How Did Our Ancestors Cook Aboard Ship

[Subdeacon Joe]

This video made me think about it.

 

 

 

How much wood or charcoal for cooking did a tall ship carry for cooking?  What equipment was in the galley?

[Widder, SASS #59054]

My guess is that they eat raw fish and other sea food, plus as much fresh veggies and fruit as possible.

 

To me, fresh water would be a bigger concern.   Of course, wine was probably their main beverage, along with other

alcoholic drinks.

 

..........Widder

[Red Gauntlet , SASS 60619]

Salt pork with plum duff on Sundays.

[Subdeacon Joe]

16 minutes ago, Widder, SASS #59054 said:

My guess is that they eat raw fish and other sea food, plus as much fresh veggies and fruit as possible.

 

To me, fresh water would be a bigger concern.   Of course, wine was probably their main beverage, along with other

alcoholic drinks.

 

..........Widder

 

Beer more likely.

 

USS Constitution galley

 

https://ussconstitutionmuseum.org/2015/06/04/hot-stove-cool-ship/

 

Food would be salt pork, salt beef, salt cod, dried peas, dried beans, hard crackers,rice, pinhead oats, maybe dried apples or apricots.

[Subdeacon Joe]

HMS Victory Mess

 

https://members.tripod.com/ron_fraser/food.html

[Pat Riot]

The Galley aboard the USS Constitution. 
 

I took these photos on July 4, 2019

 

 

 

 

I took this one in September 2018

[Utah Bob #35998]

Thanks for the pics. I’m neither a swab I’ve nor a naval historian (although I can relate some sad stories about my own navel) but I have read some accounts of RN galleys. Folks tend to think there was no stove or fires because the ships were wood. But stoves there were. They needed hot water for cleaning, surgery, and tea of course. Remember, their voyages were sometimes 2 years or more. You’d have a mutiny if no hot food was available. 
And the officers would certainly not be eating cold bully beef and hardtack in the captains mess. Note the scenes from the excellent film, Master and Commander. 
 

[DeaconKC]

One thing to consider is that dried fish burn quite well. During WW2 the wood shortage in Russia forced to use dried fish to run locomotives in some areas.

[El CupAJoe]

  

 

Drach has an amazing channel about all things seafaring before the 1950's.

[Smuteye John SASS#24774]

It wasn't tasty but there were very stringent regulations on portions and what was served when in the American and British Navies.  Screwing with the rations was a quick way to end up with a mutiny on your hands.

 

The biggest problem you had to worry about was your supply officer shorting, overcharging you or the logistics officer where ever you were victualing passing off bad food on you.

 

The officers didn't do too badly since they could supplement stores out of their own pocket.  You're not going to dine on fresh beef every day, but you can at least have high quality, recently preserved foods.  Crew, on the other hand, got what they got and most of it was reconstituted, salt cured or, in the case of the hard tack or ship's biscuits, had been in the barrel so long that weevils got to it.