Hardtack

[DosMas1863]

Does anyone have a great hardtack and salted pork recipe for making the stuff at home? I have searched high and low on the internet and haven't found any really good ones. Thank yoU!

[Silas]

Google terms : How to make hardtack civil war : https://www.google.com/search?q=how+...w=1290&bih=788

Using the same terms on google but substituting the phrase, salt pork, for hardtack caused a dandy of a thread to be revealed on the a/c : http://www.authentic-campaigner.com/...t-Pork-Recipes Within this thread you will find a link to the thread of threads when it comes to authentic rations.

[flattop32355]

To the best of my recollection:

Hardtack:
Flour, water, and if you like, a bit of salt. Supposedly the original flour used equals out to a mix of general purpose flour and cake flour (Swan's Down brand, for example). Can't recall right off the ratio. Minimal water, just enough to make things stick together. Fold the dampened flour over on itself as many times as you can to layer it. Roll it out between .25 and .50 inches thick, and cut into pieces 3-4 inches on a side. Put 9-16 holes in it, depending upon size of the cracker. Bake at low heat, turning it often until it browns. Remove from oven and let it cool and finish drying.

Salt pork: In a barrel (or large plastic container, if you wish) place a layer of NON-iodized salt, then a layer of pork, layer of salt, pork, salt, etc. until the container is full. End with a salt layer. Fill the container with water (distilled? Not sure on that) and cover. Leave it alone for a couple weeks or so, then open it, skim off the crud, add water to cover the meat and reseal. Leave it alone for a couple more weeks. Some might choose to cure it for a longer time.

Others feel free to throw in. Going by recollection.

[Regular3]

Save your time and avoid the frustration -- Can't beat the real McCoy, from an original supplier. http://www.bentscookiefactory.com/hardtack.html

[Ross L. Lamoreaux]

Save your time and avoid the frustration -- Can't beat the real McCoy, from an original supplier. http://www.bentscookiefactory.com/hardtack.html

No argument that the company was in business and supplied bread to the army, but there have been several past discussions on this and other forums that show that the product isn't the same - they use modern additives to create an airier, more edible product, more like a thick saltine than the dense bread actually used. They are tastier and easier to eat, that's for sure, as I've used them several times over the years. I'd add that the price of the ready-made crackers from them can be cost prohibitive compared to making your own much cheaper and more authentic product, using only salt, flour, and water.

[TheQM]

Ross,

Let a Bent's cracker get six months old. Trust me they will be hard enough to suit you!

[Ross L. Lamoreaux]

Ross,

Let a Bent's cracker get six months old. Trust me they will be hard enough to suit you!

I tried that myself by taking them out of the plastic and leaving them in a cool, dry wooden box for a few months. They did indeed get hard, but were not dense enough due to the air pockets baked into them by the modern recipe and leavening. They just broke apart into hundreds of pieces as soon as they made contact with something. I'm not arguing that Bent's doesn't make a good product, just that several discussions have shown that they aren't as authentic as they purport and its cheaper to produce something yourself that better replicates the horrendous bread we all know and love (to varying degrees)

[S.D.Swart]

If I remember right. At least in one quartermaster papers it was stated that Hardtack was made from white wheat flour. Add salt and just enough water to make it hold together.

[maillemaker]

Pete Paolillo used to have a face book page under Double P's Sheet Iron Cracker Company but I can't find it now.

He had a thread here:
http://www.cwreenactors.com/forum/sh...-supplies-last

Edit:

Oh, here he is on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Double.P.Crackers?ref=ts

But he says he is not selling to the public anymore.

Steve

[Silas]

I remember a Confederate diary account from Lookout Mountain that I read more than ten years ago. Cannot recall the writer or unit. My recollection was how a small number of soldiers - two to four - from each company were ordered to the rear to make hardtack for the regiment or company. I'm sure the finished product didn't resemble factory produced crackers.

Since reading that, I've gradually gone away from using one of those tin cutters and make them more like they had been produced in the field. I cut 'em by eye and poke a bunch of holes with a fork. Sometimes I substitute a cup or two of cornmeal to the batch to replicate a field expedient measure. ("Not enough flour, but we've got corn. How about using some of that, sergeant?") A few times when doing late war Confederate, I used virtually no flour and nearly all corn. They're not perfect crackers, but they wouldn't always be perfect. In the field when you're hungry, it's all good.