Cowboys & Beans

[rjwong]

Beans again? Gussy 'em up!

You have got to read this LA Times article by Russ Parsons. It was one of the most thought-provoking, most creative pieces I have read in a while. Russ starts off writing about the movie "Brokeback Mountain" & then to tie the movie in with cooking, he writes:

I know that there have been books written about cowboy cooking, but I don't know of any that were written by actual cowboys.

And I think I'm probably in a position to know. Well before I ever started to think about writing about cooking, I wrote about cowboys. Those are two remarkably different subjects and as far as I know I'm the only one who has done both. It's a narrow niche, but it's all mine.

Okay, pardner, what's with genuine cowboy cookin'? Is real cowboy cuisine just nothing more than steaks, game & beans in a pot? Have you eaten the real thing? None of this "urban cowboy" food designed by city slickers. If I start a campfire, we can gather around & hear some stories ...

[Daniel Rogov]

I can't vouch for how cowboys dine today, but following is a piece I wrote some years ago about how they ate during the days of Billy the Kid.

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As Arthur Toynbee reminded us, history has always been more difficult to accept than legend. Because legend adds half-truths and a nostalgic atmosphere to reality, it is more comfortable, more palatable and longer lasting than hard facts. Novelist Larry McMurtry is not so much involved with writing a history of the days of the American West as he is into remythologizing it in his own image.

McMurtry loves writing novels about Texas, but his Texas is more a concept than a physical place. His "Last Picture Show" was set in the 1950's Texas of his youth, and in "Terms of Endearment" he portrayed the city of Houston in the 1970's. Neither of those novels were quite free of the touch of the Wild West, but in none of his books did McMurty portray the rough and tumble days of Texas as he did in "Lonesome Dove" (a novel, by the way that was converted into one of few truly great American television series) and in "Anything For Billy".

Even though each of McMurtry's cowboys are unshaven, unwashed and have abominably bad manners, many of them have hearts of gold. His heroes are not quite as heroic as most myths would have us believe and his anti-heroes are not nearly as evil as they are portrayed in most textbooks. His Billy the Kid, for example, is a nasty, skinny young man who suffers from migraine headaches and fainting spells, eats constantly and has dozens of childish superstitions that govern his actions. His Billy is also terribly nearsighted, which probably explains the fact that he was an embarrassingly poor marksman. According to McMurtry, Billy's reputation for violence far exceeded his actual ferocity, for when he killed someone it was mostly because he or the other fellow was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Billy's murderous tendencies tended to take themselves out primarily on 10 year old children, mentally retarded adults and unarmed old Indians.

That McMurtry takes liberties with historical truth is undeniable. To those interested in food, however, all of this is unimportant, because McMurtry's characters, however imaginary they may be, eat exactly the same foods and in precisely the same manner as did the real Billy the Kid and the cowboys and gunfighters that populated Texas in the mid 19th century. Even though these men talked about and dreamed of large fried steaks and potatoes nearly all of the time, they rarely got to eat them because steaks were too expensive and Texans considered themselves too macho to raise potatoes. Regardless of whether they were living in a bunkhouse on a ranch, on a six month cattle round-up or running away from a sheriff's posse, most Texas cowboys and gunfighters ate four identical meals every day. Anyone who rode the trail carried with him a nesting kit (a tin all-in-one eating utensil that folded over on itself for easy carrying), and would make his way to the cook wagon, there to have his entire meal piled on one plate.

The first requirement for such meals was frijoles refritos, a Mexican dish in which pink or black kidney beans were first soaked in water and then boiled, mashed together with oil and onion to form a lumpy puree and finally seasoned generously with salt and fried in bacon fat. Piled on top of the beans would be anywhere from three to six fried eggs. The meat most commonly served with such meals was mutton and, if the cowboy was lucky enough to have a large plate the meat would be placed alongside the beans and eggs. For convenience, however, most cowboys had rather small nesting kits,and the meat was simply piled on top of the eggs. Every meal was served with huge quantities of strong, sweet coffee. Cowboys who lived on ranches ate precisely the same meals, the only difference being that they had plates large enough so that their beans, eggs and meat did not have to be piled one on top of the other.

