By Anna Kathryn Lanier
A few months back I found another neat book “COWBOYS AND
COOKOUTS: A Taste of the Old West” by Lewis Esson. It’s full of tidbits about chuckwagons, cooks
and cooking on the trail, along with some recipes. He quotes liberally from
other sources and I’ll share a bit of the information given, plus a couple of recipes
today.
“The chuckwagon was a commissary on wheels, a stout wagon
covered with canvas and equipped with a box at the rear for storing tin dishes,
a Dutch oven, a frying pan, kettle, and coffee pot. The standard staples also
had their exact places; green-berry coffee, salt pork, cornmeal, flour, and
beans. For fresh meat, of course, there
was always plenty of beef handy. A folding leg was usually attached to the
chuckbox lid, so that it formed a table when lowered for action.” ~ Dee Brown in THE AMERICAN WEST
THE COWBOY LIFE: A SADDLEBAG GUIDE FOR DUDES, TENDERFEET,
AND COW PUNCHESERS EVERYWHERE by Michelle Morris, includes unwritten rules of
Chuckwagon Etiquette. According to
Morris, these rules were “strictly followed by the trail crew.”
1.
No one eats until Cookie calls.
2.
When Cookie calls, everyone comes a runnin’.
3.
Hungry cowboys wait for no man. They fill their plates, fill their bellies,
then move on so stragglers can fill their plates.
4.
Cowboys eat first, talk later.
5.
It’s okay to eat with your fingers. The food is
clean.
6.
Eat with your hat on.
7.
Don’t take the last serving unless you’re sure
you’re the last man.
8.
Food left on the plate is an insult to the cook.
9.
Don’t even think of going back to work without
putting your dishes in the wreck pan.
10.
No running or saddling a horse near the wagon. And
when you ride off, always ride down wind from the wagon.
11.
If you enjoy the water bucket, refill it—pronto
12.
If you’re refilling the coffee cup and someone
yells “Man the pot,” you’re obliged to serve refills.
13.
If you come across any decent firewood, bring it
back to the wagon.
14.
If you ride by the campefire and Cookie’s
nowhere in sight, stop and stir the beans.
15.
Strangers are always welcome at the wagon.
This week, it looks like Canada and most of America are in a
deep freeze. Even here in Houston, Texas, we only got into the 40’s on Thursday
(and dropped below freezing at night). So, here’s two recipes from COWBOYS AND
COOKOUTS to help warm you up.
TRAIL SOUP
Ingredients:
10 oz (300 g) dried beans, ideally a mix of equal parts of
navy, pinto, anasazi or cannellini, black beans,
and red kidney beans
1 tbsp oil
1 large onion, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 large carrots, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bay leaf
7 cups ( 1½ liters)
beef, chicken or vegetable stock or water
Directions:
Soak beans in water overnight.
Heat oil in a large pot and sauté the onions, celery,
carrots, and garlic until soft. Add the
drained beans, bay leaves and stock or water.
Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 2 or 3 hours, until all
beans are tender. Season to taste and serve.
TURKEY STEW
Ingredients:
3-5 lb. (1.35-2.25 kg) turkey pieces, raw
3 onions
3 carrots
2 celery stalks
1 garlic bulb
Salt
A few peppercorns
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp flour
6 tbsp tomato paste
14.5 (400 g) can diced tomatoes
1 tsp dried oregano
½ tsp. ground cumin
4 potatoes
A day ahead, put the turkey in a pan, add water to cover and
add 2 of the onions, cut in half, 2 of the carrots, and the celery stalks,
coarsely chopped, and all but 2 cloves from the head garlic. Season with salt
to taste and add the black peppercorns. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and
simmer very gently for 3 hours.
Remove the turkey from the liquid, remove the meat from the
bones, cut into bite-sized pieces, and refrigerate overnight. Return the bones
to the pan and simmer for 1 hour more, adding more water if required to make a
rich broth. Strain and chill overnight.
The next day, skim off any fat from the stock. Heat the oil
in the large frying pan. Chop the reserved onion and cook until translucent.
Stir in the flour, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, reserved garlic, finely
chopped, the oregano, cumin, and 3 cups (700 ml) of the stock. Add the potatoes and remaining carrot, both
diced, and cook until these are tender, about 20 minutes.
Stir in the turkey and simmer for a few minutes a warm
though before serving.
Anna Kathryn Lanier
Romance Author, A GIFT BEYOND ALL MEASURE
