In the BBC series Blackadder Goes Forth, Baldrick memorably described the finest culinary delight available in the trenches of the First World War as “rat-au-van” – rat that had been run over by a van. In fact, new research suggests the standard of fare on offer to the men on the Western Front was, if perhaps repetitive, at least nutritious, plentiful and, on occasions, flavoursome.
The research, contained in a new book Feeding Tommy, involved an investigation of the archives of the RLC Photo: GETTY IMAGES
Andrew Robertshaw, curator at the Royal Logistic Corps Museum, has produced a guide to the food eaten by British soldiers of the First World War, complete with recipes for some of the meals.
Although there was no rat-au-van, there were some now largely forgotten dishes, such as beef tea, mutton broth, brawn, potato pie and duff pudding.
But Mr Robertshaw also shows how some modern favourites, such as egg and chips, and curry were popularised by the conflict.
The research, contained in a new book Feeding Tommy, involved an investigation of the archives of the RLC – the successor to the Army Service Corps, whose job it was to feed the men – as well as study of memoirs from serving soldiers.
By the end of the war, the ration strength of the British Army was 5,363,352 people worldwide, including 2,360,400 on the Western Front alone. To feed all these men, the ASC had expanded to a strength of 12,000 officers and 320,000 men – the size of the entire British Army sent to the Continent at the outbreak of war, the centenary of which is next year.Mr Robertshaw said:”Soldiers will always grumble about food, but the feeding of the army was actually a stunning logistical achievement.
“The men might have occasionally missed a meal, or not enjoyed one particularly, or got a bit bored, but the range and nutritional value of what they ate was actually remarkably good.”
In fact, the food offered by the army was far superior to what many were used to at home.
While a working class family of two adults and at least one child in Britain would eat 3lb 6oz of beef or mutton a week, along with 19lb 8oz of bread and just over 25lb of potatoes between them, each soldier would receive 8lb 12oz and the same weight in bread. He also had 1lb 5oz of bacon and 3lb 8oz of vegetables
And the men were also paid in local currency and were able to buy additional food when not in action – an option not available to many of those at home, who simply went hungry.
It meant soldiers ate an estimated 4,600 calories a day, compared with a working man’s 3,400 a day at home.The army diet was particularly high in protein, leading to problems – with men suffering from boils and becoming, in the army euphemism, “bunged up”.
As a result, the amount of meat had to be reduced.
As the conflict progressed, food was prepared nearer and nearer to the front lines and many cooks were killed.
The book gives guides on how to build various makeshift field ovens and cookers, for adventurous chefs to try out themselves.
But, as Mr Robertshaw points out, only a fraction of the men were ever in the trenches at any one time.
All men received the same rations, and the ranks were always fed before the officers, although where applicable, the horses always had to eat before either.
The men were able to supplement army offerings with food sent from friends and family at home, via the remarkably proficient mail system.
Behind from the front line, soldiers also frequently ate at “estaminets”, a combination of pub, café and restaurant, found in villages and towns.
The establishments introduced into the language term for cheap wine, “plonk” from “vin blank”, and also popularised as a dish egg and chips – cheap and available food not widely on offer in the army.
Curry, which was offered by army cooks, from influence of the Indian Army, was also introduced more widely by the war. By adding pepper and spices to stews, the dish became more palatable when served cold.
The main staple in the trenches was corned beef, or bully beef: cooked, preserved, tinned meat, chiefly from Argentina. The men were advised to pierce the tin before fully opening them. If they hissed, they had gone off.
When British solders traded bully beef with the French their reaction to the contents of the tins was that it was ‘singe’, or monkey.
The other tinned staple was “Maconochie” – a pork and beans meal, named after the Aberdeen-based manufacturer. It was far from universally popular, with at least one man suggesting that the product was a war crime. But Mr Robertshaw suggests that in terms of ingredients, it is little different from cassoulet.
Although the dishes could be plain, cooks were taught to look for nettles, sweet docks, wild mushrooms and marigold flowers with which to season dishes.
There was no official vegetarian option, although provision was made for Indian personnel, which included mixed spices of ginger, turmeric, chillies and garlic, Dhal (lentils) and Attar (Wheat flour). Vegetarians received additional Gur (cane sugar) or milk instead of meat. Other variations were also produced for the Chinese Labour Corps and Egyptian Labour Corps and Fijian Labourers.
Cooks were careful to avoid all waste. Leftovers were sold as swill to local farmers, while dripping was saved for use in the manufacture of explosives.
While those tips might not be of much use to modern chef, the guide does contain other advice given to army cooks that could still prove practical.
These include rubbing hands on a stick of celery after peeling onions, to remove the smell; not boiling cabbage with a lid on; pricking sausages and plunging them into boiling water for five minutes before frying, to make them more digestible; and adding a walnut size piece of fat to prevent greens from boiling over.
Cooks were also taught to make bacon go twice as far by dipping the rashers into flour or oatmeal, to prevent too much being lost with the fat.