Outlaws ate similar meals, but, because men on the run rarely had fresh meat with them, they had to dine on jerky, beef that had been cut in long thin slices and dried in the sun. Because it had been dried, jerky rarely spoiled and because it was light it was easy to carry in one's saddlebags. Outlaws and others who traveled in pairs or small groups also relied for meat on the prairie dogs , rattlesnakes and other small animals that inhabited the dessert.

The truth is that with the possible exception of prairie dogs, rodent-like creatures that were to be found everywhere but whose flesh is dry and tough, the food that cowboys ate was quite tasty. So content were most men with this fare that when they had the time and money to visit one of the many bars that were found in every Texas town, they would order exactly the same dishes. The beverage most often consumed in such bars was whiskey but, to set the historical record straight, most cowboys did not particularly enjoy whiskey. They drank it primarily because it was cheaper than or the truly favorite drink of the west, Mexican style hot chocolate.

Frijoles Refrito

A recipe adopted from Diana Kennedy's "The Cuisines of Mexico"

3 cups red kidney beans or black beans

salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper to taste

3/4 cup bacon fat or chicken fat

1 - 2 cloves garlic, sliced

fried eggs and chili peppers for serving

If using dried beans, soak them in water for 3 - 4 hours. Drain and the pour over fresh water to cover. Boil until the beans are tender. If using tinned beans, boil them until they are tender. In either case, drain the beans well and mash them with a fork. Season to taste with salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper.

In a heavy skillet melt 1/2 cup of the fat and in this saute the garlic until well browned. With a slotted spoon remove the garlic and discard. To the fat add the pureed beans and fry until the fat is absorbed. Remove from the flame and let cool.

In a clean skillet melt the remaining fat and to this add the bean mixture and fry until the fat is completely absorbed. Serve hot with fried eggs and chili peppers. (Serves 6).

Choccalatl Molinillo

Hot Chocolate with Cinnamon

125 grams sweet baking chocolate, grated

50 grams unsweetened chocolate, grated

4 cups milk

2 sticks cinnamon

1/4 tsp. vanilla extract

1 egg white, beaten lightly

sugar to taste (about 2 Tbsp.)

In the top of a double boiler over but not in boiling water combine the sweet and unsweetened chocolate and melt them, stirring regularly with a wooden spoon.

In a saucepan combine the milk and cinnamon and heat until very hot but not to boiling. Pour the milk and cinnamon sticks into the chocolate and blend together with the wooden spoon. Add the vanilla, stir well, and then sweeten to taste with sugar. While still over the boiling water add the egg white and beat well with the wooden spoon until the mixture is frothy. Remove the cinnamon and pour the chocolate into pre-heated cups. Serve immediately. (Yields 6 cups).

[sazji]

And (related to cowboy cooking, though not to beans), is Utah Phillips' famous story:

The cowboys had been out on the trail with the herd for two weeks already and Wishbone's cooking was beginning to wear a little thin. The grumbling about his bad food was approaching mutiny status.

Having had enough of everyone's pissing and moaning, the trail boss decided to do something about the situation. He ruled that all of the cowboys would draw straws and that whoever came up short would have to replace Wishbone as the company cook. But there was one caveat. Anyone who thereafter complained about the new chef's cooking would have to take over the job himself.

The poor cowhand who lost the draw began his first day as the new cook by throwing together the worst meal he could think of. He wanted someone to complain right away so that he could get off this terrible assignment. Unfortunately for him, no one complained that first evening. Everyone just choked down their food in silence.

This went on for several days as the new cook deliberately made the meals worse and worse every day. But still, no one complained. No one dared to gripe about the food because they knew they would have to immediately take over the cooking.

After five days the new cook waited until all the hands were well out of sight as they hit the trail early the next morning. With bucket in hand, he went out on the prairie and started picking up moose turds. That evening, at the next camp, he baked a beautiful pie -- the filling of which was a pudding made from his collection of moose turds.

After an especially bad dinner of burnt meat, moldy bread and weak coffee, the new chef brought out his pie. Still, no one said a word about how bad it was. In silence they all choked down the pie, some of them holding their noses, others almost throwing up. Again, no one complained.

But one cowpoke had simply gotten to the point where he couldn¹t take the punishment any longer. In a fit of rage he stood up, threw his pie plate to the ground and shouted, "Goddammit, you can't fool me! I know what this is! This here's moose turd pie!"

Dead silence.

"But it's a goooood one!"

