Daniel Boone challenge

[Man of Tanith]

that is one heck of a lot of food per day. however thinkin about it they had a very high demand for calories. much more than we need in our day to day activities.
they would of needed more calories to provide body heat, and they led a more active lifestyle than most folk nowadays.


also I am adding a basic water filter to generic kit list in first post. the UK definitely doesn't have the quantity nor quality or fresh safe water the USA had back then

 

[santaman2000]

that is one heck of a lot of food per day. however thinkin about it they had a very high demand for calories. much more than we need in our day to day activities.
they would of needed more calories to provide body heat, and they led a more active lifestyle than most folk nowadays.


also I am adding a basic water filter to generic kit list in first post. the UK definitely doesn't have the quantity nor quality or fresh safe water the USA had back then

"l6 oz; beef 6.8 oz.peas
18 oz. flour 1.4 oz. rice
16 oz. milk 1830 oz. Soap
1 qt. spruce beer .0686 oz. candle"

The 16 oz of beef is just over 5 servings per day (based on FDA reccomended 3 oz serving) and the 16 oz milk is only 2 servings That's the same amount of meat I was prescribed when I was on a 1200 calorie weight loss diet although the current RDA is only 2 to 3 servings I believe (and current RDA for milk/dairy is 2 to 3 servings) Not sure about the other amounts but considerring that the FDA reccomended intake of vegetables is between 3 and 5 servings per day that 6.8 oz of peas (less than a half pound) really doesn't sound like much. Likewise for the flour and rice when the RDA for carbs is also around 6 to 11 servings.

 

[Man of Tanith]

not as bad as originally thought then.
wondering they foraged to supplement those rations. guessing they would of

 

[santaman2000]

I'm sure they did. But that said, when you have a large army camped in a concentrated area it wouldn't take but a few days to deplete the resourses.

 

[Northsky]

Am up for this, prob end of Feb early March, weeks holiday coming up.

 

[Northsky]

You mention a tinderbox, would it be OK if it is full of cottonwool doused with Vaseline?

 

[Man of Tanith]

You mention a tinderbox, would it be OK if it is full of cottonwool doused with Vaseline?

That is entirely upto you

in fact and please don't think this is aimed at you Northsky but your post has reminded me
let me make this clear
i do not mind How you interpret the kit list given in first post
if you want to go fully Daniel Boone and do it wearing buck skins, carrying a longrifle and black powder, eating the era appropriate food great
if you want to do it using 21st century equipment that too is great
its just a bit of fun and meant to encourage skill development and having a laugh let's not take it too seriously eh

 

[andybysea]

Think i shall have a pop at this myself once the ground round here starts to dry out abit.

 

[Man of Tanith]

good stuff the more the merrier

 

[georann]

May have to get in with this when I'm home from Uni for Easter.

i do not mind How you interpret the kit list given in first post

Crack out ye olde Snugpak bedroll

 

[Man of Tanith]

well that's one way of interpreting it

 

[The Ratcatcher]

In response to the request for sharing recipes from the period, here is the first of many:

Cornmeal Mush

Bring 5 1/2 cups of water to the boil.

In a large bowl mix: 2 cups Fine Cornmeal; 2 teaspoons Salt; 2 teaspoons Sugar; 2 cups Cold Water.

Gradually add the mixture to the boiling water, and cook until thickened, stirring constantly.

Once thickened, cover and simmer on lowest heat possible for 20 - 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

That's the basic recipe, once you get to this stage, there are several things you can do with it. Cornmeal Mush can be eaten as it is, or you can add some sort of flavouring such as stock or bits of meat or vegetables, or you can pour it into a suitable container such as a small loaf pan, allow to go cold and then slice it, dip in more cornmeal, and fry it in bacon fat or lard.

The cornmeal I use is labelled Fine Polenta (European name), and for frying, I prefer the fat from smoked bacon. If you're going to add bits of jerky, it's better if the jerky is simmered in the thickened cornmeal mix. A Swedish folding cup is the correct size for measuring.

Hope this is the sort of thing you're looking for, and I'll post some others before long.

Alan

 

[sasquatch]

Good stuff Ratcatcher. Cornmeal is a staple for simple eats to keep you going and it's something I use a lot of even at home. Plenty of old recipes in Wildwood Wisdom for food using basic ingredients as well...

 

[santaman2000]

Basicly Italian polenta is the same as 'grits.' The cornmeal mush you described is an early version and still works just fine. It is easier just to get hominy grits though as they cook in about 5-10 minutes. that is Ifff! they're available there.

 

[The Ratcatcher]

Hi, Santaman,

Hominy grits don't seem to be available over here, I've tried to find a few American ingredients, and just get blank looks or the reply, "Try the internet.", even in specialist delis.

Alan

 

[santaman2000]

The recipe you've posted will be fine then. Just a bit more time consuming. In reality there are hundreds of variations (with dozens of different names) and none of them are 'wrong.'

 

[sasquatch]

Even Bisquick is hard to find here thesedays and I use that for buttermilk biscuits, pancakes and all manner of things. The world food sections usually have coarse and fine cornmeal. No hominy grits anywhere.

 

[Miyagi]

In response to the request for sharing recipes from the period, here is the first of many:

Cornmeal Mush

Bring 5 1/2 cups of water to the boil.

In a large bowl mix: 2 cups Fine Cornmeal; 2 teaspoons Salt; 2 teaspoons Sugar; 2 cups Cold Water.

Gradually add the mixture to the boiling water, and cook until thickened, stirring constantly.

Once thickened, cover and simmer on lowest heat possible for 20 - 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

That's the basic recipe, once you get to this stage, there are several things you can do with it. Cornmeal Mush can be eaten as it is, or you can add some sort of flavouring such as stock or bits of meat or vegetables, or you can pour it into a suitable container such as a small loaf pan, allow to go cold and then slice it, dip in more cornmeal, and fry it in bacon fat or lard.

The cornmeal I use is labelled Fine Polenta (European name), and for frying, I prefer the fat from smoked bacon. If you're going to add bits of jerky, it's better if the jerky is simmered in the thickened cornmeal mix. A Swedish folding cup is the correct size for measuring.

Hope this is the sort of thing you're looking for, and I'll post some others before long.

Alan

Bear in mind that a UK "cup" measure is 250 mils and a US "cup" measure is 236.5 mils.

Hope this helps.


Liam

 

[The Ratcatcher]

As long as the relative proportions remain the same, the difference in measure sizes isn't really significant. The problem only arises if you try to convert from cups to mililitres or grammes.

The slightly larger UK cup size just means you end up with slightly more finished product. Just remember to use the same measure for all the ingredients.

If you're really picky, you could add a little extra salt and sugar, but I've used this recipe and it works OK.

Alan

 

[Man of Tanith]

thanks for that recipe.
I shall probably give it a try at home first