Hardtack – The bread that lasts Forever

Winston Smith - October 23, 2020

I didn’t see anything on hardtack [Flour + water + little salt].  Great way to store carbs for soups. Easy and cheap to make.  I’ve started making it and storing in mylar bags (not sure if they’re needed).  It’ll keep 100 years.  Youtube hardtack.  Thanks and great website.

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I’ve made hardtack before and I love it!

Here is a picture of my hard tack that I made back in March of 2018, so it is 2 years and 7 months old and tastes just like it was made yesterday.  I’ve just stored mine in ziplock bags.

Two things that I’ve learned about making hardtack. 

#1 – Don’t overcook/burn it. It tastes NASTY!

#2 – I like thinner hard tack because I snack on them kind of like crackers. The thicker ones I smash into pieces and then kind of suck on the pieces until they are soft enough to chew. The real way to eat hardtack is to soak in hot water, coffee, or soup to soften it, but I haven’t done that yet.

Some people add extra ingredients like oregano to make it a bit more tasty, but if you stick to the three main ingredients it will last longer. 

Here is a video of someone eating an old Civil War 1863 piece of hardtack

 

(For some reason, many pics don’t load and the site is painfully slow for me)

Thanks, Essie.  Great tip on not overcooking it.  I’ve done it, a few times. : (
I  made my last batch in an Excaliber dehydrator.  The jury is still out on how they turned out.  I’ve never made any for snacking – I think they’d break my teeth. Stay safe.

 

I’ve been researching it for an article, and we might do something about it in the near future.