Voyageur canoe passing a waterfall (Ontario), 1869, by Frances Anne Hopkins.
Frenchmen in the Old Northwest (lands around the Great Lakes) had little opportunity to prepare a hot meal. Yet, men portaging canoes and up to 3 tons of furs and merchandise as well as paddling their large birch-bark canoes from dawn to dusk needed at least one daily, nutritious meal. Here is an early recipe for a hot, satisfying stew that was enjoyed by the voyageurs.
"The tin kettle in which we cooked our food" a trader wrote, "held eight to ten gallons. At the end of a long day paddling our canoes, the cook hung our kettle over the fire, nearly full of water. Nine quarts of dried peas- one quart per man, our daily allowance - was added to the heated water. When the peas had all burst, two or three pounds of salt pork, cut into strips, where added for seasoning, and the kettle was allowed to simmer all night. At daybreak, the cook added four biscuits, broken up,to the mess and invited all hands to breakfast.
The swelling of the peas and biscuits filled the kettle to the brim and was so thick that a stick would stand upright in the stew. The hungry Voyageurs squatted in a circle around the kettle. Each man used his wooden spoon to ladle the hot meal from the kettle to his mouth, with lightning speed, and soon filled his belly."
Pea Souper, a nickname for French-Canadians, originated because of this daily breakfast repast.