Local chefs design meal kits

DETROIT LAKES — With a pan in hand and Bison patties in front of him, Scar Boudreau stood in front of a camera. He had never cooked before, but was about to lead a cooking show on YouTube.

“It’s the first thing that I’ve ever cooked,” he said. “I have no other cooking experience.”

The meal Boudreau prepared alongside several other White Earth 4-H members was part of a meal kit that is available to residents in the area at Manna Food Co-op. The ingredients and recipe are provided, and thanks to the 4-H members, a video is also available as a step-by-step guide to cooking each meal.

The current meal available for purchase includes Red Lake walleye, sweet potatoes, wild rice and fish dipping sauce.

The meals can be purchased online at Manna Food Co-op’s website, mannafoodcoop.com/mealkits . After a meal kit is purchased, a designated day for pickup is posted. Meal kits can be picked up at Manna, 823 Washington Ave., as well as several locations in White Earth.

Screen capture / Manna Food Co-op

Zach Paige, the University of Minnesota sustainable ag coordinator through the Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships, said a pilot program for the meal kits was held in 2019 in White Earth. During the trial period, five meal kits were offered.

The initiative program was well-received and a different grant was applied for, and obtained, through the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

“This program is on a much bigger scale,” Paige said. “Each recipe offers 40 meals for certain, but we can make up to 50 meal kits (if there are additional orders placed).”

There will be 10 meals offered this year, and another 10 next year. The kits include all items on the recipe card and were created by area chefs.

While Native recipes are included, there will also be traditional dishes from Mexico, Norway and more. Chefs to create the recipes were found locally, and Paige noted those who got a meal kit in 2019 will not find the same recipes this go around.

Dana Trickey, University of Minnesota Extension youth development White Earth 4-H coordinator, said buying each item on the recipe would cost more than buying the kit, as the grant subsidizes the cost.

She also encouraged those who shy away from cooking to give the meal kit a try. In addition to having a recipe card, there will also be a YouTube video that walks people through the meal preparation.

“The videos are about three minutes long,” Trickey said.

White Earth 4-H members are also instrumental in packaging the meal kits. Several attended a Global Food Market event in Minneapolis where they worked with Indigenous chefs, learned about safe food handling, how to use kitchen tools and weights and measurements. Trickey said the cooking event was such a hit that the 4-H group leaders continue to suggest preparing a meal for the group leadership program activity.

4-H member Lilly Nhoban said she hopes those who sign up for the meal kit enjoy the healthy recipes, and maybe find a new favorite meal to prepare for the family.