THE LOST ART OF FIELD COOKING II; FIELD RATIONS

Let’s face it. Americans are spoiled. When it comes to feeding the troops, even
American soldiers are pretty well off compared to most other countries. Well, at
least the FOBBITs are anyway. For the grunts it's MRE's, which are actually
pretty good these days, although depending on who you ask MRE stands for
"Meal Rejected by Ethiopia" or "Meal Refusing to Exit". This was not always the
case, and American soldiers had to make do with some awful stuff at various
times.

General George Washington’s troops in the starvation winter at Valley Forge

suffered unnecessarily. Political bickering and a congress (those jerks again?)
unwilling to provide adequate funding and/or hiring profiteers when they did,
combined to do a horrible injustice to the fledgling army. The politicians and
profiteers kept the soldiers in rags and on the verge of starvation.

During the American Civil War, the Confederate Army was very often
precariously balanced on the edge of starvation. Generals like J.E.B. Stuart and
Nathan Bedford Forrest, as well as some of the raiders and partisans, delighted
in successfully capturing large amounts of Union supplies and provisions, but this
could only be a short-term stopgap measure.
 United States Marine Corps officers and NCO’s serving in places like
Nicaragua, Cuba, Honduras, etc during the “Banana Wars” of the 1920’s and
1930’s were fully expected to make due with expedients added to their normal
military supplies of food, to include being their own butchers.

The field ration.—a. Every effort should be made to build up the supply of
rations at the advanced patrol bases and outposts until they approach or equal
the normal garrison ration in quantity and variety. A patrol operating from those
bases, should never carry more, and may often carry less, than the
components of the field ration, modified in accordance with the probably
foodstuffs which can be obtained in the area. Emphasis should be placed on
those articles which give the greatest return in food value for the bulk and
weight carried, and the ease with which they can be transported. This may not
result in a “balanced” ration, but the defjiciencies encountered in the field can
be compensated for upon the return of the patrol to its base. The general
tendency of troops is to carry too great a variety and too large a quantity of
foodstuffs with patrols in the field. Man should become accustomed to the
native fare as quickly as possible. If properly led, they will soon learn that they
can subsist quite well and operate efficiently on much less than the regular
garrison ration. This is a matter of training and is influenced in a large measure
by the attitude of the patrol leader and other commissioned and non-
commissioned officers.

b. The prescribed field ration is approximately as follows:

Component articles Substitute articles

1 pound hard bread…………………. 1-1/4 fresh bread, or

1-1/8 pounds flour.

1 pound tinned……………………… 1-1/4 pounds salt meat, or

1-1/4 pounds smoked meat

1-3/4 pounds fresh meat, or

1-3/4 pounds fresh fish, or

1-3/4 pounds poultry.

¾ pound tinned vegetables…………. 1-3/4 pounds fresh

vegetables, or

3 gills beans or peas, or

½ pound rice or other cereal.

2 ounces coffee…………………….. 2 ounces cocoa, or

½ ounce tea.

1 ounce evaporated milk……………1/16 quart fresh milk.

Salt and pepper.

c. Suitable foodstuffs from the regular issue include: rice, rolled oats, hominy
grits, dry beans, canned pork and beans, corned beef hash, salmon, corned
beef, chipped beef, bacon, Vienna sausage, hard bread, dried fruits, cheese,
sugar coffee, tea, evaporated or dried milk, salt, black pepper, and limited
amounts of canned potatoes and vegetables. In general, canned and fresh fruits
should not be carried. Small sized cans are usually preferable to the larger sizes
for issue to patrols. Generally a combat patrol should carry such foodstuffs that
not more than one component, other than tea or coffee, requires cooking for
each meal in order to reduce the number of cooking utensils to be carried and
the time of preparation in the field.

d. Native foodstuffs sometimes found in inhabited areas include: beef on the

hoof, fish, chickens, eggs, beans, rice, corn, coffee, and fruits and vegetables in
season. To these may be added such wild game as may be killed by the patrol. If
hostile groups are active in the area, the available supply of native food will be
limited.

