Portable soup
Encyclopedia
Portable soup was a kind of dehydrated food
used in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was a precursor of the later meat extract
and bouillon cube
s, and of industrially dehydrated
food. It is also known as pocket soop or veal glew. It is a cousin of the glace de viande of French cooking
. It was long a staple of seamen and explorers, for it would keep for many months or even years. In this context, it was a filling and nutritious dish. Portable soup of less extended vintage was, according to the 1881 Household Cyclopedia
,
— or the fat would go rancid — and then reduced
repeatedly until it took on the consistency of jelly. Once it was sufficiently gelatinous to hold its form, it was placed on pieces of flannel or unglazed earthenware dishes and rotated regularly to dry it further. This was a seasonal process attempted only in the winter when humidity
was low. Once dry, it was wrapped in paper and stored in boxes.
tradeswoman. Together with William Cookworthy
, she won a contract to manufacture it for the Royal Navy
in 1756.
The naval authorities hoped that portable soup would prevent scurvy
among their crews. Therefore they allotted a daily ration to each sailor beginning in the 1750s. Captain Cook was convinced of its efficacy and carried it on both his South-Seas
voyages.
Lewis and Clark on their 1804–1806 expedition into the territory of the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase
carried portable soup. According to his letter from Fredericktown, Ohio
on April 15, 1803, Lewis purchased the soup from Francois Baillet, a cook in Philadelphia
. He paid $289.50 for the 193 pounds of portable soup stored in "32 canisters". Lewis carried it with him overland to the embarkation point on the Ohio River
.
However, by 1815, with the publication of physician Gilbert Blane
's On the Comparative Health of the British Navy from 1779 to 1814, the efficacy of portable soup for promoting the health of sailors was found lacking. Opinion shifted in favor of canned
meats, by a process invented in France
in 1806.
A similar product, portable gelatin
, was developed by American inventor Peter Cooper
in 1845, as a staple meal or dessert for families.
by Patrick O'Brian
, set on the high seas during the Napoleonic Wars
, is replete with references to portable soup. (See External Link below).
In Johann David Wyss
's novel The Swiss Family Robinson
, set in the 1790s, portable soup makes a number of appearances, the youngest son Franz first mistakes it for glue
, and then later suggests it be used as a substitute.http://www.ccel.org/ccel/wyss/swiss.txt
Food preservation
Food preservation is the process of treating and handling food to stop or slow down spoilage and thus allow for longer storage....
used in the 18th and 19th centuries. It was a precursor of the later meat extract
Meat extract
Meat extract is highly concentrated meat stock, usually made from beef. It is used to add meat flavor in cooking, and to make broth for drinking....
and bouillon cube
Bouillon cube
A bouillon cube [ˈbuːjɒn kjuːb] or stock cube is dehydrated bouillon or stock formed into a small cube about 15 mm wide. It is made by dehydrating vegetables, meat stock, a small portion of fat, salt and seasonings and shaping them into a small cube...
s, and of industrially dehydrated
Dehydration
In physiology and medicine, dehydration is defined as the excessive loss of body fluid. It is literally the removal of water from an object; however, in physiological terms, it entails a deficiency of fluid within an organism...
food. It is also known as pocket soop or veal glew. It is a cousin of the glace de viande of French cooking
French cuisine
French cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from France that has developed from centuries of social change. In the Middle Ages, Guillaume Tirel , a court chef, authored Le Viandier, one of the earliest recipe collections of Medieval France...
. It was long a staple of seamen and explorers, for it would keep for many months or even years. In this context, it was a filling and nutritious dish. Portable soup of less extended vintage was, according to the 1881 Household Cyclopedia
Household Cyclopedia
The Household Cyclopedia was an American guide to housekeeping published in 1881.- External links :**...
,
...exceedingly convenient for private families, for by putting one of the cakes in a saucepan with about a quart of water, and a little salt, a basin of good broth may be made in a few minutes.
Process
Soup was made in the usual way reduced, degreasedDegreasing
Degreasing often called Defatting, is a term used to describe the removal of fatty acids from an object. In culinary science, the word degreasing refers to various methods which are used to reduce the fat content of a meal. This term can be used to categorize procedures that reduce the fat content...
— or the fat would go rancid — and then reduced
Reduction (cooking)
In cooking, reduction is the process of thickening and intensifying the flavor of a liquid mixture such as a soup, sauce, wine, or juice by boiling....
repeatedly until it took on the consistency of jelly. Once it was sufficiently gelatinous to hold its form, it was placed on pieces of flannel or unglazed earthenware dishes and rotated regularly to dry it further. This was a seasonal process attempted only in the winter when humidity
Humidity
Humidity is a term for the amount of water vapor in the air, and can refer to any one of several measurements of humidity. Formally, humid air is not "moist air" but a mixture of water vapor and other constituents of air, and humidity is defined in terms of the water content of this mixture,...
was low. Once dry, it was wrapped in paper and stored in boxes.
