Where did Creamed Chipped Beef come from?

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

david_42

Well-Known Member
Joined
Oct 8, 2005
Messages
25,581
Reaction score
195
Location
Oak Grove
SOS. Nasty, slimy stuff. I think it is the German equivalent of lutfisk (lutefisk).

The earliest reference I can find is a 1910 Army cookbook, so it must go back further than that.

Any ideas?
 
LOL...I could only go back to the 1910 army manual as well for S.O.S. :)

I haven't had it in years (My dad fought in WWII) and my mom would fix it on occasion....It's actually not bad. I did find some gourmet recipes for it just now, using wine reduction....I might just have to whip some up while it is still winter. It seems like a winter dish, after all.
 
It's not nasty or slimy if done right...in fact it's basically a roux or bechemel sauce with dried beef added to it....it can be quite good... maybe as a wine sauce..or with a hint of truffel or morell mushroom...yum!

In case you're wondering what wine to serve with it...Here's what Emeril has to say! :D

Emeril Lagase said:
Creamed Chipped Beef with Pinot Gris / Grigio or Cabernet Sauvignon

The Pinot Gris is a refreshing choice with just enough crispness to contrast with the creaminess of chipped beef. A big, tannic Cabernet Sauvignon would be another great choice to balance the salty beef.

I'm thinking Rogue's Dead guy would be a good beer for it :D

(I'm deep into google and getting nothing earlier thant 1910...grr)
 
WOOT WOOT...I found something older that 1910!!!

On page 19 in google (for chipped beef)...

On a page about Frontier women I found a refrence to "chipped beef".

http://www.kindredtrails.com/Frontier-Women-Page1.html

Families who were departing along the Oregon Trail gathered at small towns on the Missouri River, called "jumping off points." Independence, St. Joseph, and Council Bluffs were among these towns. At this point their wagon trains would have been almost completely outfitted. The wagon, which was made of seasoned wood to withstand extreme temperatures, was hauled by four to six oxen. Tools and spare parts were stored under the wagon. Utensils including forks and knives, plates, cups, a kettle, fry pan, and a coffee pot were packed inside. Their food consisted of about 200 pounds of flour, 150 pounds of bacon, 10 pounds of coffee, 20 pounds of sugar, and 10 pounds of salt.(4) Chipped beef, rice, dry beans, dry fruits, pickles, and other foods were also packed. In total, the outfitting usually cost between $500 and $1000 ($10,000-$20,000 today).(5) Sometimes it was difficult to know what to bring, and some items had to be abandoned along the way. "Two wagons were filled with merchandise which we hoped to sell at fabulous prices when we should arrive in 'the land of gold' [California]. The theory of this was good but the practice - well, we never got the goods over the first mountain." (6) Wagon trains arrived at a jumping off point in March and left in April when the snow melted enough. Hopefully they would make it to Oregon before winter.
 
I'm on page thirty something of google, and i've found a connection to beef jerky...AND I have seen old cowboy chuck wagon recipes for stews and such that used rehydrated pemmican or beef jerky as the meat source. So I'm going to say at some point after the white's discovered dried beef (jerky) as a foodsource from the native americans and began rehydrating it, someone, probably a french settler's wife used it in a Bechemel Sauce...

Here's the info on Jerky...

The Native North Americans originally taught the settlers how to pull or cut meat into long strips. The strips of beef would be cured, seasoned and smoked. The word jerky comes from the Native American word “charqui” meaning jerked beef. The Native American jerky was sliced thin and dried on rocks in the sun. We know it as pemmican-style dried meat today.
Now cowboys liked their jerky thick and meaty. This jerky was hand cut and pulled from a side of beef. They would use the leftover cuts of beef to make the jerky.

Their jerky was a knotted and twisted hunk of beef, that was salted, and hung over tree limbs to dry in the sun and wind. The cowboys carried this beef jerky in their saddlebags. When they were out on the range for long periods of time this jerky was their only source of protein and nutrition.

And here's the history of Bechemel sauce.

Béchamel Sauce (bay-shah-mel) - As the housewife in the 17th Century did not have the luxury of modern refrigeration, they were wary of using milk in their recipes. Peddlers were known to sell watered down or rancid produce. Basically, only the rich or royalty could use milk in their sauces.

In France, it is one of the four basic sauces called "meres" or "mother sauces" from which all other sauces derive. It is also know as "white sauce." It is a smooth, white sauce made from a roux made with flour, boiled milk, and butter. It is usually served with white meats, eggs, and vegetables. It forms the basis of many other sauces.