Butchering on the march.—a. Each patrol operating in the field should include
a man familiar with the killing and dressing of livestock and game. If the patrol is
dependent upon the country for its meat supply, suitable stock should be
procured during the day’s march unless it is definitely known that the desired
animals will be available at or near the bivouac.
 Self-propelled chow.

b. The animal should be butchered in such a manner that it will bleed profusely. It should
be dressed, cut-up, and cooked while it is still warm. Meat cooked after rigor mortis has
set in will be tough unless it is cooked in a solution of vinegar or acetic acid, or allowed
to season for at least 24 hours. Excess beef may be barbecued and utilized the following
day.”

American and Filipino troops in the opening months of WWII were completely cut
off from the outside world during the Japanese invasion of the Philippines. They
too went to extremes trying to feed the troops in the field with what was at hand.

Even official U.S. Army historians made special note of this.

“Heroic measures to augment the food supply were obviously necessary if the
troops on Bataan were to hold out for the required six-month period. No sooner
had the withdrawal been completed than the quartermaster began to exploit
every possible resource on the peninsula to increase his stores. Fortunately, it
was the harvest season and the rice stood ripe in the fields. It was only
necessary to bring it to the mills, which the engineers were ordered to build near
Limay. Plans were made to secure fresh meat by slaughtering carabao, the
Philippine draft animal, and a large abattoir was established by the veterinarians.
In addition, the units in the field butchered whatever carabao or other animals
they could capture. A fishery was established at Lamao, and plans were made to
utilize the catch of the local fishermen who went out each night until prevented
from doing so by Japanese fire. Salt was secured by boiling sea water in large
iron cauldrons. Before the troops had been on Bataan long, no local resource
that would yield any additional amount of food was being overlooked.
So serious was the shortage of food after the first few weeks on Bataan that the
search for food assumed more importance than the presence of the enemy to the
front. Every man became a hunter, and rifle shots could be heard at all hours far
from the Japanese lines. Lt. Col. Irvin Alexander, a quartermaster officer, wrote:

‘Any carabao which was encountered in the jungle was classed as wild and
neither his ancestry nor his ownership was investigated. This wild game was not
too numerous and it was very shy so that only the cunning and lucky hunters
were successful in bringing in meat. Lack of success did not discourage the
hunters…One Filipino…caught a snake and ate it one day to die unpleasantly the
next. There were always plenty of experimenters ready to try any kind of native
flora or fauna which might prove edible…although the experimenting individuals
frequently paid a high price.’”

Infuriatingly, in just about every personal first-hand account that I have read of
the Battle of Bataan, when the surrender came, the skeletal dysentery-ridden
front-line troops who did the fighting suddenly found a good many stashes of
canned goods and other foodstuffs in the possession of those furthest from the
front lines.

More recently and more frequently, however, the troops of other countries, and
even the average citizens, have been amazed at what American soldiers dined
upon. This led to the sardonic saying in war-time England that the problem with
the Yanks were that they were, “Over-paid, over-sexed, and over here.” Shot-
down American fliers interned in Switzerland bitterly complained about the “pig
food” they received for breakfast…cheese, dry bread, and cocoa…until they
sheepishly found out that they were receiving the exact same rations as the
ordinary citizen.

During the Korean War, the U.S. logistics system (when it worked) took care of
providing chow to most of the UN troops, and once more the other soldiers were
flabbergasted by American plenty and excess. This was especially true for the
British soldier, as England was still under food rationing at the time. A constant
supply of fresh steaks, hams, and chickens seemed overwhelming, and the U.S.
Army Quartermaster Corps provided fresh vegetables year-round from
hydroponic farms in Japan. The U.S. Army also went out of its way to try to
provide other UN troops with food more to their liking.

“The Turkish troops, because of religious beliefs, will not eat pork. United States
Army field rations contain a considerable amount of pork and pork products.
Therefore, it was necessary for the Americans to package a special field ration in
Japan for issue to the Turkish Brigade. This special ration contains mainly mutton
or beef and the inevitable heavy spices.

Moreover, the Turkish troops will not eat margarine. They must have butter which
is left in the open until it turns rancid before eating.
Indian troops must have their curry and rice. The Filipinos and Thailanders prefer
heavily spiced foods and strong brands of tea or coffee.