Edited March 2, 2006 by sazji (log)

[Carrot Top]

Thanks for the link, rjwong. It is fascinating to read of another way of life, another time.

The menus and recipes you wrote were great, too, russ.

The closest thing to a western cowboy I've ever had the luck to meet was Alan Simpson. When he came to lunch, I decided to write a Wyoming cowboy menu.

Here's what we offered that particular cowboy, as printed up on the heavy ivory stock gold-embossed menus laid ever-so-gently at each delicate fine china plate:

We started with Snake River Trout, grilled crisp with bacon and scallions. Cowboys need lots of food, so naturally the next course was the traditional Wool with a Handle (gosh I admit it might have had some sort of fancy sauce on it but that was just to give it safe cover in this tough environment) cuddled nicely up to some white beans long-cooked, as you say to a creamy and satisfying consistency.

I apologized for not being able to rustle him up a Son of a Bitch Stew for lunch, but times were hard on the dusty trails of Wall Street in terms of finding those particular ingredients. (At least for use in outright and non-metaphorical cookery.)

He and the other cowboys all chowed down and right polished off that meal.

Nope, nothing wrong with a bit of lore and a good chow down, while keeping in mind's eye the wide open plains.

P.S. Loved those last two stories, too, Rogov and sazji!

[jackal10]

They would need food that can be kept without refrigeration. Beans and Bacon (and even onions) make perfect sense. Coffee and sugar also.

Eggs I'm more doubtful about.

[petite tête de chou]

Flour would've been used to make hard tack, biscuits, pancakes etc.

[suzilightning]

[

Okay, pardner, what's with genuine cowboy cookin'? Is real cowboy cuisine just nothing more than steaks, game & beans in a pot? Have you eaten the real thing? None of this "urban cowboy" food designed by city slickers. If I start a campfire, we can gather around & hear some stories ...

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What about Tom Perini's "Texas Cowboy Cooking"? If memory serves... Mr. Perini has also competed in several chuckwagon cookoffs....

[jgm]

I guess cowboy cooking is defined by whether you're talking about cowboys in what we think of as classic cowboy days, or today's cowboys.

In 1980 I participated in a commemorative drive in which longhorns were driven up to Dodge City, Kansas (where I grew up) from Texas, along the trail where they had been driven since th 1800's. The two trails used in those days were the Chisholm trail and the Western Trail; I'm not sure which trail was used for this particular drive.

I joined the group in southern Kansas, just inside the state line, and was around for a couple of dinners and a breakfast. The trailhands working this drive are people who do this for a living (yes, there still are full-time, working cowboys) so I assume that what we ate is pretty much what they usually eat. We had the usual things you would expect; bacon, eggs, and sausage for breakfast, and probably something like chicken-fried steak for dinner, although I don't remember. They replenished supplies often, and were able to keep things cool in coolers in the chuckwagon.

[Kouign Aman]

Eggs are stable non-refridgerated for a surprisingly long time, especially if stuffed down into a barrel of wet sand or isinglass. The large qty of eggs described does make me wonder if poor Cookie was driving a mobile chicken-coop, however. Ye gods, what a smelly job!

Why would outlaws eat beef, and ranch hands eat mutton?

[Carrot Top]

Why would outlaws eat beef, and ranch hands eat mutton?

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I'm hoping this is a real question and not a joke laying in wait for a "straight person", Kouign Aman.

I've tried to make up some answers if it *is* a joke, just to amuse myself, but will answer "the right way", anyway.

When the west was settled by immigrants, they chose land to settle on that suited the livestock they had traditionally raised in the place that they had emigrated from. Some land is good for cattle, some better suited for lamb or sheep (or even goats, for that matter ).

So it all depends on the geographic suitability of the land as to what they ate, probably - not whether they were reprobate outlaw cowboys or nice sweet trailhand cowboys.

[russ parsons]

actually, in new mexico, if you read early accounts, mutton was the main meat source--even more than pork.. it wasn't until the anglos arrived in the 1880s that the cow was introduced. i'm sure there's someone who can explain it in terms of calories produced per unit of feed and quality of feed (i'm guessing mutton would be right at the top of both of those ... pigs are tremendously economical, but they do need a little better forage than is available in n.m. and cattle need a tremendous among of grazing area. that was great on the land grants in california, but on small holdings it would be impossible.)