Lobscouse, Hardtack & Navy Sea Cooks

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Subtitles: Jose Mendoza | IG @worldagainstjose
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Dunbrody Kitchen: Gregory Vozzo via Flickr: CC BY-SA 2.0 creativecommon...
HMS Trincomalee stove: Ian Petticrew, CC BY-SA 2.0 creativecommon..., via Wikimedia Commons
Star of India galley: BrokenSphere, CC BY-SA 3.0 creativecommon..., via Wikimedia Commons
#tastinghistory #shipbiscuits ‪@madein‬

[@TastingHistory]

Order the TASTING HISTORY COOKBOOK at amzn.to/42O10Lx and today's recipe can be found at www.tastinghistory.com/recipes And again thank you to our sponsor Made In, and get a 10% off discount off first orders over $100 using my link madein.cc/0124-tastinghistory

[@TheZabbiemaster]

Have you tried making this with drysalted meat? I think the ships might have used salted meat a lot

[@Didymus20X6]

WOODEN BARQUE THROUGH THE ENDLESS SEA TONS OF RUM, BRING THE BOOZE TO ME WE'RE ON A SHIP, TO THE WINDS WE BOW ALL RENEGADES, WE'LL OVERTHROW - Storm Seeker.

[@death-istic9586]

Love your videos!💚

[@Menuki]

There a Dutch/ Belgian dish that uses slices of stale bread smeared with mustard floated on the surface to thicken the dish. Apparently the mustard helps emulsify it. I wonder if it’s related

[@chelu4u]

Have you done the Welche rabbit before?

[@Firegen1]

And the crowd goes wild. Round of applause *Clack clack*

[@BeerKa007]

I love that part 💯💯💯

[@briancohen-doherty4392]

For real 😂

[@Firegen1]

​@@BeerKa007Big same! 😂

[@LukasSchratz]

Imagine a life-session with Max Miller in some theater and the audience does not clap, but every one pulls out his or her homemade hard tack and "clack-clack" as an applause 🙂

[@KevinM23]

Local headline: "Cheer of hard tack; heard miles across county as Tastorians applaud Mr. Miller's conference"

[@Tielyanna]

I watch Tasting History every day while I eat lunch. Now my toddler won’t start eating until we turn on “histy!” She gets so excited when she hears the opening music. Thanks Max!

[@TastingHistory]

Get ‘em started young! A budding history lover.

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

​@@TastingHistoryyou're the Best 😊😊😊❤❤❤❤❤

[@azilbean]

That's adorable!❤

[@EmpressoftheLoneIslands]

That’s the cutest thing I’ve ever heard.

[@alexanderjames3538]

I also watch tasting history on my lunch breaks! It's a great vibe.

[@soulfoodsmama2980]

The “hard tack!” Clack-clack honestly gets me every time 🏴‍☠️

[@Xani13]

Beat me to it. Max, please don't leave that out in future videos featuring this simply sturdy side dish.

[@mecahhannah]

Me too 😂

[@BeerKa007]

Yessss 💯💯💯

[@pepperpants]

Classic

[@Moeflyer6213]

It has become the running gag of Max's videos.

[@faeembrugh]

I still have one of my great-grandfather's hardtack biscuits from WW1. He kept it as a souvenir as he had just left a trench area and entered a dugout, got the biscuit out of a tin and just then, where he had been standing, a minenwerfer round exploded. He thereafter regarded this hardtack as his 'lucky piece' and indeed, he and the hardtack did survive the war.

[@joshbevill1770]

Man this is an amazing story

[@joshbevill1770]

If you have a picture of your great grandfather you should make or get a case for it the hardtack and write the story of it down to pass the story on to your children. Or at the least have it put in a military museum or something like that. So it doesn't get thrown away one day . Keep that story and memory alive

[@faeembrugh]

@@joshbevill1770 A very good idea. I do have a very good picture of him with his kilt on (Black Watch), his army issue razor and his trench mirror and case (complete with caked-on Western Front mud).

[@joshbevill1770]

@@faeembrugh man it will make a great remembrance piece of your family could look back and see a piece of their family from times gone by. Trust me when I say my paw paw's flag and his purple hearts in his case ,it makes me feel proud.

[@bruceaisher]

You should donate a piece of it to Steve1989MREinfo so he can put it on his tray. Nice.

[@marendenison3550]

The *clack clack* with Max’s goofy smile gets me every time 😂

[@ryanartward]

That's worthy of a ringtone.

[@akyox5798]

Truly, the hardtack cut to you clacking them together literally never fails to make me smile

[@astaroth_sasazaki_yt]

and we now have a 2024 version XD

[@scalylayde8751]

@@astaroth_sasazaki_yt The 2024 version isn't as good as the original, I think. Both the clacking sound and the expression aren't as good

[@coracorvus]

​@@scalylayde8751 Agreed, I hope the new clip doesn't replace the old one. Otherwise we'll be able to divide all of his videos into "Before Lobscouse" and "After Lobscouse"

[@CHAEU555]

​@scalylayde8751 Yeah, the bigger kitchen means the hardtack acoustics (and the way he's holding them differently) just doesn't sound the same.

[@NioneAlmie]

​@@coracorvusI love the idea of separating Max's videos in the same way we date modern history around the death of Jesus Christ. That's how meaningful those clacks are to fans of his channel.

[@NAFUSO1]

It occurs to me that this channel may indeed be nothing more than an elaborate Pavlov's Dog experiment. Max has trained all of us to expect the clack clack anytime he says "hardtack." And, like the good doggy that I am, I delightedly tune in every week for fascinating food, a history lesson, and if I've been a very good boy all week maybe, juuuuuuust maybe, I'll get a clack, clack.

[@MrYfrank14]

I think it is the other way around. We trained him that we love that clip so he finds excuses to include it.

[@TwinkleTwinkleTruly]

Imagine if he forgets it once and all the comments are just “where’s clack clack?!?! QAQ”

[@rgibson7305]

yessss, I had this exact thought!!

[@kaylathehedgehog2005]

Not just him! I've seen other people's videos that mention hard tack, and I always a split second of confusion when I don't hear the *clack clack*. Then it's like, 'oh yeah, this isn't Max'.