Canadian and British troops subsist very well on the normal type of rations, but
require extra issues of tea and potatoes.”

This was all well and fine, and the kind of service the combat soldier in the field
more than deserves and should have, although what arrives to the grunt at the
sharp end of the stick is seldom as good as described above. However, it made
the UN military machine utterly dependent on large numbers of trucks and the
handful of existing roads, most of them poor to begin with, which wound through
the mountains. When the Red Chinese made their double-pronged pincer
attacks, cutting off American supply routes in the rear, an unholy mess usually
resulted from the quick breakdown of the elaborate logistics system.

When British forces invaded the Falkland Islands in 1982, and Argentine jets
sank the Atlantic Conveyor cargo ship, a World War Two-vintage Soyer field
kitchen had to be taken from the Imperial War Museum to provide the troops hot
chow in the field.

Don't throw that thing away. You might need it someday.

The lesson may have to be learned all over again, and again at the field soldiers’
expense. My step-son was in the 82nd Airborne as a cook. When they deployed
to Iraq, he became a rifleman. The troops were fed by independent private
contractors. Once more all well and fine…as long as the complicated aircraft-
dependent supply system works. There may come a day when they rue to
absence of their traditional field kitchens. Murphy remains alive and well, and still
needs to be taken into account.

We’ve covered some of the items in The Lost Art of Field Cooking and A
Partisan’s Life for Me. Worthy of note in all cases is the importance of salt,
especially in the long term. Here’s a further look at some other military and
guerrilla rations along with their supplementation and substitution.
Allied intelligence during WWII kindly announced that, “Japanese Army rations
have been found to be entirely edible…”

STANDARD RATIONS

Contrary to the belief of some persons, the Japanese soldier does not live
entirely on rice. To him, rice is a staple food, just as bread is to us; and, if he had
only rice for his meal, he would be as displeased as we would be with only bread
to eat. However, rice does constitute well over 50 percent of the Japanese
soldier's diet.

As a general rule, the Japanese field ration in the South Pacific theaters of
operations has not been standardized, but has varied from 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 pounds
per man per day. Theoretically, the field ration is approximately 1.5 kilograms
(3.3 lbs.). Two types of specially packed field rations, "A" and "B," have been
noted frequently. The "A" ration normally consists of 30.7 ounces of rice, 5.3
ounces of meat or fish, and a small amount of seasoning and flavoring. The "B"
ration normally consists of 24.4 ounces of hard biscuits in three paper bags
(enough for three meals), 2.1 ounces of meat or fish, and a small amount of
seasoning (salt and sugar).

In New Guinea (June, 1943) a Japanese table of ration allowances listed three
separate categories of issue:

Basic: 1.3 Kilograms (when transportation is adequate)

"A": 1.13 Kilograms (when transportation is difficult)
"B": .86 1/2 Kilogram (when transportation is very difficult)

Under the "A" ration, sweet potatoes, fresh vegetables, bananas, and papayas
were to supplement deficiencies to the extent of .85 kilogram (524 calories),
while under the "B" issue these local foods were to provide 1.8 kilograms (1,218
calories).

It is known that the Japanese use vitamin pills quite frequently as a part of their
rations. Vitamin B is supplied in three forms: (1) tablets, (2) as a liquid, and (3) a
tube of paste.

Probably the most common type of Japanese canned food found to date in the
South Pacific is compressed fish (principally salmon and bonito), which may
sometimes require soaking and salting to make it palatable. Other items of
Japanese food found included: pickled plums, dehydrated vegetables (beans,
peas, cabbage, horseradish, burdock, seaweed), compressed barley cakes, rice
cakes, canned oranges and tangerines, sake (rice beer), powdered tea leaves,
slices of ginger, salted plum cake, canned beef, cooked whale meat, confections,
and vitamin tablets.
The garrison commander on Kolombangara in May [1942] issued an order which
read: "Burdock, chopped seaweed, white kidney beans, sweet potatoes, and
dried gourd shavings will be issued as dehydrated food. Canned goods will be
issued mainly from broken boxes in order to get rid of the goods in the broken
boxes. Since the fixed quantity of powdered soy-bean sauce and sugar is not
available, they will be distributed proportionately from goods on hand."

