset, giving context to the dishes:

Wampanoag have lived in the place called Massachusetts for 12,000 years. For them and most Indigenous peoples, circles are sacred because in them we are all equal. From the shape of the planets to a pregnant person’s belly to the round bulge of planting mounds, circles help sustain life and they guide how Wampanoag growers cultivate their gardens. 

Most Indigenous cultures in the Americas have their own version of the Three Sisters Garden, in which corn, beans, and squash collaborate with one another for mutual benefit. The origins of these gardens reflect the creation stories of Indigenous Nations. According to the Wampanoag, crows delivered instructions from the Creator. Crows, bearers of knowledge and gifts, brought the first corn, beans and squash seeds to Massachusetts and told the Original Peoples to plant them in circular mounds: start with the corn and once it sprouts to a height of a few inches, plant the beans so they can wrap their tendrils around the growing corn stalks and extract nitrogen from the air and turn it into plant food for the corn. Then, plant the squash so its large leaves can spread out, conserve moisture and control weeds. Together, these three plants help one another grow in a reciprocal relationship. Once harvested, corn, beans and squash serve up a well-balanced meal bursting with vitamins and minerals. 

Three Sisters Succotash is prepared by stewing corn, beans and squash. Sometimes, and according to what is seasonally available, Chef Sherry Pocknett adds wild onions, kale, salt and pepper, thyme and other herbs. The broth is served warm. Vegans love succotash. For those who want animal protein, quahogs, little neck clams, or turkey meat are delicious additions.  

We encourage you to enjoy the succotash with corn cakes and cranberry chutney. Corn cakes are an adaptation of journey-cakes (some call them johnnycakes), which provide sustenance for those who venture forth from their villages to hunt, trap, fish, and search for medicinal plants. There were 69 Wampanoag villages in this region and each village had hunting, fishing, and foraging grounds. Journey-cakes were the energy bars of that era. 

Monday’s celebration at First Parish of Watertown from 2:00–5:00 PM includes speakers, theatrical performances, cultural presentations, Indigenous artisans and musicians, plus information tables. It is supported by a generous grant from the Watertown Community Foundation to Pigsgusset Initiative, a working group of Watertown Citizens for Peace, Justice, and the Environment.