[@markopolo1271]

Honestly at this point if I ever someone so much as mention hardtack without hearing the clack-clack immediately afterwards I feel an incredible amount of disappointment and unease

[@ILikeCheezDoodles]

Lapskaus is still eaten in Norway! Usually made with beef, potatoes and root vegetables, it's served with flatbrød(flatbread) that is made from water and barley flour. The flatbread is usually dipped or used almost like a spoon for the lapskaus.

[@kiija5354]

In Finland too, at least in the west coast with sea farer history. I didn't even realize lapskoussi has such an interesting history, it's been kinda everyday meal served in schools and homes too. A bit more elaborate than this version, though 😊

[@IXUMtheNICE]

This was my favourite food as a kid when I lived in northern norway... such a nice change from the 5 days a week with mainly cod with boiled potatoes, luckily bestemor fried some bacon in butter to go with that

[@kelseyjaffer]

i was coming here to say this! when i visit family and go camping i always bring a camping pack or can of lapskaus!!

[@ottovonbismarck2443]

@birthemuller7310 Jedesmal in Hamburg im "Old commercial room". Bestes Katerfrühstück der Welt. 😋

[@LastNameSalmon]

Yup, my mom made Norwegian lapskaus all the time when I was a kid, like once a week. I like to eat it with well-buttered bread, preferably kneipp.

[@SwtTeaLdy]

The hard tack (clack, clack) will NEVER get old. It is now iconic. I, literally, LOL every 👏single 👏time👏!

[@ynys_mon6928]

Lobscows (Welsh spelling) was also a staple stew for landlubbers along the north wales coast and Liverpool (hence the nickname ‘scousers’ for a Liverpudlian). I’m sure there must have been a myriad of receipt, but the one I inherited (from Anglesey) was for cubed stewing beef or lamb simmered in water seasoned with salt and pepper, with onions, swede and carrots, and dumplings made of beef suet, flour and water added for the final 20 minutes. It always tastes better reheated the second day with fresh dumplings.

[@theastral1909]

Bang on. Another variant is the Lancashire Hot pot.

[@faeembrugh]

I suppose the common Scots dish 'stovies' is another variation of this sort of simple, relatively cheap but filling meal.

[@PropaneWP]

In Norway we call it Lapskaus and it's a staple food here.

[@marlinblack6597]

Definitely better the day after. We make it and always eat it the next day. It was not uncommon to eat is for many consecutive days. A huge pot of it would be made adding extra vegies to the remainder for the next day. We never had dumplings but would have a big cob of crusty bread. I use 3 kg of beef slow cooked and a roasted leg of lamb. Add to the pot of root vegies and once the vegies are cooked I allow it to cool and refrigerate overnight. You need to plan space in the fridge though. Definitely fills you up and puts you to sleep.

[@alexschneider1593]

Ysgol Tregarth and Ysgol Dyffryn Ogwen still served this when I was in school.

[@midoriya-shonen]

can't believe we got a hardtack and asafetida reference in the same episode. The Tasting History lore is really coming together 👀

[@johnnyxmusic]

Add a sprinkling of garum, and we’re good to go!

[@mzfreddie]

Four? Four hard tack "clack clacks"? We have been blessed! Also, I appreciate you calling this a one pot meal. It made it me really happy for whatever reason.

[@writeordie5452]

Four hard tack "clack clacks", Jeremy? Four? That's insane.

[@jason4443]

Not only 4, one of them is new.

[@Your-Least-Favorite-Stranger]

And in this economy! We're living the high life now, folks.

[@Chef_PC]

SIX! SIX CLACKS! AH AH AH...

[@kevinroche3334]

And I counted at least two missed opportunities!

[@janerkenbrack3373]

The caboose on a train was where the crew rested and cooked their meals. It got its name from the caboose on ships because of the stove.

[@krugerdave]

The German word for galley is Kombüse 👍

[@OyMongoose]

@@krugerdave and the Afrikaans word for any kitchen is kombuis.

[@Mistah_Boombastic_BiggieCheese]

I didnt think there was a connection! How cool! Ive always wanted to sleep in a caboose on a train as a kid.

[@dakotalove4989]

I was wondering. Thank you!

[@shawngleason527]

i literally cried out "YEAH!" when I saw the clip of you tapping the hardtack, it's the simple things in life :)

[@choomanfoo157]

I love the hardtack bit, NEVER GETS OLD! NEVER STOP DOING IT! Cracks me up every time and its cool inside joke to regulars of the channel.

[@whilethevossisaway]

I don’t know which I like better, the clack-clack sound of hardtack or Max’s facial expression when he claps them together 😄

[@BradleyWoodrum]

That expression is the closest we'll ever get to peering into a 17th century sailor's soul during dinnertime.

[@scalylayde8751]

It's all pure poetry

[@rickwilliams967]

I gotta say, both together are what makes it.

[@propyne5460]

That's still a thing! Here in Germany you can get Labskaus, both fresh and canned, which is basically this, ft. added beets, mashed to a completely disgusting-looking but absolutely delicious... well, mash, frequently garnished with a fried egg and/or pickles and/or fresh fish. Looks like puke on a plate, but it's savory and filling and *good*.

[@eliptikon]

I am not from Hamburg, but it is one of my favorite German dishes. Max, you have to try it when you come to Germany this year!

[@xekon14]

You also often eat it together with Rote Beete/red beet

[@eliptikon]

@@xekon14 „Beet Root“

[@xekon14]

@@eliptikon thanks

[@beckyhatt9870]

Bremerin here - ditto - I think it looks like dog food…but oh soooo lecker!

[@alliesealock]

Not only do we get lots of *clack clack* but we get a new *clack clack*?!? Max has smiled upon us! Seriously though, the history of stews fascinate me because on the one hand its just cooking food in liquid but on the other hand, there are sooooo many different variations of something like a beef stew. I mean who doesn't have a relative's recipe that they swear by? That difference and variation is just so fascinating.

