Niyah

At mealtimes, the Comanche elder Niyah stressed that Comanches ate meals when they were hungry. In their old free nomadic lifestyle, the families might eat around four times in a day. Men, women, and children all ate together with the food placed on a dried rawhide in the center of the seated family. Even visitors were warmly welcomed.

During the 1930's, Mrs. John Barnes, who was a white resident living near Comanche people shared the following observation of their life and food preparation:

"All Indian houses had tepees near them . . . [T]he women built arbors which were made of poles and willow brush. Here the Indians lived through the summer. "

Of their meals, she added "Another way the beef was prepared was to cut the fat into small pieces, mix it thoroughly with sugar and a little flour, and fry it for a short while. Lots of Indians ate kidneys raw, but when cooked they wanted them cooked well done. Most of their bread was bought bread and they used crackers as bread some. Later they made bread from wheat flour called grease bread which tasted pretty good. Steak was cut into small squares, fried, and gravy was made with this meat. Indians are fond of fruit, cookies, and candy."

Impressive picture of the strong Comanche woman named Uwat, circa 1930. Photograph by the noted American photographer Edward S. Curtis.

Courtesy of the North American Indian by Edward S. Curtis, Northwestern University Library, and the U. S. Library of Congress.