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This is your chance to add those almost forgotten terms, we used when preparing food or calling out the days menu.Although today's navy has dining halls and Cafeteria Messing, it was in the days of sail when such terms as noted here, i.e.'bagoo' were first used. In those days the Cook, would preapre food in a large pot on iron range, his assistants or the duty watch wouldhelp in peeling vegetables etc. and the meat (usually taken from casks of brine), would be prepared and boiled. The duty mess men would then colect the ration for his mess. Vegetables wre popular, as well. Meat would be served about three times a week and other days would be bread/biscuit and cheese. In theory bread was issued to each mess in a daily basis, and hung in a net from the deckhead over the mess table, slung on hooks also from the deckhead.
In th days of steam little changed and even as late as the 1960's Canteen messing was the well proven system. - Each man in a mess was allocated so much per head per day in food money,. The mess caterer would work out the menu, and if there was any money left at the end of the month this was shared around, but if they over spent, it was deducted from wages. Thus the skill of the mess caterer put food in the men's bellies and cash in their pocket. The food was wholesome and variable, but it had to be prepared and cooked, by the dutymess cooks, and their skills were important in making sure how far the food went. Wastage dumped in the slops pail was not good news. - The Mess killick would often apporyion punishmen in terms of extra days cokks duty.
Any stories out there about messing and food and the short rhymes or songs used in this connection.
I am told by one reader that the water used to cook potatoes was often used to brew the tea, and unknowingly would be a means of spreading the goodnessand vitamens lost from the spuds into the bellies of the men.
Jack of course had many one liner rhymes for the preperation of food and cleaning of the mess deck traps. Do you remember any, particularly those that are sung.
The Object of the following list - Is to recall the common names by which various items of food were known on the mess deck and when such descriptions were in use.
Please help by adding to this list - Also if you remember the menu or item being used in a different way or if the name was in use at adifferent times.
African Chips 1980's Over fried Chips - that they were dark brown and not a golden colour. Air Ships in a Fog WW2 Sausages in Mash Awning c.WW2 The crust on a pie Babies Heads WW2
1960-80's
Dumplings
General Use - The popular mame for tinned Steak and kidney pies which - were either in individual tins or the standard 15oz tin and halved - The pastry on the outside was a soft suet pudding - Never found a civvie S & K pud to equal the pussers variety. A1++++
Blackcoated Workers WW2 Stewed Prunes Burgoo WW2 A sought of Porridge Cackle Berries WW2 Eggs Chicken on a raft c.1940
c.1970sEgg on toast - See Raft Chineese Wedding Cake WW2 Rice Pudding Clacker WW2 Pie crust or pastry Corn Dog c.1960-90 Corn beef - usually in sandwiches Duff ww2 Anything made with Suet Pudding for pudding. Egg Banjo 1964 - 1986 Fried Egg between two pieces of toast - Self in 1964 & Tommy Young 75-86 Elephants Foot c.1980 Spam Fritters Gopher WW2 Soft Drink
Also 1970-1990 (BS)
Nato Standard 1970-1990 [BS] Tea or Coffee with milk andtwo sugars
Herrings In WW2 - 1990 Herrings (Pilchards) in Tomato Sauce- In 1960-70's in large goldy coloured oval tin with attached cornbeef type key. Kai (Kye) WW1 - 1990's Thick Hot Chocolate Drink- usually available to watch keepers and in the early days woud be made from solid bars - lattetly from cocoa with tinned cow Niggers in Snow 1950's Currants in Rice Pudding - Thanks to PTI John Elcombe Pot Mess c.1960-90 A dish as opposed to a type of food - i.e. everything in the caterers hands tipped into the one pot - Often would include tinned fruit
Raft
c.1940 & 1968
Toast with something on. Rat Packs - 24hour / 3day
c.1980 RM / FAA survial ration Shit on a Raft 1975-1986 Kidney's on toast - Thanks toTommy Young Slide WW2 - 1990 Butter Snake & Pygmy Pie c.1960 -90 Naafi - Mobile wagon Steak & Kidney Pies Straight Rush WW2 Roast meat on Potatoes with Bisto Gravy Snorkers 1975 - 1980 Fat Square Tinned Sausages - From Tommy Young Tinned Cow WW2 - 1970 Sweetened Condensed Milk in a can - In 1950's could be bought in the shops ashore (A Tin with cream label with blue writing- Do you recall??) was always the best at that time - Now quite rare. Train smash c.1940
1968Tinned tomatoes - usually with bacon or susaged mixed in