[@LuChii13]

I'm from Argentina and here stores sell "galletas marineras" or "sailor's biscuits" (I guess), my great grandma loved them and they're popular between vegans because they're just flour and water. They're definetely not as hard as hardtack, you can eat them on their own and don't have that much shelf life but are very dry and thin. I never knew what they had to do with sailors unitl I started watching your videos but it makes sense that they could be some kind of adaptation from hardtack that people made once they were settled, considering our population is made mainly from european inmigrants who came in very long trips on ships. Anyway, I hope you read my comment 😊😊. I love your channel and I love how you always match the tiny stuffed animal to the videos. ♥♥♥

[@user-hx1ky1lg7z]

I just finished making Lobscouse as per your recipe. Dude, , AWESOME!!! I gave some of my hardtack to my friend. I challenged him to use it as well. Thank you again for the awesome recipe. And your book rocks!!

[@TommiNummelin]

Here in Rauma, Finland, "lapskoussi" is still a common sight. Many lunch spots serve it once a week. Grocery stores in the area also sell it in 1 kg buckets. There's no hardtack (clack clack!) in it, but it's thickened with potatoes.

[@napoleonfeanor]

Similar in Northern (and just Northern) Germany

[@TommiNummelin]

@@napoleonfeanor Now that you mentioned it, yes! I've had it once in Rostock and I recall their version was red because it had beets. Otherwise very similar.

[@Ozrichead]

Same in northern Sweden, "lapskojs".

[@TommiNummelin]

@@Ozrichead Oh, how neat. I have to find a recipe and give it a go.

[@lakrids-pibe]

*Labskovs* as we call it in Denmark. We also skip the hardtack (clack clack!) Cubes of beef, onions, potatoes, water, laurel leaf, salt, pepper. Boom! Pickled red beet is served on the side, not incorporated as they do in other regions. Edit: I forgot about the skipper! How could I forget about the skipper? I don't know the difference between ordinary labskovs and skipper-labskovs. The dish is usually called skipper-labskovs. It's just a fun name.

[@LadyLocket]

In Liverpool nearly every family has their own recipe for Scouse, also it is commonly made in one large pan as the poor often wouldn't have frying pans or multiple pots available. You just throw it all in for a long, slow stew, skimming off the foamy top till it's gone. It's not unusual to cook it to eat the next day as it often tastes better and better each day you reheat it. Traditionally its a cheap beef cut cubed (one that can take a long stew and still hold its shape ), potatoes, carrots, onion and optional bacon. Any other veg or meat type makes it an Irish stew. Then enjoy with lovely piece of crusty bread to mop up and often pickled red cabbage or beetroot on the side. Most families have their own seasoning combinations and flavour additives (for example Worcester sauce, OXO cube or herbs) often guarded and handed down as a secret recipe.

[@LadyLocket]

⁠@@JohnBloggs-m8l Scouse is usually much, much thicker than an Irish stew (and its mother dish the Lobscouse) due to the long cooking time, the volume of potatoes and repeated reheating which helps break some of the potatoes down naturally thickening it and as I said traditionally any veg other than potatoes, carrots and onions makes it Irish. Half my family are some of those Irish immigrant Scousers and they make both regularly and would still be very insulted if you called their Scouse no different than an Irish stew. It's similar to Sheppard's pie and Cottage pie being differentiated simply by one using ground lamb/mutton and the other using ground beef. Yet the areas they come from are very protective and proud of their traditional dish.

[@JohnFalcon]

We always add a few drops of vinegar to our scouse

[@gillianrimmer7733]

​@@JohnBloggs-m8l, All regions of the British Isles have some version of meat, potatoes and/or vegetables cooked in a stew. The ingredients may vary a bit, depending on what was available locally, but it was a traditional way to cook the cheaper cuts of meat the working classes could afford - and also cooking over a fire. It's nothing to do with Ireland or Irish immigrants. As mentioned above, scouse is nothing like Irish stew

[@newcamomile]

@@LadyLocket lots of Scousers out there make scouse with lamb or ideally half beef and half lamb, but I've never seen it with bacon before. Scouse made with lamb is definitely not Irish stew! Irish stew in my experience has leeks and barley and usually carrots, and scouse is thicker and usually doesn't have carrots. Also lobby I believe is scouse made with corned beef (UK style tinned corned beef that is).

[@steely3506]

​@user-et6pj4db9s Dude. This is a discussion about meat and potatoes boiled in a pot. Take a chill pill and accept that there's gonna be variations on that.

[@calgon5689]

Scouse!!! The National dish of Liverpool ❤ Literally just finished a big pot I made last week. The reason Liverpudlians are called 'Scousers' or 'Scouse' is because the Sailors/Dockers were known for enjoying Lobscouse so much they got the nickname from others due to this preference for this hearty meal.

[@freshPrinceOfBelfairs]

Easy there la.

[@torreykat]

Isn't the Liverpool accent also the one most people associate with the "pirate" accent? It seems they're just bound to be connected with sailing 😂

[@sharimeline3077]

I honestly wondered where Scouse came from, now I know!

[@calgon5689]

@mgtproductions9524 Wouldn't say the Scouse accent is pirates- but it is a mix of dialect and accents (Irish, Scottish, N.Wales, Lancashire). The stereotypical Pirate accent originates from actor Robert Newton who played Long John Silver in a film adaptation of Treasure Island in 1950. His accent is very much West Country.

[@netto6681]

@@torreykatnah, the stereotypical accent is Cornish/southwestern, popularised by Robert Newton in Treasure Island.

[@steely3506]

I really appreciated how you took the time to discuss the disability angle. It's very rare to see the roles of historical disabled people mentioned outside of discussions about institutions/medicine. Many assume that historically, disabled people always just died, lived on the streets, or were institutionalized. Not always the case, as can be seen here!

[@Omegasupreme1078]

I think the Admiralty was being tight-fisted rather than generous.... if the pensioners were at work on ships, they wouldn't need to be collecting pensions.

[@trevorfloyd7313]

I’m super excited to see all the future hard tack “Clack Clack’s”! I can see it now old clacks then new clacks! I honestly would be devastated if I heard him say “Hard tack” without the cut away! My favorite part of the videos 😂!

[@macfizzle83]

As a proud Scouser (and long time viewer!!!), I can’t tell you how excited I was to see you do an episode about our “national” dish!! And I don’t mind telling you, I completely geeked out when you gave a nod to our city’s association with the dish. Just as a point of interest, although we dont use hardtack any more, Scouse is invariably served with hard “crusty bread” and beetroot (which is also a key ingredient of labskaus in Hamburg, another city with a Beatles connection!). Amazing content as always Max, you are a treasure!

