Oregon Trail Recipes Kept Pioneers Alive

Enjoy a taste of what it was like to live and eat like a pioneer in the 1800s with these easy, tasty, and portable pioneer recipes! Back then, making food was very different from how we do it now. Pioneers always made their own food from scratch, using what they had on hand or what they came across along the way.

The pioneers used these recipes to stay alive as they walked miles and miles of trails for days and months at a time. A woman in the 1800s cooked food that lasted for days and didn't waste anything!

1. Potato Cakes

Potatoes were a very important food for the people who lived along the Oregon Trail. They last a long time, and even longer after being cured.

Pioneers who went on trips never forgot potatoes, and they were used in a lot of tasty meals. In the past, our ancestors always had these potato cakes, which are related to pancakes by being made with potatoes.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups mashed potatoes
• 2 tablespoons of salt
• 1/2 cup of milk
• 1 onion
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup of flour

Directions:

Mix the potatoes and everything else together in a large bowl.

Put spoonfuls of the mix into a hot cast iron with shortening or butter.

Make sure both sides of the cakes are golden brown, about 4 to 5 minutes per side.

2. Side Pork and Mormon Gravy

Even meals that are made out of necessity end up being tasty and filling. One of the best ones is "side pork and Mormon gravy." Pioneers didn't just fry cured bacon; they did something a little different to make sure they used up all of their resources, not just the best tasting. The "side pork" part comes from "leftovers."

Things used:

• 8 thick slices of bacon or ham
• Bacon grease or ham drippings
• Milk
• Flour

Directions:

In a pan, cook the thick slices of bacon or ham until they are crispy.

Put aside, cover and keep warm

Take four tablespoons of the fat and put it back in the pan.

Put in the flour and let it cook a little, stirring constantly.

Take it off the heat and add the milk.

Mix it well, and scrape up the tasty bits.

Put the gravy back on low heat and stir it until it is smooth and creamy. Serve over your bacon or ham, or add it all together and serve over eggs, toast, buscuits, grits, or potatoes.

3. The Johnnycake

Not only did the pioneers bring potatoes with them, but they also brought lots of corn. Corn also keeps well for a long time, and it was a key food for the pioneers moving around together.

Cornbread, tortillas, and soup were just a few things made with the corn, and there was a cake called "jonikin" that was similar to Johnnycake and was made with oats. When corn was used instead of oats because there was more corn than oats, it was called "johnnycake."

What you'll need:

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups of buttermilk
• 1/2 cup of flour
• 2 tablespoons of molasses
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 2 cups of cornmeal
• 1 teaspoon of baking powder
• 8 oz. butter (2 tbsp)

Directions:

First, beat the eggs, then add the molassas and buttermilk.

Add the baking powder, salt, and flour, and mix well.

Add butter.

In a Dutch oven, bake the cake for 25–30 minutes at 350.

4. Molasses Stack Cakes

Molasses stack cake was a treat that people saved for important events, like pioneer weddings. Family and friends all worked together to bake the cakes.

This would have been a pricey food item for pioneers. So each person brings a layer of cake, which is stacked on top of each other with apple butter or slices in the middle.

Things used:

• 1/2 cup of buttermilk
• 1/2 cup of shortening
• 1 egg
• 1 cup of molassas
• 2 cups of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder
• Cinnamon (to sprinkle)
• Nutmeg (to sprinkle)

Directions:

Warm the oven up to 350°F.

In a small bowl, mix the buttermilk, shortening, egg, sugar, and baking powder together.

Sprinkle a healthy amount of cinnamon and nutmeg on top.

Mix in the flour well, and then roll out the dough thinly.

Round them out and put them on cookie sheets or a baking dish that has been greased.

Cook until brown and golden.

Stack cakes on top of each other, with apple butter in between the layers, for an awesome treat!

5. Breakfast on the Oregon Trail: Cornmeal Mush

Breakfast was the most important meal of the day for the pioneers. It gave them the energy they needed to start their long journey for the day.

What you'll need:

• 1 cup of cornmeal
• Dried currants (or any dried fruit you like)
• 4 cups of hot water
• 1 tsp. lard
• 1 tsp. salt
• Molasses or syrup
• Milk
• Butter

Directions:

Bring your water to a boil, then add your currants and cornmeal.

As you stir, add the lard and salt.

Pour it into bowls and top with molasses and butter.

6. Fart and Dart Chuckwagon Beans

Yes, this is really the name. And okay, this isn't technically from the 1800s, when the Oregon Trail was happening, but it was based on the real recipe that the pioneers ate. The pioneers ate A LOT of beans. They could be stored for a long time, travel well, and give you protein, nutrients, and A LOT of gas!

What you need:

• One can of each: lima, red kidney, white northern, and butter beans.
• Ham, chopped
• 1 pound of chopped bacon,
• 1 big onion
• 4 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1/2 cup of vinegar
• 1/2 tsp. of mustard

Directions:

Mix together all the canned beans in equal amounts, and start cooking your bacon.

Put the bean mix in a big pan with cooked bacon, cooked ham, chopped onions, and garlic.

Add brown sugar, vinegar, and mustard.

Stir well and bake for an hour or until bubbly.

7. Butterless, Eggless, and Milkless Cake

Pioneers may not have baked this cake recipe often because the large list of ingredients was super hard to come by, but it made it through the years and is still a favorite today!

What you'll need:

• 1 cup of brown sugar
• 1 glass of cold water
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 1 1/2 cups of raisins
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1/3 cup shortening
• 1 teaspoon of cloves
• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon

• 25 ml hot tap water
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 2 cups of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon of baking powder

Directions:

Boil 1 cup of water with the brown sugar and raisins.

Put the cinnamon, cloves, and salt in.

After that, add the nutmeg and shortening and mix them in.

3 minutes to boil, then let it cool.

Mix the baking soda into the hot tap water, and then add the flour and baking powder.

Mix this mix into the first mix.

At 350°F, bake for 35 to 40 minutes.

8. Spotted Dog Desert

Spotted dog is a sweet and sticky treat that you can make with the rice you have left over.

Pioneers used this method because they wanted to save everything. They decided that it would be better to make something else with the leftovers instead of eating it cold and clumpy.

Things used:

• cooked rice
• one egg
• milk
• sugar
• salt
• nutmeg
• raisins

• vanilla

Directions:

In a Dutch oven, put the cooked rice.

Then, add enough milk to cover all the rice grains.

Beat an egg and add it.

Mix in the sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Then add the raisins on top.

Turn off the heat, put the lid back on, and wait for the egg to cook until it is no longer glossy and jiggly.

Have you tried any of these recipes? Do you make any of these on a regular basis? Let me know in the comments below!