History: There are four theories on the origin of Béchamel Sauce:

* The Italian version of who created this sauce is that it was created in the 14th century and was introduced by the Italian chefs of Catherine de Medici (1519-1589), the Italian-born Queen of France. In 1533, as part of an Italian-French dynastic alliance, Catherine was married to Henri, Duke of Orleans (the future King Henri II of France. It is because of the Italian cooks and pastry makers who followed her to France that the French came to know the taste of Italian cooking that they introduced to the French court. Antonin Carème(1784-1833), celebrated chef and author, wrote in 1822: "The cooks of the second half of the 1700’s came to know the taste of Italian cooking that Catherine de’Medici introduced to the French court."

* Béchamel Sauce was invented by Duke Philippe De Mornay (1549-1623), Governor of Saumur, and Lord of the Plessis Marly in the 1600s. Béchamel Sauce is a variation of the basic white sauce of Mornay. He is also credited with being the creator of Mornay Sauce, Sauce Chasseur, Sauce Lyonnaise, and Sauce Porto.

* Marquis Louis de Béchamel (1603–1703), a 17th century financier who held the honorary post of chief steward of King Louis XIV's (1643-1715) household, is also said to have invented Béchamel Sauce when trying to come up with a new way of serving and eating dried cod. There are no historical records to verify that he was a gourmet, a cook, or the inventor of Béchamel Sauce.

The 17th century Duke d'Escars supposedly is credited with stating: "That fellow Béchameil has all the luck! I was serving breast of chicken a la crème more than 20 years before he was born, but I have never had the chance of giving my name to even the most modest sauce."

* It is more likely that Chef Francois Pierre de la Varenne (1615-1678) created Béchamel Sauce. He was a court chef during King Louis XIV's (1643-1715) reign, during the same time that Béchamel was there. He is often cited as being the founder of haute cuisine (which would define classic French cuisine). La Varenne wrote Le Cuisinier Francois (The True French Cook), which included Béchamel Sauce. It is thought that he dedicated it to Béchamel as a compliment. La Varenne recipes used roux made from flour and butter (or other animal fat) instead of using bread as a thickener for sauces.

So I'm really thinking French settlers, 1700's, beef jerky and Bechemal sauce....
 
I love the stuff, My grandpa used to own a resturaunt and it was a huge hit there. Its delicious if done right.
 
I love the stuff, but most people don't. My grandfather used to call it what it was called in the navy - $hit on a shingle.
 
PseudoChef said:
What's wrong with lutefisk?
<-----------Swedish ;)

I was looking for some lutefisk jokes online, and I got to a Norwgian humor site...and for the first time since I installed firefox my browser crashed (firefox never crashes.) Damn that lutefisk is hardcore...remind me NEVER to consider insulting cured cod ever again :D
 
My mom used to make SOS when I was a kid...my Uncle Sam had it for breakfast almost everyday (hamburger-style though), but now that I'm married my farmgirl wife I've switched over to bisquits and (sausage) gravy...;)
 
WTF!
This is the beer section guys, BEER Recipes/Ingredients not FOOD Recipe/Ingredients.
I don't mind, in fact I was laughing because I was really wondering how this was going to relate to beer. Turns out it doesn't :drunk: , but I have to wonder why here? And why must I be the voice of reason? :fro:
 
Revvy said:
Using the New Posts button, I never notice the location of a particular thread...I figured it was in drunken rablings myself...

But I did relate it to beer https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=591951&postcount=4

But hey...if jones can make turkey dinner soda...maybe the OP is looking for the recipe for an SOS flavored beer.....:D
...same here...never look at the section...think chunky brew!!:drunk: ;)
 
Yeah I concur with the idea of it arising out of necessity. Basterma* is probably the origin of the dried beef part, and at some point in time I imagine someone thought to put it in with a Bechamel. It is a great form of beef to have for long journeys and places/times lacking refrigeration.

I use Bechamel based sauces for topping thick slices of toast, usually with Morels in the spring, Chanterelles or Black Trumpets in the summer, Porcini, Chicken of the woods, Hen of the woods, etc in the fall. Other times it is used with fresh pork sausage on top of home made biscuits.

*or one of the similar European dried beef products such as Braseola.
 
zoebisch01 said:
Yeah I concur with the idea of it arising out of necessity. Basterma is probably the origin of the dried beef part, and at some point in time I imagine someone thought to put it in with a Bechamel. It is a great form of beef to have for long journeys and places/times lacking refrigeration.

I use Bechamel based sauces for topping thick slices of toast, usually with Morels in the spring, Chanterelles or Black Trumpets in the summer, Porcini, Chicken of the woods, Hen of the woods, etc in the fall. Other times it is used with fresh pork sausage on top of home made biscuits.

I kept coming up with Basterma as well but I kept getting recipes (which sound great btw) but liitle info on the history of it except that it was Armenian.

Drooling thinking about mushroom infused Bechamel sauces!
 
Revvy said:
I kept coming up with Basterma as well but I kept getting recipes (which sound great btw) but liitle info on the history of it except that it was Armenian.

