Ship's Bread

[Sandhiler]

I was reading an article in "On The Trail" magazine and they were eating "ship's bread." Any idea as to what it is and how to make it?

 

[Brasilikilt]

Ships bread, I think in this case is another name for Hardtack.
The only difference between the 2 that I have seen is that hardtack is usually square, and the stuff called "ship's bread" is round.
Both have holes poked through it kinda like a saltine cracker.

I've made it a few times, and the recipe is simple enough.....It's just flour, salt, water and perhaps a little oil.

If kept dry, this stuff will last for years and years. It's always very hard and has little flavor, so it's best to combine it with other foods.
I hear that soldiers and sailors often crushed it up and mixed it with salt pork/bacon grease.
YUM YUM......a cardiovascular dream come true :wink:

 

[renovato]

Try a google search for "hardtack recipe" and you'll get a lot of hits. It's easy to make and a pretty versatile food once you get past the steep learning curve and figure out how to use it. Oddly enough, I like mine with a drizzle of molasses and some hot coffee poured on it to soften.

 

[boar]

I made some when I was young,(Hardtack).You better have good strong teeth. I call it brick bread. I would much rather have my sourdough biscuits,they will keep a long time. Dilly

 

[R Jones]

Hardtack, Yum Yum!! Break it up, and mix it with stew. Bout' thu' onliest' way us Geezers kin' handle it!!! :rotf: :rotf:

 

[Muskeg Stomper]

See Post: Hard tack, sea biscuit (Topic#229311)

 

[aloyalistdawg]

Hey guys
This is actually awesome stuff if you leave soak for about four hours in gravy first then feed to the dog, and eat the gravy.. no seriuosly try soaking it then eatting it as a base.
best regards a Lyalist Dawg :hatsoff:

 

[ronrryan]

I have read accounts where the procedure was to rap the ships biscuit sharply on the table, which stimulated the weevils to exit the biscuit. Not sure if they ate the weevils as well as the biscuit. Probably depended on how many days out. Good smoke, Ron

 

[Bryanbrown]

Hardtack, Zwiebeck, Field Bread, Shipbiscuit, Pilot biscuits and probably a couple names I am missing are all pretty much the same thing. You can still buy production ones http://www.wildernessdining.com/rm01604.html

Moses had it but they cooked it thinner and called it Matzo. Most grocery stores carry, the modern form is rather more delicate then the old stuff. http://www.manischewitz.com/products/matzo/matzo.php


And many reenactors use it as a staple http://www.ladyshrike.com/hardtack.htm

BUT DO NOT TRY TO BITE IT, soak it, suck on it, bust it with a rock. But I have seen lots of cracked teeth and crowns over the years from folks thinking it was a modern "cracker"

Soaking or cooking it in as a thickener for stew or to make a "new bread" to toast/roast works pretty well.

I like to use buckwheat flour or corn masa for mine versus wheat flour. Make sure it is not all purpose flour that already has baking powder in it to make it rise. You want dense stuff.

Ewald commented that once his troops were used to Zwiebeck (twice baked) or field bread they preferred it to all other, Due to how well it kept under all conditions


Bryan K. Brown www.gunsmithy.com www.jaegerkorps.org
[email protected]
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Alle künst ist umsunst wenn ein Engle auf dem Zundlocke brünst.