Does anyone else use Durkee Sauce?

[Tropicalsenior]

What is Durkee Sauce?

That is the question that @Smithy asked in the lunch thread today, and I was wondering if anybody but me has ever been addicted to this stuff. I first got introduced to it when I lived in Montana and it was ubiquitous. Everyone used it and just called it Durkees. In Butte, you couldn't eat a John's Pork Chop Sandwich without Durkees. You had to have Durkees to make sweet potato salad. I've even seen people put Durkees on their pasties. I always thought that it was a West Coast thing until I read this article about the history of Durkee Sauce. Of course, when I came down here it's completely unavailable so I had to learn to make my own. As @Steve Irby says, sometimes it just gets shoved to the back of the fridge so I was wondering if anybody else had dressings or other things that they make with it. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[JAZ]

My mother used it all the time (she was also from Montana) -- I remember her using it most often on turkey sandwiches and fish, but I'm sure she used it in other applications as well. I don't use it often, but I do like a bit in chicken salad, along with mayonnaise. I don't have a recipe written down, but I would say I use a couple teaspoons of Durkee to 1/4 cup of mayonnaise.  

[FeChef]

Ive seen the name, not sure if it was the same product, can't say ive ever bought or tried it. I know what i saw did not look like the image i got from google. I think we have a similar sandwich spread in the east coast.

[Katie Meadow]

48 minutes ago, Tropicalsenior said:

What is Durkee Sauce?

That is the question that @Smithy asked in the lunch thread today, and I was wondering if anybody but me has ever been addicted to this stuff. I first got introduced to it when I lived in Montana and it was ubiquitous. Everyone used it and just called it Durkees. In Butte, you couldn't eat a John's Pork Chop Sandwich without Durkees. You had to have Durkees to make sweet potato salad. I've even seen people put Durkees on their pasties. I always thought that it was a West Coast thing until I read this article about the history of Durkee Sauce. Of course, when I came down here it's completely unavailable so I had to learn to make my own. As @Steve Irby says, sometimes it just gets shoved to the back of the fridge so I was wondering if anybody else had dressings or other things that they make with it. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Okay I stand corrected. I had no idea Durkees was available widely across the US; I thought it was a southern thing, like Duke's mayo. But I can't say as I've ever seen it on shelves where we shop in the Bay Area. Of course maybe it's found in the ketchup and sweet relish aisle, somewhere I don't often go.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

Fascinating, @Tropicalseniorand @JAZ!    Husband, also from Montana 'needs" Durkee's on turkey and sliced chicken sandwiches.    We keep it on hand but as the house cook, I never use it except at his request and only on sandwiches.  

[Margaret Pilgrim]

12 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

 But I can't say as I've ever seen it on shelves where we shop in the Bay Area. Of course maybe it's found in the ketchup and sweet relish aisle, somewhere I don't often go.

It's pretty readily available in the Bay Area.    Probably in the mayo and mustard area.  I need to repurchase it seldom since a bottle lasts our household "years".

[Dave the Cook]

53 minutes ago, Margaret Pilgrim said:

a bottle lasts our household "years"

 

The bottle in my fridge is at least 19 years old. I acquired it when my then BIL*, with whom I was grocery shopping on a Florida vacation, threw a bottle into each of our carts, saying "I haven't seen this in years. Take it -- you be glad you did."  So I took it, and have carted it from house to house to house to house to house, using it once or maybe twice. I was about to throw it away the other day, after finding it guilty of taking up needed space in the refrigerator, but my hand was stayed by none other than @JAZ, who said, "Keep that! I use it in chicken salad." So we're using it up -- two teaspoons at a time.

 

* For those trying to map the geography of Durkee usage, said BIL was born in northeast Ohio, and lived there until he got his BA. The last time our families vacationed together was 2003.