The Japanese use a variety of methods to obtain supplementary rations, or food

to meet emergencies. These methods include gardening, fishing (sometimes by
use of dynamite), dealing with natives, and foraging by individuals and small
groups.”

There is, of course, a BIG limit to such supplementary field rations, especially in
certain environments, and, as every hunter and fisherman knows, you can’t count
on it when you really need it. The myth of the Japanese “Jungle Superman”
being able to live off grass and monkey meat, as was believed by the Allies in the
Malaya Campaign, to some extent infected the Japanese High Command’s
thinking as well. In places like New Guinea, especially the Kokoda Trail, and later
at Guadalcanal, thinking that the Japanese soldier could live off the land proved
painfully untrue.

No modern army can truly "live off the land" entirely.

Although I must add, as always, my disclaimer about disliking Commies in

general and Che Guevara in particular, the World’s Greatest T-shirt Salesman
did indeed have considerable experience surviving in the field as a guerrilla
during the Cuban Revolution.

“Campaign life teaches several tricks for preparing meals, some to help speed
their preparation; others to add seasoning with little things found in the forest; still
others for inventing new dishes that give a more varied character to the guerrilla
menu, which is com-posed mainly of roots, grains, salt, a little oil or lard, and,
very sporadically, pieces of the meat of some animal that has been slain. This
refers to the life of a group operating in tropical sectors.

Whenever there is extra space in the knapsack, it ought to be used for food,
except in those zones where the food supply is easy and sure. Sweets or food of
lesser importance complementing the basic items can be carried. Crackers can
be one of these, although they occupy a large space and break up into crumbs.

The guerrilla fighter ought always to carry some personal food besides that which
the troop carries or consumes in its camps. Indispensable articles are lard or oil,
which is necessary for fat consumption; canned goods, which should not be
consumed except in circumstances where food for cooking cannot be found or
when there are too many cans and their weight impedes the march; preserved
fish, which has great nutritional value; condensed milk, which is also nourishing,
particularly on account of the large quantity of sugar that it contains; some sweet
for its good taste. Powdered milk can also be carried. Sugar is another essential
part of the supplies, as is salt, without which life becomes sheer martyrdom, and
something that serves to season the meals, such as onion, garlic, etc., according
to the characteristics of the country. This completes the category of the
essentials.

The guerrilla fighter should carry a plate, knife, and fork, camping style, which will
serve all the various necessary functions. The plate can be camping or military
type or a pan that is usable for cooking anything from a piece of meat to a potato,
or for brewing tea or coffee.

A customary and extremely important comfort in the life of the guerrilla fighter is a
smoke, whether cigars, cigarettes, or pipe tobacco; a smoke in moments of rest
is a great friend to the solitary soldier. Pipes are useful, because they permit
using to the extreme all tobacco that remains in the butts of cigars and cigarettes
at time of scarcity.”

The German high command in WWII attributed to the individual Soviet fighting
man an almost animalistic primitive quality, in many cases as an excuse for their
own battlefield failures, who could live on practically nothing.

“He endures cold and heat, hunger and thirst, dampness and mud, sickness and
vermin, with equanimity. Because of his simple and primitive nature, all sorts of
hardships bring him but few emotional reactions.”
When food is the lowest priority in the supply chain, you take what you can
get.

“In addition to the simplicity which is revealed in his limited household needs and
his primitive mode of living, the Russian soldier has close kinship with nature. It is
no exaggeration to say that the Russian soldier is unaffected by season and
terrain. This immunity gave him a decisive advantage over the Germans,
especially in Russian territory where season, temperature, and terrain play a
decisive role. The problem of providing for the individual soldier in the Russian
Army is of secondary importance, because the Russian soldier requires only very
few provisions for his own use. The field kitchen, a sacred institution to other
troops, is to the Russian soldier a pleasant surprise when it is available, but can
be dispensed with for days and weeks without undue hardship. During the winter
campaign of 1941, a Russian regiment was surrounded in the woods along the
Volkhov and, because of German weakness, had to be starved out. After 1 week,
reconnaissance patrols met with the same resistance as on the first day; after
another week only a few prisoners were taken, the majority having fought their
way through to their own troops in spite of close encirclement. According to the
prisoners, the Russians subsisted during those weeks on a few pieces of frozen
bread, leaves and pine needles which they chewed, and some cigarettes. I t had
never occurred to anyone to throw in the sponge because of hunger, and the
cold (-30' F.) had not affected them."

