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Glorius Food!

13K views 38 replies 22 participants last post by  eldersuk 
#1 ·
Egusi stew with yam flour foofoo, jollof rice, palm oil chop..Does anybody have memories of other delicacies we enjoyed years ago?
 
#4 ·
Glorious Food

Actually, Elders and Paddy Hendersons were my only companies, so I cannot compare with what others provided, although I did have one meal in Birkenhead on the Clan McTaggart in my training days. that and it wasn`t long after the war, was fairly sumptuous, also my lifelong introduction to and loving of curry.
Paddy`s wasn`t too bad if you liked curry (3 times a day, if you included Kegeree for breakfast)
Elders Palm Oil Chop and Groundnut Stew I loved, but it was probably the booze which preceded it, oiled the works (The African crowd got pepper soup, if they were unlucky trhe only part of the chicken it contained was the legs,claw end) I remember particular delicacies like "Kromeskie a la Russe" and it was always "Bury" Black pudding - don`t know why, when I subsequently found out the best black pudding in the world came from the butcher in Aviemore, Bologna Sausage "sarnies" were awful, but sometimes the Chief Steward got hold of Crayfish or Red Snapper.
Used to like the side dishes that went with curry and palm oil chop etc, especially the little tomato things - I think they called them red chilli peppers!
Feeding generally depended on what was available and the Chief Steward and most were reasonable feeders - the rum ration did help everything down though!
Main benefit after leaving Elders was never had tummy trouble, used to reckon the African Cooks had poisoned us enough to give us future immunity.
 
#6 ·
I was on the Patani (2 trips) in the mid 60's. The officers used to chip in £1 each and the Chief Steward, I think his name was Jack Holland, used to buy fresh dover sole in Las Palmas, these fish simply grilled on the bone were out of this world, they hung over both ends of a dinner plate. I think the C.S must have had a contact in the wholsale fish business because he could also get large fresh prawns while in Las Palmas which no other C.S in E.D's seemed able to do.
 
#8 ·
Talking of Prawns
Can`t remember which ship,may have been the "Oti" but called at Fernando Po, tied up alongside a trawler and the Chief Steward (think he was Stan Fowler) bought a bucket of prawns, had the cook cook them and organised a party in the Chief Engineers accommodation at midnight, sat round in a circle, bucket of prawns, waste paper basket, case of Worthington - brilliant party,C/E had put us all on a shake, one lad had the most amazing stutter and said to the Chief "It`s not your birthday chief it`s a f f fffffff............ing piss up chief" - funny how his stutter disappeared as the evening wore on.
 
#28 ·
It was Stan (one eye) Fowler I once went ashore with in Port Harcourt. We nearly got murdered! Great guy but somewhat belligerent when he had supped a few, after which he would start to question the parenthood of the locals! It didn't take long to realize why nobody else wanted to come ashore as well! I too think this was the Oti. Chief Engineer was Vince Taylor.
Think Stan was known as "Fowler the Feeder"
Jolt any memories?
 
#9 ·
It was traditional for EDs to have Roast Norfolk Turkey and chipolatas for Sunday lunch. A J/E, time served in a Lancashire mill town and used to sandwiches for his lunch, is reputed to have observed of ED chop, and in broad Lancastrian, 'Eh! Christmas Dinner on a Sunday; Sunday dinners every day!'

On another tack, there was a Chief Steward known as 'Bring 'em Back Alive' Kelly. This apparently a result of complaints about his feeding and his response to enquiries at the end of voyage interview - 'Well. I brought 'em back alive, didn't I?'. From experience, when coasting the Kabala, he spent the allotted 10/- per man per day, but there was nothing special in the fare or its presentation.

I've forgotten what comprised Kromeski a la Russe, but it did spawn a universal description for any of the more unusual details of maritime life as being 'very kromesk'.
 
#11 ·
We had a cook that was only fair to middling most of the time and very below par when in our home port.
He was , however very good at a chicken chow mien and used to serve this for dinner the first night back at sea.
It was very popular and many asked for seconds with the result being that the second mate and I would come into the saloon late after doing our meal reliefs for the mate and second engineer to find barely a single serve left for us.

