Beaten biscuit
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| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Alternative name(s) | Sea biscuits |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Region or state | Southern United States |
| Details | |
| Type | Biscuit |
| Main ingredient(s) | Flour, salt, sugar, lard, cold water |
Beaten biscuits are a Southern food from the United States, dating from the 19th century. They differ from a regular American soft-dough biscuits, in that they are more like hardtack. In New England they are called "sea biscuits",[1] as they were staples aboard whaling ships.[2]
Contents |
Characteristics and preparation [edit]
The dough was originally made from flour, salt, sugar, lard, and cold water, and beaten with a hard object or against a hard surface. It is pricked with a fork prior to baking and cut smaller than a regular biscuit.[3]
How long the biscuits are beaten varies from one recipe to the next, from "at least 15 minutes"[1] to "30 to 45 minutes."[3] The beating these biscuits undergo is severe: they are banged with a "rolling pin, hammer, or side of an axe";[1] or they are "pounded with a blunt instrument...[even] a tire iron will do...Granny used to beat 'em with a musket";[4] one book "instructs the cook to 'use boys to do it'"--that is, beat the biscuits vigorously "at least 200 times."[5] Besides ensuring the proper texture for the biscuit, "this beating also serves to vent the cook's weekly accumulation of pent-up frustrations."[4]
Uses [edit]
These are the biscuits traditionally used in "ham biscuits," also known as "hog cakes," a traditional Southern canapé, which are simply tiny sandwiches of these bite-sized biscuits sliced horizontally, spread with butter, jelly, mustard, filled with pieces of country ham, or sopped up with gravy or syrup.[4][5] They are sometimes considered "Sunday biscuits" and can be stored for several months in an airtight container.[4] Beaten biscuits were once so popular that special machines, called biscuits brakes, were manufactured to knead the dough in home kitchens.[4] A biscuit brake typically consists of a pair of steel rollers geared together and operated by a crank, mounted on a small table with a marble top and cast iron legs.
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ a b c Villas, James (2004). Biscuit bliss: 101 foolproof recipes for fresh and fluffy biscuits in just minutes. Harvard Common Press. p. 14. ISBN 978-1-55832-223-3.
- ^ Biscuit bliss By James Villas page 14
- ^ a b "Beaten Biscuit". Encyclopedia. Food Network. Retrieved 2009-04-27.[dead link]
- ^ a b c d e Alvey, R. Gerald (1992). Kentucky Bluegrass country. UP of Mississippi. p. 261. ISBN 978-0-87805-544-9.
- ^ a b Claiborne, Craig; John T. (FRW) Edge, Georgeanna Milam (2007). Craig Claiborne's Southern Cooking. Athens: U of Georgia P. p. 254. ISBN 978-0-8203-2992-5.
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