Ship's Biscuit
A flat cake of flour and water, baked twice until as hard as wood, which could keep for years. Sailors dipped it in their soup or banged it on the table to dislodge weevils.
A flat cake of flour and water, baked twice until as hard as wood, which could keep for years. Sailors dipped it in their soup or banged it on the table to dislodge weevils.
Come closer, landsman, and fear not old Davy. This bread — my lads would knock it thrice on the bench before biting, so the critters would scurry off, d'ye see. Hard as my fist it was, and you had to drown it in soup lest you leave your teeth behind. But 'twas this that kept them standing from port to port... until the day I took 'em for my locker.
- •Wheat flour — as needed (base)
- •Water — just enough to bind (binder)
- •Sea salt — a pinch (preservation and flavor)
Ship's Biscuit
A flat cake of flour and water, baked twice until as hard as wood, which could keep for years. Sailors dipped it in their soup or banged it on the table to dislodge weevils.
Why this dish? This is the basic sustenance of every sailor Davy Jones stalked: a bread as hard as stone, baked to last for months in a damp hold. Every man swallowed into the locker below had, in his lifetime, gnawed on this biscuit while counting the leagues.
Come closer, landsman, and fear not old Davy. This bread — my lads would knock it thrice on the bench before biting, so the critters would scurry off, d'ye see. Hard as my fist it was, and you had to drown it in soup lest you leave your teeth behind. But 'twas this that kept them standing from port to port... until the day I took 'em for my locker.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wheat flour — as needed (base)
- Water — just enough to bind (binder)
- Sea salt — a pinch (preservation and flavor)
Ingredients
- Wheat flour (T65) — 500 g (base)
- Water — about 200 ml (binder)
- Salt — 1 teaspoon (preservation and flavor)
Method
- Mix the flour and salt, then add water little by little to form a very firm, dry dough.
- Knead thoroughly, roll out to 1 cm thick, and cut into squares or rounds.
- Prick each biscuit generously with a fork to prevent puffing.
- Bake at 160°C for 30 minutes, then reduce to 120°C for another 30 minutes to dry thoroughly.
- Let cool and harden completely in the open air. Dip in soup or tea before biting.
How it was made : The biscuit ('hardtack') was baked twice — hence the name 'bis-cuit' — to drive out all moisture. Stored dry, it lasted years, but always ended up hosting weevils that sailors ate along with it, for lack of better, preferably in the dark.
The contemporary twist : Sprinkle with fleur de sel and rosemary before baking to make a rustic cracker to serve with fish soup.
Davy Jones · Charactorium