Drooling thinking about mushroom infused Bechamel sauces!

I'd imagine there are loads of cultures who thought of the same thing, if they were the actual source passed to today's American concept of dried beef, one can only wonder...I suppose I should correct my above statement to fit that.

What I was getting at was the concept was most likely imported here from Europe, although I'd imagine anywhere cattle is plentiful, like Argentina, they'd eventually produce a similar product on their own. Bresaola would be another great example. I find the stuff we have available in most of our stores to be terribly bland.

Yeah, I can't wait for mushroom season to start again! Last year was not that great, probably one of the worst seasons I have seen all around. :(
 
WHY ST. PATRICK'S DAY IS CELEBRATED

The real reason the Irish celebrate St. Patrick's Day is because this is when St. Patrick drove the Norwegians out of Ireland.

About 800 AD, many Norwegians began to arrive in Ireland to escape the bitterness of the Norwegian winter. Ireland was having a famine at the time, and food was scarce. The Norwegians were eating almost all the fish caught in the area, leaving the Irish with nothing to eat but potatoes.

St. Patrick, taking matters into his own hands, as most Irishmen do, decided the Norwegians had to go. Secretly, he organized the Irish IRATRION (Irish Republican Army to Rid Ireland of Norwegians). Irish members of IRATRION passed a law in Ireland that prohibited merchants from selling ice boxes or ice to the Norwegians, in hopes that their fish would spoil. This would force the Norwegians to flee to a colder climate where their fish would keep.


Well, the fish spoiled, all right, but the Norwegians, as every one knows today, thrive on spoiled fish. So, faced with failure, the desperate Irishmen sneaked into the Norwegian fish storage caves in the dead of night and sprinkled the rotten fish with lye, hoping to poison the Norwegian invaders.


But, as everyone knows, the Norwegians thought this only added to the flavor of the fish, and they liked it so much they decided to call it "lutefisk", which is Norwegian for "luscious fish".


Matters became even worse for the Irishmen when the Norwegians started taking over the Irish potato crop and making something called "lefse".

Poor St. Patrick was at his wit's end, and finally on March 17th, he blew his top and told all the Norwegians to "GO TO HELL".


So they all got in their boats and emigrated to Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and the Dakotas ---- the only other paradise on earth where smelly fish, old potatoes and plenty of cold weather can be found in abundance.

The End.
 
david_42 said:
OK, if a mod wants to move the thread, I don't mind.

Or you could do this:

If creamed chipped beef were a beer, what grains would be in it?

And presto, now we're talking beer ingredients as they relate to SOS. ;) :D
 
Some tips for making good SOS:

(I never had SOS at home while growing up. My dad was in the army and would have killed my mom if she ever tried to put that on our table (other no-no's were canned fruit cocktail, or any other diced fuits or vegetables).

Anyway, I was surprised when I got a little older to find that SOS really wasn't all that bad if cooked right).


1. Cook your bechamel sauce very slowly, but keep it on the burner for at least an hour with a bay leaf in it, and a decent amount of black pepper. (A pinch of nutmet is also good in bechamel-- not too much, though. You don't want to actually taste it in there).

2. Don't add the dried beef until it is almost time to serve it. Just get it in there long enough to be heated through.

3. Serve it over nice big Idaho bakers instead of toast. Pick out some really nice potatoes and bake them in a hot oven (at least 400 F) for a good hour.

Excellent comfort food.
 
Mmmmmmmm - SOS. I haven't had that since I left home moons ago. Never liked the hamburger version though. This was something my dad actually liked (WWII vet) but spam was a forbidden entity in the house as it should be. My wife actually likes friggen spam on occasion.
 
My dad was in the Army and he LIKED the stuff! Of course, he was only in 91 days and spend most of that in traction. I don't think my mother ever made it after he died.
 
I make SOS about once a month, usually because it's quick and easy to grab 500gm hamburger out of the freezer and 20 minutes later you have SOS. SWMBO isn't very fond of it, but she does eat it, and I think she is starting to like it more and more. I am not a big eater (can't finish a proper 3 course meal), but I gorge myself on this stuff!
 
DesertBrew said:
Mmmmmmmm - SOS. I haven't had that since I left home moons ago. Never liked the hamburger version though. This was something my dad actually liked (WWII vet) but spam was a forbidden entity in the house as it should be. My wife actually likes friggen spam on occasion.


Hey your Avatar is reminiscent of the old Mullets Galore logo...

Oh and yes I love SOS!!!

VIVA LA SOS!!!!
 
I am now the proud owner of;

150px-Chippedbeef.jpg


It was in my mom's cupbard...unfortunately it's a couple years old...but there's no expiry date...and the dimple on the lid is still pushed in....Should I turn it into SOS...or what?
 
Back
Top