[@wombataldebaran9686]

It is Hamburg's "national dish" as well, although we do the recipe a little different. Greetings from the other side of the North Sea!

[@kcapkcans]

American married to a Scouser here. Love the national dish, and was excited to see it get covered here. I make the modern version a couple times per year and would be hard pressed to think of something different for a final meal if pressed, though red borscht would be up there!

[@paulmcbride9139]

Expat Scouser in my case….my Grandad used to make an amazing pan of the stuff. Love this channel, and was thrilled by this video.

[@andreagriffiths3512]

My family have always called it Tatterash and when we were lucky, mum would do suet dumplings or a crust on top. Originally we lived in Warrington.

[@davidjones8478]

Leigh, Lancashire my home town, our nickname is the Lobbygobblers due to our affinity for Lobby

[@carolynallisee2463]

Has it really been three years since the hard tack video was made?? Good grief, where did all that time go- I remember watching that one when it was put up! Then again, I also remember watching the very first Garum video when it first went up, too! It's interesting that Max says his lobscouse reminds him of the Irish Stew he made, for this, too can be traced back to Liverpool. This was the port where I guess Irish men landed to work in England and the rest of the UK... and there was a large number of them come over to build both the canals and the railway networks. They are even recorded as a specific group, known as the Navvies, and their presence can be found in the many folk songs that come from in and around Liverpool. What's not to say that some of these Irish folk got chatting to ships' cooks on the Irish Sea crossing, and ended up exchanging favourite recipes along the way?

[@genghiskhan6809]

Bruh I remember when this channel had less than 2000 subs. How time flies and things change.

[@kendra3540]

I look forward to your videos every Tuesday! My 1 year olds, I put a Playlist on of your videos during the day. Everytime the sound of time for history plays my daughter immediately is glued. My mother in law and her mom has fallen in love with your videos and both bought your cook book now. They love watching when they come over. Them being from England they love seeing those recipes ❤ thank you for what you do!

[@TastingHistory]

That's lovely, thank you to the family for watching.

[@flangle]

My mum was from Birkenhead so scouse is a childhood comfort food of mine. She always made it with stewing beef and cooked it in a pressure cooker so it was super tender. Sometimes we'd have it with suet dumplings, which was always the my fav version.

[@Murigan0]

Ohhh my goodness!!!! My family still eat a very similar recipe just called "Scouse", given that we live near Merseyside I never questioned it but - it's really great to see my own living heritage be represented in a way that I genuinely learn something!!! Thank you for making my day Max! :))

[@Murigan0]

OK I MAY NOT HAVE FULLY FINISNED OR GOT THAT FAR VIEW THE VIDEO, TO KNOW THAT HE MENTIONS MODERN SCOUSE BUT STILL THANK YOU MAX!!! :))

[@mumimor]

It's already been mentioned in the comments that in Denmark, it is called Skipperlabskovs. It is the signature dish of the Tivoli restaurant "Grøften". Here it is a meat and potato stew. The meat can be any meat but salt pork is probably the most common. Apart from salt, the seasoning is white pepper and bay leaves. The potatoes are boiled out, not mashed. But as in much Danish food, the real secret is in the toppings. You need chopped chives, cold dices of butter, pickled red beets, Worchestershire Sauce and perhaps also or alternatively brown sauce (like H.P. Sauce). Some have ketchup and mustard, too, but to me, that is a bit over the top. And buttered whole grain rye bread on the side for texture. You also need snaps and beer. Danish food often seems bland at first glance, but it comes to life with the different toppings and condiments and the combination of sharp and gentle beverages. I have a historical cookbook, but not here, and it will take a while before I can find it, but to cut it short, there was a common North Sea culture, encompassing Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Western Germany and The Netherlands, and they have a lot of recipes and other cultural stuff in common, albeit with local twists. The culture was still alive when I was a kid in the 60s and 70s, but as shipping and fishing methods changed, the culture almost died out. I could speak a Yorkshire Dialect in Vendsyssel, and be understood. Now both regions share a great understanding of American English.

[@pthaloblue100]

Thanks for sharing, that was so interesting especially the part about the North Sea culture!

[@elsakopp7457]

The only problem I have is that Yorkshire and American understand each other 😢 All identities disappear 🫥

[@anathema2325]

Best food I ever had was in Denmark. With superior ingredients and copious amounts of butter you don't need much more. ❤

[@darlenefraser3022]

Seriously interesting! Thank you! What are snaps?

[@kimvibk9242]

Fellow Dane here - see you in Tivoli!

[@hablin1]

We still make it in Germany its made with corned beef, picked cucumber and potatoes it is topped with a fried egg my father in law used to work as a cook on a fishing trawler and used to make it quite often some people serve it with pickled herring . Apparently thats why people from Liverpool are called Scousers 👍😍I Its a national dish on the German coast and their islands 👍

[@wombataldebaran9686]

Pladdütsche Köken :)

[@krugerdave]

And beets! The Labskaus that I know is always hot pink from all of the delicious red beets 😋

[@hablin1]

@@krugerdave yes true and the red herring salad 👍👍👍

[@hablin1]

@@wombataldebaran9686 genau 👍

[@krugerdave]

@@hablin1 a fixture of Christmas dinner at my house. My dad loves it, but hates beets. When his mother gave the recipe to my mother when they got married, she made sure my mum would keep the fact that there were beets in it secret 🤫 I don't know how he thought it got that colour 😅

[@jacobgordillo6476]

In case you wondering, the hard tack thing is still delightful. Always makes me smile.

[@lakrids-pibe]

I was looking forward to it. Hehehe!

[@sabinegierth-waniczek4872]

Well, hard tack *clack clack* never gets old...

[@mikydicy2565]

Labskaus ist also a Dish, I grew Up on. My Mother comes from Rostock, which was a verry Prominent Port in Germany. Thank you ☺️

[@hazelpixie56]

My 10 year old daughter begged me to put this on while we were eating dinner, and of course I had to oblige. Thank you Max for making history so appealing and appetizing (and a couple glasses of wine make it even more so!)