The next trip the second mate rang me from the bridge to say
"Bob there will be plenty of chow mien left over tonight, I have just put my head in the saloon door and told them the one about"--(A rather crude joke that was sure to put those with a delicate stomachs, especially during those first few hours at sea, right off their tucker)

Yes it worked and we enjoyed our double helpings
 
#12 ·
I remeber on the Onitsha a Chief Steward called John Martin, We reckoned he had 5 Hatch filled with potato salad . Ther all ways seemed to be tons of it . They would throw walnuts in it for Waldorf Salad pineapple for Hawaian and red and green peppers for Mexicaine. Another speciality was Salad Bretonne (BAKED BEANS !) . Mind you I was an egg & chip Junior Engineer so I never complained , me face was always to close to the plate. Soup, entree , main course , cold meat an salad and then a pudding. I have yet to meet a women who could feed me like that , God bless a good Chief Steward say I.
Degsy
 
#20 ·
Brock ships, leaving Mukalla in the Gulf of Aden, would usually have acquired some crayfish. The Chief Cook ( Bengali crews) would produce a curry with these "chingli". I do not normally care for fish curry, but this one with crayfish was to die for. If someone could turn the clocks back that is one experience to revisit.
 
#27 ·
I sailed out of the Clyde on the Dalla (Paddy Henderson) on her maiden voyage. I remember lunch was a curry thought I had died and gone to heaven. I thought all E.D. and Paddy H ships were great feeders. was on the Kindat the Chief Steward was a great big man he could not get into his bunk he had a photo of himself and his wife and his hand was bigger than her head. his pants belt was about 61/2 to 7 feet long.he fed us well.have not had palm oil chop or groundnut stew in 40 odd years but would love some anytime.

Ed Glover
Controlled drifting
 
#30 ·
Wasn't it Stan Fowler who use to leave his glass eye on the counter in the galley, together with his false teeth, and say the eye would watch the Chief Cook, and his teeth would tell him what went on ? For those who sailed on Paddy Henderson's ships with Burmese crews, the 'dish to die for' was Kau Shwei (not sure of the spelling) but I do remember being in Glasgow, and having various dockyard mateys finding reasons to be onboard when this was on the menu.

Nick C
 
#31 ·
On the Eboe we had Charlie Howard, once known as Minister of Chop for Calabar. A new delicacy appeared on the breakfast menu - Split Sausage. We had visions of plump sausages split and stuffed with maybe mushrooms or herbs and exotic spices.
No such luck, he split the sausage and we got half a sausage each!

On another ship the OM enquired of the steward what sort of soup was on.
Mushroom came the reply. On tasting his soup the OM said, "This is chicken, don't you know the difference between a chicken and a mushroom?"
"Yessir, chicken has two legs, mushroom only has one."

Derek
 
#33 ·
Getting back on course for the West Coast...what about pepper pot soup and ready made garri. Yams and plantain. "White man chop plenty, but no power"
"Ï go chop for power". I recall buying some river prawns from a canoe, and when they were cooked they tasted like......mud. First time there, a man paddled up on a canoe and asked me if I wanted to buy a hot drink, what Bovril, cocoa ?? No..whiskey bottle. (Mansion House Whiskey, never heard of it) going cheap so I bought and drank. Ever tried paddling those canoes? Not easy, I tipped over many times much to the amusement of various piccins.
 
#34 ·
Ever drank Kai-Kai? Lovely drink, gets right into the joints of your bones. They tap the sap of palm trees and distil it..dont look too closely at the process. Our boys sometimes went on benders and spent the whole night drinking kai-kai and chewing cola nuts. Best to leave them alone next day. I've chewed the cola nut, but you cant get to sleep afterwards. I think thats what Coca Cola was first made from.
 
#35 ·
Cannot remember which Chief Steward - maybe Kenny Onions,used to serve "Mexican Pepperpot" apart from White beans and Red pepper can`t remember what else went into it.
Still keep a pot of red pepper and use it regularly.Anybody get caught out on first trip to sea.Curry,Groundnut stew,Palm oil chop - side dishes (small chop) do have some of those little tomatoes ! Red Peppers - little sods those helpful apprentices. they always knew who was sleeping with who and it was also worth going ashore with them they knew all the best places (3rd mates weren`t too bad that way also )
 
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