Perhaps less appetising, there are also hints about what to do with stale bread – either put in cold water and rebake for an hour, or put slices in milk and then bake to make “delicious” rusks.
Recipes: How to cook First World War food
“Brown Stew”
Ingredients: meat, onions, flour, mixed vegetables, pepper, salt, stock
• Bone meat, remove fat, cut into 1oz pieces.
• Place 3lb flour, ½oz pepper, ½oz salt in a bowl and mix
• Place stock into bottom of cooking vessel and dredge meat in flour
• Peel and cut up onions, wash and peel and cut up the mixed vegetables, add onions and vegetables to meat, mix well together and barely cover with stock and place in over to cook
• Stir frequently
• Time 2½ to 3 hours
“Potato Pie”
Ingredients: meat, potatoes, onions, pepper, salt, stock
• Wash, peel, rewash potatoes, cut large ones into halves lengthways
• Bone meat cutting away fat, if meat is lean cover with slices of fat
• Place potatoes in tin dish, peel and cut up onions and sprinkle over the potatoes; add 1½oz pepper and 3oz of salt then pour over a little stock or water
• Place dish in oven and turn joint at half time, add stock when necessary
• Time 15 minutes to each lb of meat
“Sea Pie”
Ingredients: meat, stock, potatoes, flour, onions, baking powder, mixed vegetables, dripping, pepper, cold water
• Cut meat in cubes, taking excess fat.
• Wash, peel, rewash potatoes.
• Peel and wash mixed vegetables.
• Peel and cut up onions.
• Place a small quantity of stock in cooking vessel
• Place in meat, mixed vegetables, onions, potatoes on top, season with pepper & salt.
• Barely cover with stock then cover with paste made as for meat pie.
• Boil for 2½ to 3 hours, or they may be steamed
“Curried Cod”
• Clean and cut up cod and cut into 4oz steaks
• Place in cooking vessel and cover with water and cook until done, when done strain off water, keeping sufficient of the water that the fish has been boiled in
• Place flour, pepper, salt and curry powder in mixing bowl and mix well together
• Add sufficient of the water to make into this paste, bring fish stock to the boil
• Add thickening, cook for about 30 mins
• Pour into dishes over cod and serve hot
“Milk Biscuit Pudding” (feeds 100 men)
Ingredients: biscuits (15lb), milk (3lb or 3 tins), sugar (5lb), currants (4lb), spice (1 packet), candied peel (4oz)
• Soak biscuits until soft, about 3 hours in cold water
• Wash and pick over the currants, cut up peel finely
• Place biscuits, sugar and currants into baking dishes
• Add milk and mix well together with spice & peel and place in oven till cooked.
• Time 1 hour.
Si ringrazia ‘The Telegraph’ e Jasper Coppings
La dieta dell’esercito era particolarmente ricca di proteine, il che portò ad alcuni problemi – con uomini che soffrivano di foruncoli e divenivano, nell’eufemismo dell’esercito, “tappati”.Di conseguenza, la quantità di carne dovette essere ridotta.Con il progredire del conflitto, il cibo fu preparato sempre più vicino alla prima linea e molti cuochi vennero uccisi.Il libro include guide su come costruire vari forni e fornelli da campo di fortuna, per chef avventurosi che vogliono mettersi alla prova.Tuttavia, come evidenzia Robertshaw, solo una piccola parte degli uomini era nelle trincee in ogni momento.Tutti gli uomini ricevevano le stesse razioni, e le truppe venivano sempre nutrite prima degli ufficiali, nonostante dove possibile, i cavalli dovevano sempre mangiare prima di entrambi.Gli uomini potevano aggiungere alle razioni dell’esercito il cibo mandato da amici e familiari a casa, attraverso un sistema postale notevolmente efficiente.Dietro alle prime linee, i soldati inoltre mangiavano di frequente negli “estaminets”, combinazioni di pub, bar e ristoranti [una sorta di osterie, ndr], trovati in paesi e piccole città.I militari introdussero nella lingua un termine per indicare il vino a basso costo, “plonk” da “vin blank” [lett. “vino in bianco”, gioco di parole nell’originale, ndr], e resero popolari anche piatti come uova e patatine fritte – cibo economico e facilmente disponibile non comunemente offerto nell’esercito.Il curry, offerto dai cuochi dell’esercito, dall’influenza delle truppe indiane, fu anch’esso reso più diffuso dalla guerra. Aggiungendo pepe e spezie agli stufati, i piatti divennero più gradevoli quando venivano serviti freddi.L’alimento base nelle trincee era la carne in scatola: carne cotta, conservata e inscatolata, proveniente principalmente dall’Argentina. Agli uomini veniva consigliato di forare la scatola prima di aprirla completamente. Se fischiava, era andata a male.Quando i soldati britannici scambiavano la carne in scatola con i Francesi la loro reazione ai contenuti delle lattine era