Spirit Plate

A new PBS Food Series with Chef Pyet Despain - Food is medicine. Food is story. In Spirit Plate I travel across Native lands to cook with elders, home cooks, and knowledge keepers, gathering ingredients with care and sharing meals that connect us to place and memory.

Spirit Plate Episode 5: Yurok Secrets to Cooking the Perfect Pacific Eel

In Episode 5 of Spirit Plate, Chef Pyet DeSpain visits the Yurok Tribe along California’s North Coast to harvest Pacific eel, learn traditional techniques, and celebrate river restoration through a joyful community feast.

Pyet in the Press

Pyet DeSpain

Dec 312 min read

Spirit Plate Episode 4: Cooking Ancient Roots in the Finger Lakes

In Episode 4 of Spirit Plate, Chef Pyet DeSpain travels to the Finger Lakes to cook alongside Onondaga elders, learn from seed keeper Angela Ferguson, and prepare a ten course feast honoring ancient Indigenous foodways and resilience.

Pyet in the Press

Pyet DeSpain

Dec 18, 20252 min read

Spirit Plate Episode 3: Cooking Halibut in a Haida Longhouse

In Episode 3 of Spirit Plate, Chef Pyet DeSpain journeys to Hydaburg, Alaska to fish Pacific halibut with the Haida people, cook in a traditional longhouse, and serve a meaningful feast honoring elders, culture, and ancestral foodways.

Pyet in the Press

Pyet DeSpain

Dec 1, 20252 min read

Spirit Plate Episode 2: Cooking a 400-Pound Pig in an Underground Oven

Chef Pyet DeSpain travels to Oʻahu to join Chef Kealoha Domingo in preparing a 400-pound pig in an underground imu oven and learning about the sacred taro root that sustains Hawaiian culture. Together, they share a feast that honors food, family, and gratitude.

Pyet in the Press

Pyet DeSpain

Nov 5, 20251 min read

Spirit Plate Episode 1: Cooking for the Powwow of a Lifetime

In the premiere episode of Spirit Plate on PBS Food, Chef Pyet DeSpain returns home to the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation to prepare a sacred bison stew feast, reflecting on love, community, and the strength of her roots.

Pyet in the Press

Pyet DeSpain

Oct 22, 20252 min read

Spirit Plate

Spirit Plate Episode 5: Yurok Secrets to Cooking the Perfect Pacific Eel

Spirit Plate Episode 4: Cooking Ancient Roots in the Finger Lakes

Spirit Plate Episode 3: Cooking Halibut in a Haida Longhouse

Spirit Plate Episode 2: Cooking a 400-Pound Pig in an Underground Oven

Spirit Plate Episode 1: Cooking for the Powwow of a Lifetime

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