[Tropicalsenior]

1 hour ago, Katie Meadow said:

I thought it was a southern thing,

And all this time I thought it was strictly West Coast. The last bottle that I bought was in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

As I said, I first came across it in Montana where they use it on everything. The restaurant that I worked in bought it in five gallon tubs and put it in every sauce and every dressing that they made. If I remember right, they even put it in sauerkraut salad which to me was totally disgusting. I get hungry for it every once in awhile and since I can't buy it, I found a recipe that is close, but no cigars. My problem is that I don't use it up before it goes bad. Maybe I need to make sauerkraut salad.

Edited December 28, 2022 by Tropicalsenior (log)

[Dave the Cook]

1 minute ago, Tropicalsenior said:

it goes bad

 

Based on my experience, this does not happen.

[Tropicalsenior]

3 minutes ago, Dave the Cook said:

The bottle in my fridge is at least 19 years old

Damn, I threw out my bottle that I bought in Colorado and it was only 5 years old.

[Tropicalsenior]

1 minute ago, Dave the Cook said:

 

Based on my experience, this does not happen.

When I say it goes bad. I am talking about my clone version that I make. I wouldn't trust that for 19 years.

[Anna N]

10 minutes ago, Dave the Cook said:

 

Based on my experience, this does not happen.

Ingredients. Soybean Oil, Water, Distilled Vinegar, Sugar, Mustard, Salt, Whole Egg Solids, Food Starch-Modified, Xanthan Gum, Spice Extractives.

After 19 years, even refrigerated, I’m surprised that oil is not rancid. But there’s not much else in there likely to go bad to harm anyone. 

[Steve Irby]

Thanks for starting this thread.  It appears that Durkees has been relegated to the back of the frig for most folks.  I've been using it to make a sweet and sour slaw which is very tasty.  I don't have a recipe but the Durkees is added to the  oil and vinegar base to tighten up the emulsion.  

 

I'm really ripping through this bottle that my sister bought at Winn-Dixie in October.  I laughed when I she gave it to me as it was one month from the expiration date plus it had 20% extra.  I guess they wanted to ensure that one bottle would last a decade!

 

 

Here's the remoulade recipe that started this discussion.  I chop the dry ingredients instead of blending like my mom did 50 years ago.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 30, 2022 by Steve Irby (log)

[Bernie]

14 hours ago, Steve Irby said:

Durkees

So is it a vegetable, fruit or concoction?

Or is it (as I suspect) a brand of some concoction/sauce?

Whilst I think there is at least 1 recipe, and one description of only using a very small amount at a time, would someone say what it generally tastes like (sour, sweet, savory, tart etc) and is it ONLY added to other ingredients or is it use like ketchup?

[JoNorvelleWalker]

I am in the US, and I have never seen Durkees for sale.  I suspect it is a hoax.

 

[Tropicalsenior]

9 hours ago, Bernie said:

Or is it (as I suspect) a brand of some concoction/sauce?

In texture, it is very similar to a mayonnaise based sauce. In color it is just a little darker than mayonnaise. Perhaps a bit more yellow. And in taste, it is a little Tangier than mayonnaise, perhaps with a bit of mustard taste but with a bit more vinegar. People use it like mayonnaise on a sandwich and when I was working in Butte Montana they put it in everything. All the salad dressings had Durkees in them in some manner or other. One salad that I remember particularly sounds pretty gross but it was actually pretty good. It was mashed sweet potatoes, hard boiled eggs and Durkees. And although the proper name of it is Durkee sauce, everyone there just called it Durkees.

 

8 hours ago, JoNorvelleWalker said:

I suspect it is a hoax.

I think the good people of Butte, Montana would disagree with you there.

[palo]

Sounds like Miracle Whip

 

p

[Tropicalsenior]

14 minutes ago, palo said:

Sounds like Miracle Whip

 

p

No, Miracle Whip is pure white and sweet. Durkees is darker and sharper in taste.

They are quite different.

Edited December 31, 2022 by Tropicalsenior (log)

[Margaret Pilgrim]

2 hours ago, Tropicalsenior said:

One salad that I remember particularly sounds pretty gross but it was actually pretty good. It was mashed sweet potatoes, hard boiled eggs and Durkees.