Commando Otto Skorzeny went so far as to claim, “The Russian soldier can
sleep without hurt in wringing wet clothes, live on roots from the fields or chunks
of raw flesh torn from a rotting horse, he can drink from marshes and shell holes,
and subsist virtually without supply columns.”

Although there is obviously a bit of exaggeration is found in Skorzeny’s

comments, the reputation of Russian military chow, then and later, especially
amongst the field soldiers, has always been bad.
WWII: “The rations of the Red Army are not elaborate, but are nourishing and
heavy. Standard are rich soups and stews of vegetables and meat, garnished
with sour cream if possible. One common dish is "kasha," a sort of porridge of
buckwheat. In time of war, living off the country is an established practice of the
Red Army.”

Consider even as late as the end of the Cold War in the 1970’s and 1980’s.

“A chronic complaint among Soviet soldiers is the poor quality of rations. The
standard diet consists of kasha and bread, supplemented with fish and a little
meat, usually pork, as a source of protein. Cabbage, potatoes and some farina
also are provided. It seems that the food is poorly prepared and the same dishes
served repeatedly. In one instance, a Soviet unit was the object of a bureaucratic
mistake and had to subsist on kasha and fish for 30 consecutive days, bringing
the troops to the point of open revolt.

Even when the supply system works well, the Soviet soldier is likely to receive
the same meal at least three times in a single week. There is limited evidence
that Soviet field rations provide inadequate calories and vitamins and some
evidence that portions are insufficient. In any case, complaints about the food in
the Soviet army seem chronic. Even when compared with the food available to
the average Soviet citizen, rations in the army are monotonous, poorly prepared
and generally below what the Soviet citizen is used to. That this represents a
source of almost constant irritation to the troops is, therefore, hardly surprising.”

In the field in Afghanistan, Soviet troops, especially in isolated small garrisons,

subsisted largely on “Dry Rations”, similar to the old American C-Rations. The
menu included 3 different meals: A can of meat, crackers or taste, jam and a tea
bag; two cans of meat mixed with oatmeal; or a can of meat and a can of
vegetables and fruit.

Such a bland and unbalanced diet led soldiers to supplement their rations by
purchasing civilian food locally. This led them to being exposed to all kinds of
funky and strange local diseases and infections for which their immune system
had no defense.

During the Korean War, North Korean and Red Chinese supply systems worked
in the same way as the Soviet WWII system, and “living off the land” consisted of
buying, or more often just taking, whatever the local inhabitants had on hand.
When he was supplied by the Chinese Peoples’ Liberation Army, the CCF
infantryman usually received something along the lines of a bag of rice, rice
cakes, and dried fish.

More modern Cold War rations for the Chinese Peoples’ Liberation Army came in
three forms.
The standard ration consisted of rice, flour, pork, fish, eggs, soybeans,
vegetables, edible oil, and salt, sugar, and other condiments. The individual
soldier was issued 4 to 6 kilograms of food per day. Most of the fish, pork, and
vegetables are produced locally by individual units for their consumption.

The combat ration consisted of dried rice, dried fried wheat, or a baked mixture
of soybeans, corn, millet and kaoliang (Chinese sorghum) to which water is
added before eating. Prior to a major operation, each soldier is issued the
equivalent of from 5 to 7 days’ rations.

The emergency ration is a compressed, rectangular biscuit made of flour, salt,

and oil. Each soldier carried about 12 of these biscuits in addition to his combat
ration.

Under simulated or actual combat conditions, companies, battalions, and

regiments each store the equivalent of 7 days’ supply of rations. Divisions
maintain 10 days’ supply, and armies from 2 to 4 weeks’ supply. Rations are
delivered from division to regiment, and from regiment to battalion and company,
or directly to forward positions. During troop movements in peacetime, rations
are often purchased from local communes.”