[@I_Willenbrock_I]

We still eat "labskaus" in Germany to this day. It's a staple food on the menus of practically all traditional northern German restaurants (German dishes). It's also often made at home. I personally cook its at last once a year. The recipe is a bit different and it now contains pickled beed (especially the juice), pickles and pickled herring. We don't use hardtack and only the corned beef these days though. It's eaten with fried eggs. Edit. We also eat it mashed.

[@padmanabhanvaidyanathan7182]

I've been living in Hamburg for the last 4 years, I should try it sometime.

[@chipskylark5500]

what do you eat mashed? the stew?

[@LesLee62]

I live in Liverpool among the wonderful Scousers (nicest , funniest people you'd ever want to meet) and I've had scouse countless times in my 25 years here and it's rarely the same twice but it's always amazing. It usually consists of whatever you have available to to you; whatever is cheap at the market that day- carrots, onions, lamb or beef (flour the meat before you cook it to help thicken the stew), potatoes, bacon (much thicker here than in the US) are standard ingredients. It's not unusual to keep a pot of scouse going and just add to it over time. It freezes well and it's a hearty, warming, filling comfort food. A crusty bread on the side rather than hard tack might be a bit easier to make if you don't have any in hand. Lee, honourary Scouser

[@jamescanjuggle]

sounds really similar to my grandads coddle (we're irish) he ate and grew up with, like exactly as you described just sausages were usually added too

[@lordmuntague]

Sound La! 👍

[@kevparkin4846]

I'm from Liverpool (UK) and we're known as 'scousers', nice to see my homeland getting a mention on one of my favourite KZbin channels.

[@Geno2021]

10:10 I've seen this episode before, but only just now noticed the kitty sneaking a fish snack

[@andersbald6756]

This is eaten in Liverpool. You add oxo stock, cabbage, carrots and whatever vegetables you got. You add Worcester’s sauce if you got it, a bayleaf and some other spice (I like thyme) and whatever spices you want just don’t overdo it. Add crusty bread and some pickled cabbage (the red kind). I personally like this with a pint of Guinness too or some claret

[@loximuthal]

In the Patrick O'Brian books the ship's surgeon sometimes uses asafoetida in his medicines, so the sailors know they have been properly dosed.

[@RenaissanceManChild]

See also "The Potteries - Lobby" Stoke On Trent is far from the sea, but we've eaten this dish for hundreds of years and still do here. We call it Lobby which is a variation on the Lobscouse name, and it was eaten here by the poor Staffordshire Pottery workers as cheap food. It is one of our local dishes that every family knows & eats, along with the delicious Staffordshire Oatcakes (a soft oat pancake wrap unique to the area that is often eaten topped with grilled cheese)

[@Oktopia]

Lapskaus is a Norwegian stew with diced potatoes, carrots, leeks, kohlrabi, and parsley root. You make it with stock and also diced beef or pork. It was interesting how the name of that dish sounds like how you say lapskaus in Norwegian.

[@Takenmynameandmycat]

Is kohlrabi widely available in Norway? I love it, but it’s difficult to find in stores here.

[@bendikmanum3132]

Yes, you can find it in pretty much all shops@@Takenmynameandmycat

[@Oktopia]

@@Takenmynameandmycat I think it's relatively easy to acquire. But I do believe they might be seasonal.

[@realhorrorshow8547]

For fellow Brits, I should add that "corned beef" in the UK is, of course tinned, salted, minced beef. The "bully beef" of military rations for so long. If you use that in a recipe like this, you will get beef soup or hash - depending on the amount of liquid. You will need salt beef from a deli - if you can find it - for this dish as described. Otherwise, it's brisket. The supermarkets call this "casserole beef" I've noticed. In one of Patrick O'Brian's novels there is mention of a "tripod" ship's cook. Having had both his legs taken off by a cannon ball, he has been granted a cook's warrant and has two wooden legs. To allow him to cook in rough weather, he has a third leg "seized" - strapped or lashed - to his posterior and so remains stable when others cannot. Many roles in the British Royal Navy had traditional names. The Surgeon's assistant was called the Loblolly Boy - regardless of age or even sex - because it was his task to dole out the loblolly or gruel to patients. Loblolly being a reduced form of lobscouse. The cook's assistant was often called Jack Nastyface, for reasons lost to time.

[@terrymyers699]

Max, greetings! Terry from Huntington Beach here. I'm a former "sea cook" in the US Navy - an MS on the USS TARAWA LHA-1 (crew of 5000 sailors and Marines while underway). I retired from the culinary industry 7 years ago after cheffing for 30 years. I've been enjoying your channel for about the last 6 months or so. I love how you give the recipe interpretations then whip a little history on us. I'm going to give this Lobscouse dish a go this weekend. Like very hearty and filling, something for a good voyage or a brisk Winter's night's meal. If ya ever head down to OC, give me a dollar. We can swap seafaring recipes and anecdotes.

[@w.reidripley1968]

How were you on the Navy sticky bun? Man, those were like the best part of a balanced breakfast.

[@terrymyers699]

​@@w.reidripley1968, I honestly don't remember making any. My best friend was head baker and we'd help him bake the breads and pastries at night for the next day. I don't remember making sticky buns. We did make donuts and pop/turn overs which went fast. Sticky buns would've been the death of me 😀

[@w.reidripley1968]

@@terrymyers699 ,They were an appreciable threat to my figure then too. I've seen the recipe, which is basic, with butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. The secret seems to have been they used ship-raised yeast dough, like underway-baked bread.

[@eclipsehorse8693]

hey there! Former MS here! USS McKee AS-41... I got out a little before you did- just thought I'd shout out to a fellow cook and shipmate! fair winds and following seas!!

[@terrymyers699]

@@eclipsehorse8693 Bravo Zulu, shipmate! We Navy cooks are few and far between so its always nice to hear from a fellow Navy chef.

[@oldasyouromens]

I loved your episode on Fannie Farmer and disabled women cooks. Glad to know disabled sailors on ships were still getting paid, even though they couldn't climb rigging.