 

I think the good people of Butte, Montana would disagree with you there.

Aha!    My Montana MIL used to make "sweet potato salad", which I thought sounded weird but which was quite good.  Not mashed, but cubed.    I never had her recipe so don't know for sure that it contained Durkee's but in retro, it probably did.   FWIW, I make this infrequently by just subbing sweet potato for white potatoes in my usual potato salad recipe.

[Tropicalsenior]

19 minutes ago, Margaret Pilgrim said:

sweet potato salad",

Just a little background, here in Costa Rica we can't get the good golden fleshed sweet potatoes. What we get is a red-skinned variety that is totally white inside and in my opinion, totally tasteless. However, for about a year our high-end supermarket carried a brown skinned sweet potato that was yellow inside and very sweet and very delicious. I got hungry for the sweet potato salad that I used to make, so I had to find a copycat version of Durkees. After I made my salad I had no more use for it and it promptly went to the back of my refrigerator and sat there just like, apparently, it does for everyone else.

I love to hear everyone's response because now I definitely don't feel alone.

Edited December 31, 2022 by Tropicalsenior (log)

[Katie Meadow]

https://www.salon.com/2021/04/11/the-history-of-durkee-famous-sauce-a-forgotten-vintage-luxury-with-modern-condiment-shelf-appeal/

 

Here's some history about Durkee Sauce. It originated on the east coast. It was popularized, nationwide apparently, by having a booth at the Chicago world's fair. When you flew first class on Pan Am they gave you champaign and Durkees. Okay, not really, but the article mentions that elite flyers had it served to them back in the day. There is nothing about the zealots in Montana, at least some of whom are on eG.. It is a blend of mayo, mustard and vinegar plus 12 secret herbs and spices. Maybe these aren't so secret anymore. Maybe they are on the label now. I hat to say it, but now I'm curious to try it again; it's been a million years. All I remember is that I ended up throwing the bottle away, not empty. I guess you can become addicted to anything that involves mayo, mustard and vinegar, the start of a potato salad.

[Anna N]

5 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

Maybe these aren't so secret anymore.

Still pretty secret. 
Ingredients. Soybean Oil, Water, Distilled Vinegar, Sugar, Mustard, Salt, Whole Egg Solids, Food Starch-Modified, Xanthan Gum, Spice Extractives.

[heidih]

7 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

https://www.salon.com/2021/04/11/the-history-of-durkee-famous-sauce-a-forgotten-vintage-luxury-with-modern-condiment-shelf-appeal/

 

Here's some history about Durkee Sauce. It originated on the east coast. It was popularized, nationwide apparently, by having a booth at the Chicago world's fair. When you flew first class on Pan Am they gave you champaign and Durkees. Okay, not really, but the article mentions that elite flyers had it served to them back in the day. There is nothing about the zealots in Montana, at least some of whom are on eG.. It is a blend of mayo, mustard and vinegar plus 12 secret herbs and spices. Maybe these aren't so secret anymore. Maybe they are on the label now. I hat to say it, but now I'm curious to try it again; it's been a million years. All I remember is that I ended up throwing the bottle away, not empty. I guess you can become addicted to anything that involves mayo, mustard and vinegar, the start of a potato salad.

 

Their site states "This popular tangy sandwich spread has been around for over 100 years! It was even served in the Lincoln White House!"

 

[Katie Meadow]

3 minutes ago, heidih said:

 

Their site states "This popular tangy sandwich spread has been around for over 100 years! It was even served in the Lincoln White House!"

 

Unification apread! Something southerners and northerners and westerners could agree on.

[Tropicalsenior]

19 minutes ago, Katie Meadow said:

Here's some history about Durkee Sauce. It

That's the article that I cited in my introduction and until I read that I had no idea that it was also popular on the East Coast. Now I'm told it's also a southern thing. The only place that I've ever lived that seemed to know much about it was Montana.