As for the Germans during WWII, technical innovations were constantly being
tested and produced in an attempt to make the supply of food to the troops both
nutritious and easy to transport. As our look at sawdust bread and wild edibles in
the other article noted, the supply end was the biggest problem. The following is
from a war-time German military magazine, so no doubt at least some of it
contains a bit of embellishment.

Every soldier thinks his chow is always the worst.

Of the new rations: “Among them are the following: Soybean flour, called
Edelsoja, which added to soups and breads provides proteins, fats, and mineral
salts without the use of meats, milk and eggs; tomatoes, cheese, jam and
applesauce in powdered form; ‘bratling powder’, a substitute for meat, a
powdered mixture made from soybeans, grain and milk albumins spiced with
herbs; vegetable juices of spinach and cabbage, carrots and spinach
compressed into brick form; sauerkraut dried and compressed into cubes; meat,
cooked, packed in small paper boxes and gradually frozen which preserves it
without refrigeration for about six days. Also, for temporarily isolated units, such
as tank, mountain or parachute troops, they have developed a concentrate called
‘Pemmikan’ which contains, smoked meat, bacon, soybean flour, dried fruits,
whey, tomato pulp, yeast, green pepper, cranberries and lecithin. Another
concentrate called ‘V-drops’ contains dextrose, whey, milk, fat and vitamin C, is
said to have been used to augment the ration in the Norway campaign.

Allied intelligence noted, however, some differences from the above in the 2-3
day food supply issued to the fallschirmjaeger parachute troops.

“Special foods taken include Wittier bread, sliced and wrapped, which is
supposed to last indefinitely until unwrapped (but, in fact, does not); chocolate
mixed with kola (Schokokola), and with caffeine (Kobaona), which is not believed
to be any better than ordinary chocolate; and simple refreshing foods like grape
sugar. Most of the food is quite ordinary.”

British Commandos of the Second World War trained to get the most from their
field rations as well.

“A special ration, designed to give a man enough sustenance to enable him to

operate under rigorous conditions, was developed at the Advanced Infantry
Assault School by an officer who had had considerable experience in mountain
operations in all climates. The ration was simple and light in weight; it was
designed for individual cooking, and was easily handled in the field. A U. S.
observer subsisted on this ration and reported that it proved to be sufficient for
the period for which it was designed and that it was reasonably palatable.

Typical Ration.-A typical ration follows:

Daily Requirements:

Pemmican (dried meat, 60% lean, 40% fat)-----------------ounces 3

Chocolate-------------------------------------------------------------------do 3

Oatmeal --------------------------------------------------------------------do 5

Biscuit --------------------------------------------------------------------- do 6
Dried fruit ----------------------------------------------------------------- do 5

Margarine or butter -------------------------------------------------do 1-1/2

Tea or coffee (compressed)-----------------------------------------do 1/4

Salt ----------------------------------------------------------------------- do 1/4

Sugar (lump)----------------------------------------------------------do 1-1/2

Total weight---------------------------------------------------------do 25-1/2

Diet Sheet:

Breakfast:

Oatmeal ------------------------------------------------------------------do 3

Biscuit---------------------------------------------------------------------do 2

Dried fruit --------------------------------------------------------- ounces 1

Margarine ------------------------------------------------------------ do 1/2

Tea ---------------------------------------------------------------------- pint 1

Midday Meal:

Oatmeal ------------------------------------------------------------ounces 1

Biscuit--------------------------------------------------------------------- do 2

Chocolate ---------------------------------------------------------------- do 2

Dried fruit ---------------------------------------------------------------- do 2

Evening Meal:

Oatmeal ------------------------------------------------------------------do 2

Biscuit -------------------------------------------------------------------- do 2

Pemmican ----------------------------------------------------------------do 3

Dried fruit ---------------------------------------------------------------- do 2

Chocolate ----------------------------------------------------------------do 1

Margarine or butter --------------------------------------------------- do 1

Tea or coffee ---------------------------------------------------------- pint 1

Rations were carried in their packs by the soldiers. Food was prepared in mess
tins, individually. The soldiers were encouraged to use dandelion shoots, grass
nettles, and other herbs in conjunction with pemmican and oatmeal for making a
stew. These herbs in the stew contributed vitamin C.”