[@louuanneeestrewp6189]

Max 🥹 I've been wanting you to do a video on "Scouse" for ages. Really glad to see you have done the origin video of it. This is where us scousers get our name from. I love how food has so much culture and history and how it connects different parts of the world together ❤

[@tangawarra]

Interesting, in Germany Labskaus contains gherkins as well. Oh, and no hardtack. Just gherkins, potatoes and salt beef. Modern recipes go something like this: Boil potatoes and peel them, make mash using the liquid from the gherkins. Chop gherkins and potted meat and mix with the mashed potatoes. You can add butter and salt if you want to. You can also use pickled beetroot instead of the gherkins. Serve with pickled herring and fried egg.

[@The_Cranky_Painter]

Probably a similar taste, since corned beef has been pickled in a brine. Likely the same general idea, using what they had on hand.

[@bridge6649]

My Mom and myself always do it with beetroot so it's bright pink. My Grandma didn't, so when I visited her as a child and she made Labskaus it was dull grey and I didn't wanna eat it. By the way: I'm from Hamburg, Germany

[@The_Cranky_Painter]

@@bridge6649 Very cool! My parents lived in Stuttgart before I was born. There's a lot of similarity between regional dishes. It sounds like your mother was attempting to recreate the more traditional dish, since the beetroot would both make it the pink of corned beef, as well as add in the pickled flavor. Very clever trick!

[@tangawarra]

So is my godmother who taught me the recipe. She made it with gherkins and my mum made it with beetroot (that's the Australian influence, :) add beetroot to everything). As a kid I despised pickled beetroot, so I preferred my godmother's. Agree about the horrible colour though.@@bridge6649

[@tangawarra]

@@The_Cranky_Painter I live in Mittelfranken now, so I make it with tinned Bratwurstgehäck. Nice and salty, goes well with the gherkins.

[@sugarplum5824]

I keep thinking of the phrase "son of a sea cook." Love your tack clacking! 😂

[@keithbillington8747]

I am from Liverpool😀🇬🇧, our accent is called Scouse! Because of the stew😀 Mum made our scouse from leftovers from sunday roast, preferably lamb, potatoes, carrots, parsnip, barley, cooked down over many hours, add Extra spuds ( potatoe) the original comfort food😀. Any leaftovers made into a scouse pie😀 yum!!

[@peabody1976]

The "Max Miller" drinking game just has a new entry: take a shot every time you hear **Clack Clack** :)

[@jeromethiel4323]

Way to contribute to alcoholism! ^-^

[@DriveI65]

US Navy in late 1960's and I'm very grateful for our ship's cooks after watching this episode. Food was great! I appreciate all the research and writing you put into your channel. Thank you!

[@slwrabbits]

That's a very interesting comment on copper versus cast iron, especially since many people think of iron as an upgrade to copper. This shows one of the ways in which that was not true. ALSO! New hardtack clip?! NEW HARDTACK CLIP!

[@EricDeibler]

My wife grew up on the Baltic Sea coast in northern Germany. There the traditional way of cooking it is as a hash, with no water. You start with the bacon and potatoes and then add in the corned beef. It also includes the addition of red beets and pickled herring, including the juice, which are part of the simmer in the frying pan. It’s then serviced with fried eggs.

[@System509]

Yeahhh!!! Scouse babyyyy! Sorry just a proud Scouser here who’s super happy to see one of my favourite childhood comfort foods covered. Can’t believe just how far the recipe has come in human history. Super fascinating.

[@TheFlyingDutchmansTricorn]

Hands down my favorite channel. The perfect marriage of cooking and history.

[@connorgolden4]

We need a compilation of everytime the hard tack joke has been used!

[@Ollie941]

I'm from Stoke-on-Trent, I grew up eating Lobby which is our local variant of Lobscouse, specifically a variant that uses Pearl Barley instead of hard tack. I always assumed we inherited it from Liverpudlian immigrants during the Inudstrial revolution but it sounds more like we got it from "Lob lolly" from the West Country. Also find it bizzare to think this dish spread as far florida. Thanks so much for focusing on a bit of Northern English history!

[@Jinzo126]

Hi, i live in Germany and Labskaus is very famous North German food. The ingrediens are: Potatos, Onion, Cored Beef and beetroot. It is served with a Fried Egg on top and a "Rollmops" (rolled fillet of marinated herring)

[@EHOinExile]

I saw Labskaus on the menu in Hamburg. It was exactly as you described and utterly delicious.

[@debbiew.7716]

Winco Foods here in the States sells sea biscuits in their bulk food section and I have some stored for emergencies! There is a movie "17 Miracles" where a pioneer mother experiences a sacred moment with these hard tack biscuits that helps her family survive a terrible journey west, I was privileged to meet that Mother's Great Granddaughter, who heard the story from her Great Grandma's own lips. So special.

[@IamJunius]

In Patrick O'Brian's book series on the adventures of Royal Naval Officer Jack Aubrey and Dr Maturin the meal of Lobscouse is often mentioned. There's even a cookbook based on the meals mentioned in the series called "Lobscouse and spotted Dog."

[@brangochmawr]

And it's a rather different recipe calling for juniper berries!

[@ShorelineThomas]

Asafoetida is often mentioned in the book series as an additive to medicines prepared for the sailors. They used to think foul smelling = effective.

[@be6715]

'You must ALWAYS choose the lesser of two weevil's!' I thought of the same novels when I saw the title. Just picked up a book of Patrick O'Brians short stories.

[@sawahtb]

Aubrey’s favorite dish was pickled pigs head.

[@MissCaraMint]

I believe my dad owns that cookbook. I should look through it and see if I can find something good.

[@lingua_geek]

It's funny you mention the Irish stew because it really is super similar. And the version you mentioned about adding grains instead of hardtack in Liverpool (incidentally where I lot of Irish went) is almost exactly like Irish stew. Kind of nice how even in different areas people enjoyed similar food 😊 Also, love little Staryu in the back ❤❤

[@MissCaraMint]

That sounds a lot like what we in Norway call grynsodd. Interesting.

[@danielsantiagourtado3430]

**Clack Clack** 3:39 its always music to My ears and we got a new one! THANKS MAX! YOU'RE THE BEST 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@adamshelbourne85]

Love this video, I’m a very proud scouser myself and can confirm that we still eat Scouse and blind Scouse in the city today - and we LOVE it and are so proud of it!!! It’s a little different and more gravy/stock based with more vegetables - turnips and stuff if you’re posh!! - and we have it with pickled veg like cabbage or beetroot - also if you’re posh - love Scouse!!!!!

