“Hardtack from Atlanta Area, 1862,” Pensacola Museum of History.
Soldiers in the Civil War lived on three crackers a day when on a campaign. While these crackers looked a lot like today’s saltines, they were anything but. Most noticeably, these approximately three-inch square crackers were rock hard, hence the name “hardtack.” These crackers were so hard that they were also called “tooth dullers” and “molar breakers” by the soldiers. Because they often arrived infested with weevils, they were also known as “worm bread” or “worm castles.”
In the Civil War, the only way to prevent food from spoiling was to store it below ground in a cellar, store it in salt, dry it, or can it. Drying or dehydrating was the only practical way for soldiers to carry food for long periods without spoiling. Hardtack provided about 250 calories per cracker of sustenance that was simple and cheap to make in large quantities.
HARDTACK RECIPE
Mix ¼ cup of water per cup of flour and a pinch of salt (more if you want a little flavor). Roll the dough out to about ½ inch thick. Cut into 3-inch by 3-inch squares, poke holes with a fork (or buy a hardtack cutter), and place on a baking sheet. Bake the crackers on low heat of 250 degrees for at least an hour—longer if your dental insurance is up to date. The purpose of the lower heat is to bake the moisture out of the cracker without burning it.
With moisture removed, the hardtack can last just about forever. However, without moisture hardtack is nearly impossible to eat. In the book Hardtack and Coffee, John D. Billings detailed ways soldiers transformed hardtack into something more palatable. The most common way to eat hardtack was to break it up and put it in your coffee. Not only did this soften the hardtack so it was edible, but it also killed any of the weevils that had infested it causing them to float to the top of the cup so the soldier could scoop them out. Another common practice was to cook some salt pork in a pan, place the hardtack in the grease to soften it up, and make it into something resembling a pancake.
Civil War Day at the Durant-Peterson House Museum will feature these vital vittles of the soldier for you to try.
The weevils will be optional.*
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* There will be no weevils in our hardtack.
Source: “Hardtack during the Civil War,” National Park Service, accessed September 30, 2024, https://www.nps.gov/mana/learn/kidsyouth/hardtack-during-the-civil-war.htm.