Savory Green Beans

Recipe No. 564 from the U.S. Army’s WWII cookbook — Vegetables. Quantities are exactly as printed, for 100 servings; a scaled-down 8-serving version is in the notes.

Ingredients

• Beans, green — 25 pounds*
• Salt — as needed
• Water, boiling — as needed
• Onions, chopped — 1¼ pounds (1¼ No. 56 dippers)
• Bacon fat, melted — 8 ounces (¼ No. 56 dipper)
• Cloves, whole — as needed
• Sugar, granulated — 3 ounces (6 mess kit spoons)
• Salt — 1½ ounces (3 mess kit spoons)
• Pepper — as needed
• Tomatoes — 1 No. 10 can

Directions

Key ingredients

Bacon Grease

1. Wash beans and remove ends. Cut into pieces or leave whole. Add boiling salted water.
2. Heat to boiling point; reduce heat and simmer about 30 minutes or until tender. Drain.
3. Fry onions in bacon fat.
4. Tie cloves in cheesecloth. Combine cloves, sugar, cooked onions, salt, pepper and tomatoes. Heat to boiling point. Remove bag with cloves.
5. Combine beans and tomato mixture just before serving.

Notes

SCALED TO 8 SERVINGS (the original is ÷12.5): Beans, green — 2 lb Salt — to taste Water, boiling — to taste Onions, chopped — 1⅔ oz Bacon fat, melted — ⅔ oz Cloves, whole — to taste Sugar, granulated — about 1½ tsp Salt — about ¾ tsp Pepper — to taste Tomatoes — 1 cup

3 No. 10 cans green beans may be substituted for the fresh green beans.

— TM 10-412, Army Recipes (War Department, 15 August 1944), recipe No. 564, Vegetables. Army measures: 1 No. 56 dipper = 1 qt; 1 No. 55 dipper = 1¾ qt; 1 mess kit cup = 1½ pints.