che dicevano si trattasse di “singe”, carne di scimmia.L’altro alimento in scatola principale era il “Maconochie” – un piatto a base di carne di maiale e fagioli, dal nome del produttore di Aberdeen. Era ben lungi dall’essere molto popolare, con almeno un uomo che insinuò che il prodotto fosse un crimine di guerra. Tuttavia secondo Robertshaw per quanto riguarda gli ingredienti, esso era poco diverso dal “cassoulet” [piatto tipico della Linguadoca, costituito da uno stufato di carni miste e fagioli in umido, ndr].Nonostante i piatti potessero essere semplici, ai cuochi era insegnato a cercare ortiche, lapazi dolci, funghi selvatici e calendule, con cui condire le pietanze.Non c’era nessuna opzione vegetariana ufficiale, sebbene ci fossero provviste per il personale indiano, che includevano spezie miste a base di zenzero, curcumina, peperoncino e aglio, Dhal (lenticchie) e Attar (farina di grano). I vegetariani ricevevano Gur (zucchero di canna) extra o latte invece della carne. Altre variazioni erano fatte anche per i Chinese Labour Corps, Egyptian Labour Corps e Fijian Labourers [provenienti rispettivamente da Cina, Egitto e Isole Figi, ndr].I cuochi erano attenti a eviare ogni sorta di spreco. Gli avanzi erano venduti come broda per i maiali, mentre il grasso sciolto era conservato per le fabbriche di esplosivi.Anche se questi suggerimenti non sono di molta utilità per gli chef moderni, la guida contiene atri consigli che potrebbe ancora rivelarsi utili, come lo strofinare le mani sul gambo del sedano dopo aver tagliato la cipolla per far andare via l’odore o non far bollire il cavolo con il coperchio sulla pentola; per rendere le salsicce più digeribili, conviene bucherellarle e immergerle nell’acqua bollente per cinque minuti prima di friggerle, mentre per evitare che le verdure scuocino, si può aggiungere un pezzo di grasso grande come una noce. Ai cuochi dell’esercito era anche insegnato di immergere le fette di bacon nella farina o nell’avena, così da impedire che troppa carne venisse persa insieme al grasso.Sicuramente meno invitanti sono i suggerimenti su cosa fare con il pane vecchio – metterlo nell’acqua fredda e reimpastarlo per un’ora, oppure immergere le fette nel latte e quindi impastarle per fare biscotti “deliziosi”.
Ricette: Come cucinare il cibo della Prima Guerra Mondiale
- – Stufato
Ingredienti: carne, cipolle, farina, verdura varia, pepe, sale , brodo
– Disossare la carne e rimuovere il grasso, quindi tagliarla in pezzi da 30 grammi
– Mettere 450 gr di farina, 15 gr di pepe, 15 gr di sale in una ciotola e mescolare
– Spolverare la carne con la farina e metterla in una pentola insieme al brodo
– Tagliare le cipolle e le verdure, quindi aggiungerle alla carne
– Lasciare bollire per circa due ore e mezza mescolando di frequente
- – Sformato di patate
Ingredienti: carne, patate, cipolle, sale, pepe, brodo
– Pelare le patate e tagliare le più grandi a metà secondo la lunghezza
– Disossare la carne e rimuovere il grasso
– Mettere le patate in un piatto, sminuzzare le cipolle e pargerle sopra le patate; aggiungere 45 gr di pepe e 60 gr di sale, quindi aggiungere un po’ di brodo o di acqua
– Mettere il tutto in forno, calcolando 15 minuti per ogni libbra di carne [circa 450 gr, ndr], e girare la carne trascorso metà del tempo
- – Sformato
Ingredienti: carne, brodo, patate, farina, cipolle ,lievito, verdura, sugo, pepe, acqua fredda
– Tagliare la carnee a tocchetti, eliminando il grasso in eccesso
– Pelare le patate e tagliare le cipolle
– Versare un po’ di brodo nella pentola, quindi aggiungere la carne, la verdura, le cipolle e infine le patate, quindi condire con sale e pepe a piacere
– Aggiungere dell’altro brodo e coprire con un impasto uguale a quello per lo sformato di carne [piatto molto diffuso nel mondo anglosassone, ndr]
– Far bollire per circa due ore e mezza
- – Merluzzo al curry
– Pulire e tagliare il merluzzo in filetti da 120 gr l’uno
– Far bollire i filetti in acqua, parte della quale andrà conservata
– Mettere farina, pepe, sale e curry in una ciotola e mescolare, quindi aggiungere l’acqua
– Portare ad ebollizione il brodo di pesce e aggiungere l’impasto; far cuocere per circa 30 minuti
– Rovesciare nel piatto sopra il merluzzo
- – Pudding di biscotti e latte (sufficiente per 100 persone)
Ingredienti: biscotti (7 kg), latte (1 l), zucchero (2 kg), ribes (1,8 kg), spezie , scorza d’arancia caramellata
– mettere a mollo i biscotti per circa 3 ore in acqua fredda, finché non si ammorbidiscono
– Mettere i biscotti, lo zucchero e il ribes nelle teglie
– Aggiungere il latte e mischiare il tutto con le spezie e la scorza caramellata
– cuocere in forno per circa un’ora
Commenti recenti