Jason Unrau
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Aug 05/05) - Monday afternoon behind what is known to some as the Muktuk Hut for the 35th Circumpolar Northern Games, business was brisk.

"We had to fly in 12 more pails in from Tuk this afternoon," said Sandra Ipana - one of the food stand's many dedicated volunteers. Over the course of the games, Ipana estimates that more than 60 five-gallon pails of the meat was cooked, cubed and consumed and five pails worth was sold raw.

Add that to the hut's other offerings, including muskox pie, oven-baked char, caribou soup, the preparation of free goose and seal offerings following the plucking and skinning contests and a whopping 5,000 doughnuts the stand was sold over the course of the games and you've got one busy crew of cooks.

"Some of these ladies have been making doughnuts for 12 hours," said Ipana. "We've got some very dedicated volunteers this year."

Including Lilian Lipscombe who the Drum caught up with while she was waiting for cooked muktuk to cool before dicing it into squares.

Looking like big pieces of cake in the glare of Monday afternoon's sunshine, closer inspection revealed the oily blubber and white hide of the beluga, waiting to be cubed and eaten.

The expression on my face must have given me away and Lipscombe asked if I had ever tried it before. I said that I hadn't so she cut me a piece.

"Don't some people like to have this with HP Sauce?"

"Yeah, usually those are the first timers."

So in an effort to 'get local' (eating it raw nothwithstanding) I accepted a piece without condiments and after somebody said, "It's just like sushi," I popped it in my mouth. Well, it's not quite like sushi - rather a mix between fried pork fat and tofu. Anyways, according to Lipscombe, to cook muktuk properly, it must be simmered, not boiled, to ensure it remains tender and doesn't toughen up.

"So what do you prefer, cooked or raw?"

"Both, I'm Inuvialuit," she said with a laugh, perhaps at the absurdity of the question.

As well, Lipscombe advised against a barbecuing option for the meat.

Anyways, after my muktuk introduction, I left Lipscombe dicing up the meat and returned to Ipana, now somewhat concerned with the amount of fuel a guy from the Taniktat stand or 'white man's food' concession (re: smokies and hamburgers) was pouring over the charcoal-laden trough.

We retreated to a safe distance, watched the flames shoot and Ipana shared a little bit of her experiences from joining her husband Roy on their annual beluga hunt. After heading out July 1, it wasn't until the 7th that Roy bagged his beluga, returned to the camp where he was joined by Sandra to prepare it.

Good enough

"One is good enough for me and my family for a year," she said. "First we butcher it and lay it out, then it's skinned and hung on racks for two days for the oil to drip out of it," she said.

Then some is cooked while the rest is kept in buckets to age or is frozen for consumption at a later date.

At the Muktuk Hut, cooked beluga may have been the 12 to one crowd favourite however, Ipana prefers hers raw.

"And some of the elders really like it aged," she added.

When I asked how one determines when it's been aged to perfection, Ipana said a learned nose is the best way to do it.

"It's just got this smell that you know it's ready."

Uh, that's fine for the expert but I think I'll just stick to cooked muktuk for now.