British WWII manuals offered extensive advice for military personnel in Burma for
both survival and to supplement standard rations. Again, this was merely a
supplement and not intended to feed troops in the field without supply.

“Food of some type is always available in the jungle—in fact, there is

hardly a place in the world where food cannot be secured from plants and
animals. All animals, birds, reptiles, and many kinds of insects of the jungle are
edible. Some animals such as toads and salamanders, have glands on the skin
which should be removed before their meat is eaten. Fruits, flowers, buds, and
often tubers, leaves, and bark can be eaten. Fruits eaten by birds and monkeys
usually are acceptable to man…

“A ‘stick’ of rice for carrying with you can be obtained by using a section of
small, thin-walled bamboo to cook it. Cut the section of bamboo…fill it with rice
and water, and boil. The surplus water will evaporate, and the rice will swell to fill
the entire cavity of the section. After it has cooled, the section may be split open.
The boiled rice will emerge in a stick form, covered with an edible film of silvery-
white inner skin from the bamboo. The rice can be carried in this state, or left in
the bamboo for added protection.

A frame for drying meat can be made by erecting four bamboo stakes and
connecting them with pieces of split bamboo, which are tied to the stakes.”

All of this is well and fine, for those who know how to handle such things.
However, the overwhelming majority of citizens (subjects?) of a modern industrial
society are so far removed from nature and agriculture that the knowledge by
itself is almost useless.

Killing animals, domestic or wild, does little good to people who don’t know how
to butcher, cook or preserve the meat. Even the knowledge of what flora is edible
is of little use if you’ve never tried it. I make it a practice to pick and sample a few
wild edibles every year and sample them in the comfort of my own home. If you
don’t know what it takes to prepare them ahead of time, you will be in for some
big surprises and disappointments when you really need them in the field.
Some time later, we’ll take an in depth-look at survival and emergency rations
from various countries, old and new, military and civilian, and some home-made
alternatives. None of these survival or emergency rations, with one possible
exception, provide everything the body needs, but will keep you alive and
reasonably well until better food can be obtained.

I personally try to hit the field with as little weight and gear as possible. In fact, for
just one or two nights out hunting in the boondocks, I have only an LBE, a mix of
the old British Pattern 58 and pre-MOLLE American LBE gear. A compact
bedroll, which I’ll detail some other time, is attached beneath the butt pack. This
doesn’t leave a whole helluva lot of room for food. The biggest problem is that I
utilize the magazine pouches to carry stuff when bow hunting. I’d have to re-
adjust things if I had to carry six FAL magazines, that’s for sure.

Most often my vittles consist of the staple of many of the nations above; rice. To
accompany this, I have either instant soup mixes or bullion cubes to make it
palatable. This is supper and to it is added any wild edibles I happen to come
across in my travels. While bow hunting, my friend Jerry introduced me to the
small game/bird tips for arrows. He demonstrated how well they worked by
bagging a few grouse when we hunted together. Now I carry one in the middle of
my quiver between the hunting broadheads. Meat is the best addition to my little
cup of rice. Edible flora is tossed in when found mainly for the nutritional value
although a very, very small handful of wild edibles do actually taste good, IMHO,
though some people have opined to me that a little wild onion goes a long way.

Breakfast is universally flavored instant oatmeal. A couple of small boxes of

raisins, a chocolate bar, and a small amount of jerky in a plastic bag pretty much
round things out for “lunches”. I usually bring tea rather than coffee for a hot drink
due to the odor if I am camped anywhere near the place I plan to hunt first thing
in the morning. It ain’t Denny’s but it gets me through a short hunt in the back
country. For longer periods, it would very soon be found wanting.

Meanwhile, give some thought to what kind of rations you might carry in the field.
You can only afford money-wise (and physically carry) just so many MRE’s, even
when you “field strip” them. What alternatives can you think of or suggest?

http://benandbawbsblog.blogspot.com/2010/10/lost-art-of-field-cooking-ii-
field.html