Murdo, South Dakota is 1,547 miles away from home; but it still felt like Delaware. After driving to Chicago, Detroit, and Minneapolis, John and I were en route to Rapid City when we stopped for dinner at Triple H Truck Stop. This middle-of-nowhere Murdo eatery surprised me by featuring Indian Tacos on their menu.
Courtney's Indian Taco
An Indian Taco is taco/burrito fixings on fried bread, a traditional Native American food: deep fried dough in the shape of a circle that can be made sweet with butter, cinnamon, and powdered sugar or savory with chili and taco toppings.
It was a shock to see this dish on the menu of one of the most rudimentary eateries, a truck stop. In Delaware, I can only embrace Indian Tacos once a year at my tribe’s annual Powwow. But in South Dakota, a state with a considerable Native American population, Native culture was the norm.
John's Indian Chili
My Nanticoke tribe may have lost its language and many of its traditions, but we still have a commonality with other Native people: fried bread. A wonderful welcome to Indian Country.
In elementary school, my favorite day was the Native American festival because we could get Indian Tacos. Delicious!