Posted on 06/28/2019 4:27:11 PM PDT by Jamestown1630
Recently, by a circuitous route, I became interested in submarines and submariners – especially the human aspect of the ‘culture’. What kind of man volunteers for this sort of duty, and how do the Navy, and individuals themselves, compensate for and cope with the extremely unnatural conditions, cramped living and limited resources?
It quickly became apparent that FOOD is very important on a submarine, in terms of morale and having something nice to look forward to; and while the job of cook there seems daunting, the submarine force is known for offering the best food of all the services. Submarine cooks have sometimes been sent to study at the Culinary Institute, as well as with famous chefs and restaurants.
‘Submarine Cuisine’ is a very interesting book published by the Submarine Research Center in Washington State in 2004, and contains many recipes from submarine cooks as well as lots of information about the ‘food–life’ and life in general on subs. It advertises itself as “The secrets of the submarine cooks who, during the past fifty years, have served the best food in the world”:
Another book, ‘Dolphin Dishes’, published in 1952, is actually a book of recipes from submariners’ wives and families, but also includes some that were favorites on particular boats, such as this Lobster Newburg served on the USS Nautilus (SSN571), the world’s first nuclear-powered sub:
Lobster Newburg Ala Nautilus
[This isn’t verbatim from the book, because the instructions were a little vague; but all the ingredients are there.]
2 live lobsters
1-1/2 cups butter
1 cup sherry wine
1 tsp. Salt
dash of black pepper
¼ tsp. Paprika
dash of nutmeg
6 egg yolks, beaten
2 cups light cream
Boil lobster for 15 minutes. Remove from shell and dice meat into small pieces. Melt butter in a double boiler, blend in sherry and seasonings and add lobster. Combine egg yolks and cream.
Add egg mixture to lobster mixture slowly, stirring constantly. Cook until thick. Serve on hot toast or in patty shells.
A pdf of ‘Dolphin Dishes’ is available from the Hathi Trust (takes a while to load):
https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.31822037855665&view=1up&seq=12
I didn’t think this would be complete without a recipe for S.O.S. - or ‘Shit on a Shingle.’ I’ve been told that the denigrating name isn’t really because people didn’t like it, but because of its ubiquity in military fare. It’s one of my favorites, and while it’s not exactly inexpensive to make from scratch these days, that’s superior to the frozen stuff:
Cream Chipped Beef
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1- 1/2 cups milk 1 (8 ounce) jar dried beef, diced
Black pepper to taste.
Melt butter over medium heat and whisk in the flour. Slowly add the milk, whisking. Keep whisking until the mixture thickens, then add black pepper to taste, and the dried beef. Serve over toast or biscuits.
For a history of the Dolphin Insignia at top, go here:
https://www.hrb-ussvi.org/single-post/2018/05/25/History-of-the-Dolphin-Insignia
And here is a discussion on Quora of submarine food, with comments from former submariners:
https://www.quora.com/How-is-the-food-on-US-navy-submarines
-JT
Problem on the boat is its like a food truck in the galley, and stuff has to be anchored down, but they load out some good chow.
Their kitchens are generally as small - or smaller - than mine is in a small, two-bed apartment.
My husband loves creamed chipped beef, but I rarely think to buy dried beef. I’ll have to get some next time I’m shopping. I put a tiny bit of finely minced onion in mine, sometimes.
Did y’all close off that compartment the offender contaminated?
That looks very good! and doesn’t use the anise-flavored five-spice-powder. (I just don’t like anise flavor in my food.)
Yup that’s reality.
The last time I went to buy it, it seemed very expensive. But I like it better made with that, than buying the frozen ‘entree’.
All you got in the army is MRE’s maybe a 1 burner stove and what you can find.
Fire makes it better.
It’s been done, that and hooch.
But fresh Veg is what you really miss.
What a cool topic. Thanks. I have always wanted to try creamed chipped beef on toast. I worked with a woman who made the most delicious dip/spread with dried beef, cream cheese & green onions. So deli3.
Delicious
You could probably grow some sprouts - but you’d need at least a minimum of fresh water every day or so.
They filter it out.
You’d be amazed how bad the world stinks when you surface.
You smell like Diesel and Amine but the ocean smells like a garbage scowl.
Make it easy on yourself, and just provide the toast: https://www.stouffers.com/en/our-dishes/classics/for-one/creamed-chipped-beef
That’s a staple in my house; but still not as good as from scratch.
Submarine experience seems to be a uniquely, existentially *creepy* one. I guess extra efforts are made to compensate for that.
But I’m sure you had S.O.S. - and that’s pretty good, in my opinion :-)
I still make SOS and like mine better, but Army SOS varied ans was often good.
Some of the recipes I found in the old Sub cookbooks had tomatoes in them. I’ve never made it like that.
It is expensive, but not more than, say, a pound of hamburger, when not on sale.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.