[@GodlikePoet]

I honestly don't think that the *Clack Clack* every time Hardtack is mentioned will ever get old for me

[@davidjsaul]

Ah, love scouse, especially served with pickled red cabbage. Favourite dish of Liverpool!

[@Getpojke]

Now you've done rubaboo, hellfire stew, lobscouse & Irish stew it would be lovely if you could do traditional "Stovies" from Scotland. (If you do please don't do the imitation one with corned beef - that's just a hash). Proper stovies, with the leftover from a roast/drippings. A very humble dish, but one close to my heart. A winter staple & one we traditionally had every Guy Fawkes night after the fireworks served with oatcakes, skirlie & pickled beetroot.🎆😋

[@MrJayrock620]

My dad was a civil war re-enacted and they would make hardtack for demonstrations in sample size. Conveniently it was about the size of long rifle ball, so during one of the after season parties they shot some of the leftovers at pumpkins LOL

[@natasagajic1061]

I'm currently living in Norway (not a Norwegian) and lapskaus is my favorite Norwegian dish (but then again, I love stews)! My Norwegian friends like to good-naturedly tease me for having a preference for such an old-timey dish 😄 The main difference is that rutabaga is a main ingredient (and also there are no biscuits involved 🍘🍘)

[@lindahamilton800]

Dearest Max! I must - I am compelled! - to write and tell all that asafoetida was a common ingredient of medicinal syrups, elixirs, concoctions, and poudres. The apothecaries kept it in stock - in a cork-gasketed jerboam no doubt! - which is probably why the writer mentioned it. Asafoetida was added to medicines principally for its staaank, convincing the uninitiated that it was certainly efficacious. Hilarious. I just found you a month ago, immediately subscribed, and you're a bright spot in my day. Love it all! And the hard tack - ×× - cracks me up every time. Every time! ❤❤❤❤

[@henningbartels6245]

contemperary "Labskaus" which is a regional dish in coastal Germany has a similar base, but also includes beetroot and gherkins and is served with pickled hering and an egg sunny side up. ... all things which can be easily taken on a ship trip.

[@henningbartels6245]

I also noticed that the German term "Kombüse" for ship's kitchen probably derived from these stoves. Thanks.

[@SacredCrone]

I want to start a drinking game. Watch Tasting History episodes for several hours and do a shot every time a hard tack “shot” gets played. 😀

[@GiselleMF]

That's a short road to alcohol poisoning... 😮 When do we start? 😅

[@violetsummers2983]

The dish is how us scousers from Liverpool got our name! Scouse is still a food we eat a lot here and is gorgeous. Mum loves it with beetroot.

[@leenoah1505]

Dear Max & Crew, you are loved and appreciated. Thank you for this great video!

[@wettyfop9898]

Max, you are honestly one of the most charismatic people on here. I love learning from you! Your passion is so evident; it's palpable. Always happy to see you make a post! I would 100% love to see what videos you have that weren't posted. Even if there's no food related to the subject, I'd be hitting that rewatch button on spam! Keep up the fantastic and beautiful content my teacher and friend❤

[@douglasfur3808]

My kids, when younger, had a nice DK book on Vikings with a cutaway of a longship. This illustration was printed on clear plastic so you could peel back the decks and see inside. At the same time I was into Patrick O'Brian's Naval historical fiction. The naval stores of the Viking ship were very similar to those on board a British warship of the Napoleonic period. With the Vikings sailing over to invade eastern England, the Danelaw, it seems highly likely that lobskous could have been introduced at that time. O'Brian also mentions asafoetida as an apothecary ingredient of that time.

[@gingerella7934]

I just recently discovered this channel and since watching it, I have learned so much more about history and historical events than I ever learned in school. Max is so interesting he makes me look forward to learning more!

[@haruruben]

2:37 yes, “fresh” hard tack

[@LarsSveen]

In Norway it's called lapskaus. It's an ancient dish that is still popular and cozy to eat in the winter!

[@jess53nz]

I cannot describe the joy of not only having hardtack in the title but multiple *clack clack*s! ❤❤❤

[@Nu_Atma]

I looked into making hard tack after watching your original hard tack video. Out of curiosity, I ended up making a batch of them. I vacuum sealed them, and set them aside. They are every bit as delightful as chewing on a brick. I tried soaking one for several hours in coffee... nothing. All and all, it was great fun. I hope to God I will never need to eat them. I feel they would be more useful as a melee weapon during a zombie apocalypse, than a source of sustenance.

[@sabinegierth-waniczek4872]

Or sharpen an edge and throw them at enemies, like the villainous henchman with the razor edged hat in a James Bond movie (Goldfinger?)

[@Nu_Atma]

@@sabinegierth-waniczek4872 They'd have to rename it 'James Bond indigestion never dies'

[@sabinegierth-waniczek4872]

@@Nu_Atma Hi, cool alias name ;-) Labskaus is a recipe I would expect to find in the Necronomicon. Good proposition, but I throw out "Hard Tack is Noooot Enough" or "With A View to the Grill" or "Stew Finger" You see, I try to laugh about what I fear (Labskaus with pickles and beetroot and herring thrown - I am just not brave enough to try this dish, albeit I believe that many people like it this way). Q surely would have a belt ready with small vials of caraway and/ or Jägermeister during mission briefing... I hasten to add that I normally love cooking and eating one pot stew dishes!!! But Labskaus is an acquired taste ,and the imagination to have to eat the Northern German version aboard aship and battling with seasickness adds yet another dimension to the experience. Trauma squad to the rescue!

[@Nu_Atma]

@@sabinegierth-waniczek4872 The life of a sailor must have been really tough back then.