History
Portable soup is held to have been invented by Mrs Dubois, a LondonLondon
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
tradeswoman. Together with William Cookworthy
William Cookworthy
-Bibliography:*Early New Church Worthies by the Rev Dr Jonathon Bayley*Cookworthy's Plymouth and Bristol Porcelain by F.Severne Mackenna published by F.Lewis...
, she won a contract to manufacture it for the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
in 1756.
The naval authorities hoped that portable soup would prevent scurvy
Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
among their crews. Therefore they allotted a daily ration to each sailor beginning in the 1750s. Captain Cook was convinced of its efficacy and carried it on both his South-Seas
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
voyages.
Lewis and Clark on their 1804–1806 expedition into the territory of the newly acquired Louisiana Purchase
Louisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition by the United States of America of of France's claim to the territory of Louisiana in 1803. The U.S...
carried portable soup. According to his letter from Fredericktown, Ohio
Fredericktown, Ohio
Fredericktown is a village in Knox County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,428 at the 2000 census.-History:Long before white settlers entered the area, Adena and Hopewell Indians inhabited the area of Fredericktown. Early settlers found three mounds and earthworks located on nearby hilltops...
on April 15, 1803, Lewis purchased the soup from Francois Baillet, a cook in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
. He paid $289.50 for the 193 pounds of portable soup stored in "32 canisters". Lewis carried it with him overland to the embarkation point on the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
.
However, by 1815, with the publication of physician Gilbert Blane
Gilbert Blane
Sir Gilbert Blane of Blanefield, 1st Baronet FRSE FRS MRCP was a Scottish physician who instituted health reform in the Royal Navy....
's On the Comparative Health of the British Navy from 1779 to 1814, the efficacy of portable soup for promoting the health of sailors was found lacking. Opinion shifted in favor of canned
Canning
Canning is a method of preserving food in which the food contents are processed and sealed in an airtight container. Canning provides a typical shelf life ranging from one to five years, although under specific circumstances a freeze-dried canned product, such as canned, dried lentils, can last as...
meats, by a process invented in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in 1806.
A similar product, portable gelatin
Gelatin
Gelatin is a translucent, colorless, brittle , flavorless solid substance, derived from the collagen inside animals' skin and bones. It is commonly used as a gelling agent in food, pharmaceuticals, photography, and cosmetic manufacturing. Substances containing gelatin or functioning in a similar...
, was developed by American inventor Peter Cooper
Peter Cooper
Peter Cooper was an American industrialist, inventor, philanthropist, and candidate for President of the United States...
in 1845, as a staple meal or dessert for families.
Cultural references
The Aubrey–Maturin seriesAubrey–Maturin series
The Aubrey–Maturin series is a sequence of nautical historical novels—20 completed and one unfinished—by Patrick O'Brian, set during the Napoleonic Wars and centering on the friendship between Captain Jack Aubrey of the Royal Navy and his ship's surgeon Stephen Maturin, who is also a physician,...
by Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian, CBE , born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series of novels set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and centred on the friendship of English Naval Captain Jack Aubrey and the Irish–Catalan physician Stephen...
, set on the high seas during the Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, is replete with references to portable soup. (See External Link below).
In Johann David Wyss
Johann David Wyss
Johann David Wyss is best remembered for his book The Swiss Family Robinson. It is said that he was inspired by Defoe's Robinson Crusoe, but wanted to write a story from which his own children would learn, as the father in the story taught important lessons to his children...
's novel The Swiss Family Robinson
The Swiss Family Robinson
-History:Written by Swiss pastor Johann David Wyss and edited by his son Johann Rudolf Wyss, the novel was intended to teach his four sons about family values, good husbandry, the uses of the natural world and self-reliance...
, set in the 1790s, portable soup makes a number of appearances, the youngest son Franz first mistakes it for glue
Animal glue
An animal glue is an adhesive that is created by prolonged boiling of animal connective tissue.These protein colloid glues are formed through hydrolysis of the collagen from skins, bones, tendons, and other tissues, similar to gelatin. The word "collagen" itself derives from Greek κόλλα kolla, glue...
, and then later suggests it be used as a substitute.http://www.ccel.org/ccel/wyss/swiss.txt
External links
- Patrick O'Brian Quotes on Portable Soup
- Portable Soup
- "Portable Soup," from The Lady's Companion (1753) (scroll down to bottom of page)