Navajo Cooking Tools
The Navajo, primarily located in the Southwestern United States, are one of the largest and most well-established American Indian tribes still in existence today. Historically speaking, the Navajo were originally hunters and gathers, later adopting agriculture as another main source of food. The primary crops were corn, beans, pumpkins and root vegetables. The Navajo were skilled craftsmen. They created pottery and baskets for cooking and food storage, as well as many other utensils for cutting, scraping, or grinding their food. Does this Spark an idea?
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Cooking Pot
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The asa pot, a traditional Navajo cooking pot, was one of the most commonly used cooking tools and is still in use today for home and ceremonial purposes. Although most traditional Navajo pottery is colorfully decorated with figures and patterns, the cooking pot was left very plain for functional purposes. This pot can be constructed in varying sizes, but typically has a round bottom and is slightly flared at the top. The pots were propped up by stones over a cooking pit fueled by a wood fire. The asa pot is also used as a drum base by stretching a piece of animal hide over the top. These drums were played in the Navajo war dance.
Basketry
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In Navajo culture, baskets served many important functions. Most baskets were designed for a specific purpose, such as food storage or gathering. Tightly woven baskets were used to hold water, while others were utilized as strainers or drying trays. Baskets incorporated the colors of the tribes, the designs and patterns reflected life on the reservation and interpretations of rituals, such as hunting. Accessible materials were most commonly used to make these baskets, such as grass, bark and splints of hickory and oak.
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Grinding Stones
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Dried and preserved food was an important food source in winter months for many Indian groups in North America. Because of this dependence on dried food, grinding stones became a pivotal tool in Navajo cooking. Used for nuts, fruits, vegetables and dried meat, the grinding stone was made of a muller and mealing slab -- similar to a mortar and pestle -- but used a flat surface instead of a bowl. Dried and ground corn was a staple food for the Navajo and was typically ground to a very fine flour using a series of stone grit, ranging from very course to fine-grained.
Celts
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Similar in shape to an arrowhead, celts can be found scattered across the landscape throughout the Southwest even today. Tools made of stone are very durable, which makes them much more likely to be found intact on archeological digs. Celts were used primarily as a scraping tool in cooking and cleaning animal hides. They are made of stone with flattened tips for pounding and sharper sides for scraping. They are sometimes found with grooves to accommodate a person's fingers and thumb.
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