[@LilA-zl6tf]

Thanks! My father used to be a sailor already during the sailing ship era, and it was often we had lapskoussi (Finnish version) at home. Just meat, lots of (half smashed) potatoes and butter. That was good. I used to spice it richly with ketchup. My father was not a cook steward, but a captain, yet it was most often his job to make this dish in our family. - For some odd reason, it is not so commonplace food on ships nowadays.... 🤔

[@Iceechibi]

Please never stop the hardtack running gag on this channel I love it so much 😂

[@brokebogan91]

I'm so happy that this was an episode, though a different version, no one around me knew what I was saying, asking 'what the hell is Lobscouse?', I always had to explain it as a potato and meat stew. xD So, I want to thank you, for doing this video. Now I can just send people here when they ask me what Lobscouse is. :) In case you're curious, my history with it; Over 25 years ago (I'm 32 now), I had my great grandmother come to Australia from Norway to visit. Her son - my grandfather - was a fisherman, and was most of his life. He even sailed the sea from Norway to here, over 60 years ago, obviously stopping at many docks on his way here. When great grandma came, she showed my grandmother her version of Lobscouse - Celery, Shallots/Spring Onions, (peeled) Potatoes, (peeled) Carrots, and Rump Steak. Add some beef stock ro the water, and let simmer for 8 hours, stirring every half hour for the first two hours, then every hour after, scraping the bottom. It's a dish I still enjoy to this day. Though I've had to change the cutting sizes, as she always said 'smaller', as if it was the only english words she knew, it was cute. :) So the sizes were usually smaller than 1cm. I've made the potatoes and steak bite size now, but everything else still tastes the same.

[@ChrisB-nx4gw]

No matter how many times I see the HTC (hard tack clack) I can't help but chuckle. Thank you Max!

[@lizz4452]

It's really interesting how this dish has evolved - I'm from an area near Liverpool and this version (especially if you add sliced potatoes on top like the recipe mentioned) actually reminds me more of Lancashire hotpot! Scouse as I know it is beef, carrots, potatoes, and sliced onion with plenty of gravy granules and some pickled red cabbage and crusty bread. Lancashire hotpot is less gravy heavy and more peppery, and seems to have more ingredients like leeks added!

[@sourcreamking]

In Norway, "Lapskaus" (both light and dark versions) is still a staple of our cuisine. Guess most seafaring nations have their version of this dish :) I even believe a street in Brooklyn, NY was called Lapskaus Boulevard for a time...

[@jeromethiel4323]

Well, people talk, and seaports were places where people from many nations/areas would be able to meet and pass on recipes. Plus, people jumping ship, etc. A lot of cross pollination of ideas. Or, it could be like pickling or jerking meat. When you need to preserve foods, a lot of the same methods were developed all over the world, because chemistry is a thing. Pickling is not hard to figure out, nor is drying of food stuffs. Stews are awesome, as it's really just whatever you have dumped into a big pot and cooked slowly. So not terribly surprising that every type of cooking i have ever heard of has something like a stew in it.

[@sskyle227]

I live in Newfoundland, Canada, where hard bread (Sea biscuits or "Hard Tack") is still a staple of some very old, traditional recipes. Fish & *Brewis (pronounced *bruise) is a meal made of potatoes, salt cold, salt pork, onions, and hard bread. The salted dried cod is soaked overnight in fresh water to soften and remove most of the salt then drained, boiled in water with potatoes, the brewis is added at the end but usually soaked for a few hours prior. The salt pork is diced into tiny cubes and rendered in a frying pan until they get crispy, where they are referred to then as "scruchuns" onions are sometimes added to the salt pork while frying and browned in the pan. The salt fish, potatoes, and brewis are drained from the cooking water and served with a topping of the rendered salt pork scruchuns and onions. It's a hearty meal that many seafarers and fishermen would often be served. Also, a very simple desert could be made where the sea biscuits or "Brewis" would be soaked in cold water, heated, drained, and topped with molasses.

[@sapphosplace]

As a former hospital corpsman, I'd love to see a video dedicated more to loblolly's history, especially one including it's associations with sickbays and the loblolly boys.

[@RNmedicSeniorservice]

Also known as Loblolly 'lob' to bubble or boil, 'lolly' stew or porridge. Loblolly 'boys' were 'waisters' of the ship who were relegated to looking after the sick, assisting the ships surgeon. The term is recorded as far back as 1597. These Loblollyboys would become sick berth attandants (Medic rating) of the Royal Navy by order of the Admiralty 4 May 1833. They are now known as the Royal Navy (& Royal Marines) Medical Assistant (since 1965). The USN would create a new medical rate from their Loblollyboys the Hospital Corpsman (after having had a couple of other different names). The MA and HM have served side by side at China Boxer rebellion 1900, Korean War (1950) and Iraq (2003) and many times after this (I have twice in Iraq with great HMs). 29 years and still serving. Corpsman up my freind! Video here on 191 years of the Royal Navy Medical Assistant: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hWG2qadoesSUbdk

[@MsAnpassad]

Well, it sure doesn't resembler the Swedish Lapskojs as you say, as it's more of a mash with pieces of beef in it. It does however have similarities to the dish Sjömansbiff (Sailors steak), but then you just add beef, so no bacon etc and boil the beef, onions and potatoes in layers in beer (preferably porter) and some stock plus some herbs. It's quite a treat and easy to make.

[@mariapaulastepanian9930]

What a breath of fresh air this channel is! When the world is falling apart, this is a safe place! ❤ thank you!

[@BlueJayWaters]

It must be either my ancestors calling me, or my own time in the Navy, but every time I see a sea based episode from Max, I gotta stop everything to watch it ❤

[@la_scrittice_vita]

Delightful that we have higher quality footage of the hard tack baking 3:38, but nothing can replace the original clack-clack 2:03. It is part of the history of Tasting History.

[@kevinicus77]

Many years ago, I made hardtack and lobscouse for a pirate festival (like a Renaissance faire, but all pirates!). Boy, do I wish I had your instructions for making hardtack back then, the directions I had were far more complicated, involving rolling it flat and folding it numerous times. Like a phyllo dough from Hades.

[@TheADM16]

No one : Absolutely no one : Hard tack : clack clack.

[@QueenSucho]

My favorite time is any time he adds the hard tack clip. Please never stop

[@Kiley28]

It's things like, "Give it whatfore," that keep me coming back. It's so simple yet so hilarious.

[@jebhuzyak7526]

The kitty cat in the picture chicken hawking the fish at 10:11 is awesome!!!

[@MxPotato84]

The clack-clack sound of hard tack gives me so much joy. I was giggling while you were making a fresh batch. Never stop clacking your hard tack! Its iconic to you.