**Erbswurst**
Erbswurst was a 19th century ration that was used by first Prussian and later in WWI Germany military. It is a sausage made from lard, dried bacon and pea flour that could be eaten as is or rehydrated in a mess tin into a
thick soup.
There are three basic ingredients and seasonings:
smoked bacon 12 ounces
Hard fat (lard) 9 ounces
Pea flour 14 ounces
Salt. 3 tsp
Pepper. 1 tsp
Marjoram. 1/2 tsp
Nutmeg. 1/4 tsp
Thyme. 1/4 tsp
Onion. 1/2 onion
Dice the smoked bacon into 1/4″ cubes. Fry both bacon and fat on a low heat (don't burn) until golden brown, stirring often. Lightly brown the finely chopped onion in some of the fat. Heat up a pot on a low fire and start adding the pea flour to the onions (and fat) stirring continuously. Add all the salt, pepper , and spices, whilst stirring. Add in the bacon and fat and stir well together.
May be put into casings or formed into bars/balls and stored in airtight containers or vacuum sealed bags.
This recipe can be modified to use bacon, hamburger, or just about any other meat, but you will need a fat source. That means that venison is likely out unless you have some bacon grease or other flavored grease because that’s where the flavor comes from.
Though this recipe calls for milk, I’ve made gravy with only water. It’s not nearly as good, but it’s edible. It’s better to carry some dried milk than to skip the milk altogether. You can also use all milk, but when it’s in short supply, the amount listed will do just fine.
Ingredients:
1 pound sausage
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups water
Directions:
Fry the sausage, crumbling it up with the spatula as you cook it.
Sprinkle flour, salt, and pepper over the sausage and allow to brown, stirring as you go. Smash it with the back of the spatula to keep it from clumping.
Add the water a 1/2 cup at a time, stirring and smashing with the spatula well to prevent lumps. Once you have it smooth and it’s turning from a thick paste into a thin paste, pour the milk in, stirring vigorously as you do.
Gravy is easy. You don’t have to use exact amounts. Just add enough flour to make the grease a thick paste, then add enough milk and water to bring it to a gravy consistency. If it starts to get thin, stop adding liquid. If it’s too thick, add more. Remember that it will thicken slightly as it cools.