Brian Yazzie Explained

Brian Yazzie, known as Yazzie the Chef is a Navajo chef. He celebrates and promotes Indigenous American foods.

He was born in the Navajo Nation in Dennehotso, Arizona.^[1] He moved to Minnesota in 2013.^[2]

In 2014, he became the chef de cuisine at Sean Sherman's the Sioux Chef.^[3]

In 2016, Yazzie and his wife Danielle Yazzie-Polk founded Intertribal Foodways, a catering company in St. Paul. The company prepares Indigenous meals and leads demonstrations for Native American communities. In 2020, he started working at Gatherings Cafe, but it shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, he partnered with the Minneapolis American Indian Center to prepare hundreds of meals for elderly people and delivering them for free.^{[4] [5]}

Yazzie is a member of I-Collective, a group of indigenous chefs, farmers, foragers, hunters, and food historians.^[6] He is also involved with Slow Food and was a delegate to Terra Madre Salone del Gusto in Turin, Italy and to Indigenous Terra Madre in Japan.

PBS's Independent Lens made an episode of their series of shorts "alter-NATIVE: Kitchen" about Yazzie.^[7]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Chuculate. Eddie. 6 October 2020. Gatherings Cafe gets new executive chef and a makeover. 2021-02-07. en.
2. Web site: 'Food is medicine': Native chefs feeding MN elders. 2021-02-07. MPR News.
3. Web site: Tormoen. Erik. 2020-05-22. Brian Yazzie Stands Up for Native American Recipes. 2021-02-07. Minnesota Monthly. en-US.
4. Web site: 2020-03-31. This Chef Is Feeding The Elderly And At-Risk In Indian Country During. 2021-02-07. UPROXX. en-US.
5. Web site: Gatherings Cafe puts Indigenous foods at the forefront. 2021-02-07. kare11.com. en-US.
6. Web site: 2019-12-11. Slow Food Leaders: Brian Yazzie • Slow Food USA. 2021-02-07. Slow Food USA. en-US.
7. Web site: 19 November 2019. Independent Lens: What Native Elders Think About Indigenous Cooking. 2021-02-07. Independent Lens. en-US.