Craig prepares each of the heavier courses two ways. Seared salmon—“it’s not local, but a nod to our indigenous brothers and sisters in the Pacific Northwest,” Craig tells the guests—is served on the riverbed slates alongside rock moss and charred pine needles. It accompanies balls of thinly sliced salmon stuffed with wild mushrooms cooked sous vide. There is also seared duck breasts (coated with lemon- and honey-infused tea) served alongside duck confit, as well as paprika-coated rabbit loins and a rabbit rack of ribs with Craig’s Nana sauce, a parsley concoction named for a famous Apache warrior who fought federal troops well into old age. And there is bison tenderloin, served alongside chunks of rich, roasted bone marrow, as well as venison served in one version atop a parsnip purée and in another with wild rice.
For dessert, Craig serves Western Apache profiteroles, his salute to fry bread, with melted chocolate and pine nut–infused whipped cream. They are as delicious as they are decadent. “I recognize that fry bread is controversial,” says Craig, “but now it’s undeniably part of our heritage, so I’ll use it in moderation.”
LAST NOVEMBER Craig hosted the Native American Culinary Association’s Indigenous Food Culture Conference over five days at the Sunrise Park Resort. Chefs from Utah’s Black Sheep Cafe, New Mexico’s Waterbird Catering, and a few other Native American establishments performed cooking demonstrations in Whiteriver and joined anthropologists for public discussions on Native culinary history. “Craig’s work at the resort is localized,” says Lois Ellen Frank, who presented at the conference. “But he’s providing a model for other Native communities, and he’s one of several Native chefs that’s helping advance the recognition of Native American cuisine nationally.”