Diné scientist Reagan Wytsalucy is restoring the Southwest peach and reconnecting Native communities with a food nearly erased by forced removal.

Long before chile peppers traveled across oceans and transformed global cuisine, Indigenous farmers in the Americas were cultivating, selecting, and sharing them. This story explores how peppers became one of the world’s most important Indigenous food contributions.

Akimel O’odham, Tohono O’odham, and Western Apache foodways show how Indigenous communities developed distinct approaches to farming, gathering, and thriving in the Southwest.

Dr. Lois Ellen Frank (Kiowa), an award-winning chef, scholar, and educator, has helped bring Native American cuisine into the national conversation. Through research, cookbooks, and teaching, she highlights traditional Indigenous ingredients such as corn, beans, squash, and wild rice while exploring the cultural knowledge behind Native food traditions and the growing movement to reclaim Indigenous food sovereignty.