PAWHUSKA, Okla.—Indian tacos might not be a staple of the American Indian diet, but they are known throughout Indian Country as a delicious entrée. For some it's all about the frybread. For others the chili makes the taco. However, there is one certainty for Indian taco lovers everywhere: It depends on the cook.

The Osage Nation will host the 4th Annual National Indian Taco Championship on May 17 in downtown Pawhuska with contestants competing for three prizes of $1,500, $1,000 and $500, said Asa Cunningham, NITC planning committee member.

"What makes an Indian taco taste good for me is the frybread, love the bread," said Cunningham, who is also the winner of the first National Indian Taco Championship in 2004. She remembers entering at the last minute at the behest of friends and family, and she defeated more than 20 contestants from across Oklahoma. Asked if she would be willing to share her award-winning recipe, she grinned and said she couldn't remember how she made it.

"I prefer my bread to be a fluffy, crispy, golden brown," she said, laughing in spite of herself. "Mine [frybread] needs to be in a little bowl shape for the chili beans and the chili to set in, so if I just want to pick it up and make it messy then I can."

Which tribe originated the Indian taco is widely disputed. Frybread is the product of the lard, flour, salt, sugar, baking powder, yeast and powdered milk that the U.S. government shipped to tribes as provisions in the early reservation years. Now frybread is one of the most commonly known Native foods worldwide. It is also known to be exceedingly fattening.

Suzan Shown Harjo, Cheyenne/Muscogee, wrote an Indian Country Today column in 2005 titled, "My New Year's Resolution: No More Fat 'Indian' Food!" She asked Natives to give up frybread and other fattening "Indian" food. She wrote that frybread makes Indians fat and leads to obesity and diabetes. The column's message spread through Indian Country and became what is known as the Great Frybread Debate.

It is an understatement to say that Natives everywhere love frybread. Frybread for a majority of Native tribes is present at every Indian function and a majority of meals at home. But most Natives aren't counting the calories.

According to a nutritional analysis by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a whopping 700 calories is in one paper-plate size piece of frybread, along with 27 grams of fat.

"When we eat frybread, we eat it in moderation. It is usually at a traditional feast or an event around friends and family," Cunningham said. "We are health-conscious about frybread and have tried supplementing our recipes with different kinds of oil and other ingredients to make it not so fattening."

Tribes and individuals make their fry bread and chili differently so the judges at the National Indian Taco Championship aren't going to have an easy time judging, Cunningham said. There will be judging in two categories: the classic or traditional Indian taco and the new dessert Indian taco.

Requirements for the traditional Indian Taco contest must include the ingredients of frybread; meat (buffalo, beefalo, lamb, venison or pork); lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, sour cream; green chiles are optional. The dessert Indian taco has no ingredient requirements or restrictions, except that it must include frybread.

In addition to the contests, all competitors are required to set up a booth to sell their Indian tacos during the day for hungry travelers, Cunningham said. This will be the first year for the Osages to host the competition, but the competition has always been held in Pawhuska, she said.

If You Go:
What: 4th Annual National Indian Taco Championship
When: May 17, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Where: Downtown Pawhuska, located on U.S. Highway 60, 45 miles east from Ponca City and 28 miles west from Bartlesville.
Questions: Caroline Hogan, Osage Nation Tourism, 918-948-5860 or Jackie McCann, 918-948-3359.

This story originally was published by the Osage News [1] and is used with permission.