Baking my first batch of ship's biscuits ('hard tack')

First published 26.03.26
Last updated 27.03.26

Some bags of flour washed ashore the other day. They were getting past their best, so I made some ship's biscuits (a.k.a. 'hard tack' a.k.a 'worm castles') - the original survival food.

Ship's biscuits can last a very long time. YouTube has plenty of videos of people eating these after 100+ years. They're not delicious & they may get full o' worms, but they'll see you through when times are tight!

I used this authentic recipe. I'll keep them a good while & try soaking them in wine or adding them to a stew - two tried & tested ways to tackle them, I'm told.

Wish me luck! O.

≈

Things I learned...

- The above recipe is salty (I had a nibble). I'm sure it aids longevity, but I might reduce it in future!

- Kneading this stiff dough was a good arm workout (with wholemeal flour)!

- I cut them to approx. 3-inch squares - turns out they fit a food bag well!

- They took a lot longer to cook than the recipe said (but I may have overdone it! My poor teeth...)