Ever heard of portable soup?

[Wildthang]

Portable soup was a forerunner of boullion and was made by cooking down de-fatted beef into a jelly and further drying it wrapped in cloth, much like cheese. When rock hard it would last for years (Lewis and Clark took 193 pounds of it on their expedition). I thought this was interesting because I had never heard it called by this name, or processed in this manner.

[jfeatherjohn]

Never heard of it either.

[kyratshooter]

Portable soup as L&C carried was not a bullion type item.

In Lewis' letters to Jefferson during the preperation for the trip he mentions the fact that delivery of the "portable soup" was being delayed because the provider was having a difficult time drying the lentils. If it had been a simple reduction then drying the lintels thoroughly would not have been a consideration.

This is further reinforced by the addition of tallow candles to the soup to add flavor and body as the expidtion went on. The tallow candles were used like we use bullion, added to the portable soup for additional flavor and fat. The tallow candles were so valuable that the men had to get permission from the officers to add one to the soup. The men asking permission to use candles for food is noted in the journals, but the portable soup is never mentioned in the expidition journals, so it was not a major food item worth considering outside the inventory list.

Most historians now feel that the "portable soup" was a dried mix, much like our modern Soup Starter. Early Mountain House soup in bulk form.

Portable soup being a reduced bullion type item is an invention of the reenactment and historical forums due to lack of research a few years back. Now it is perpetuated because everyone sees it on the internet so it must be true. Several of us went through the detailed process promoted as proper documented preperation of the bullion mixture and it never turned out as an item that one could use as food.

No one I could find in the historic community has ever made an eatable bullion form of portable soup using the methods they had at that time. It was something we really wanted to do. Many of out treks were a challenge due to lack of a quick to fix dehydrated meal.

Lots of amatuer historians jump to conclusions before they have all ther research done and then fight to defend their mistakes. Those guys are worse than survivalists, more viscious too.

It should be noted that the 200 pounds of "portable soup" is the ONLY FOOD included on the expidition manifest and the group included 45 men at the start. The expidition lasted for 2 years so the soup was probably gone within the first two months.

[Winnie]

Modern portable soup.. nomnom

http://www.heinz.co.uk/ourfood/soups...of-tomato-soup

[hunter63]

Kinda heard about portable soup was when I was doing research on "dry beans' prep use and storage........as in chuck wagon beans and bacon, beans biscuits.

Few of the local reenactors, mentioned fooling with it, as well, but I never saw a finished batch of what or how, or ever had any....their guess was the name was kinda a catch all for grains , legumes, or anything that could be added to a soup to flavor, or extra bulk and nourishment.

Pemmican has been mentioned, as well as powdered jerky..........with a bunch of recipes..........So am open to any other suggestions.

[Pal334]

Modern portable soup.. nomnom

http://www.heinz.co.uk/ourfood/soups...of-tomato-soup

I have never seen that, is a great idea

[Rick]

That's sort of a tomato paste I assume. Interesting.

[Winnie]

Just like Campbells condensed soup, but in a squeezy tube, it comes in a few varieties. Makes a cup of soup, or I've used it as a sauce for a meal too. Much better than those bog awful powdered soups!