Hello the campfire:
I was having a discussion with by much better half the other night about a military menue item. Her dad who was in the Army Air Force (WWII) told her that SOS ( exrcement on a flat piece of roofing material was dryed chipped beef in a white sauce servedon toast. My dad, (Army WWII, US Air Force Korea) and my own experence in military school was that SOS was chicken ala Kind on toast. (yuk. especally the litle yellow egg bits floating around in it.)
Which is it?
Hardly earth shattering in the big picture, but interesting.
Her dad hated spam because he had to eat it so much. My dad loved it because he was able to eat enough of it when there was not enough of any thing else.
Her dad served stateside during the war, mine was in the Phillipines and Occupied Japan.
Is ther a similar menue item in todays armed services? Maybe Rick and his son can shed some light on the subject.
Any Way, Merry Christmas to all.
Judge Sharpe

SOS, as far as I know, has always been Chipped-Beef in a thick Milk Gravy poured over toast. Hamburger was sometimes used instead of Chipped Beef...but I have never heard of Chicken ala King referred to as SOS.

After 15 years in the Army I have never heard of SOS being anything but as described by Rick.

And for your information it is still a standard menu item in the mess hall.

Next time you’re at the store look in the frozen food section for Stoufers Brand Creamed Chipped Beef. It’s really good.

Overseas, in the 60's, SOS (shit on a shingle) also came in a tomato sauce and hamburger form. Matter of fact, where I was stationed, the menu even said "SOS". You were never sure which form you would get on any given day.
IMHO, the greatest, if not the worst for you, breakfast ever devised - Three pieces of toast, totally engulfed with home fries, covered with a huge laddle of SOS, with four over easy eggs on top.

My father served in WWII with the 9th Air Force and when ever he made lunch for us kids it was SOS groung beef version.Whenever I asked my mother for it (as I really like it) she would make it useing Buddig lunchmeat.I still make it and will use roll breakfeast sausage as its generally cheaper then ground beef and tastes better.

quote:

Originally posted by Rick 0311:
SOS, as far as I know, has always been Chipped-Beef in a thick Milk Gravy poured over toast. Hamburger was sometimes used instead of Chipped Beef...

.

Yep, standard Marine Corps issue. Well, 35 or so years ago, that is. Are they still serving that stuff?

quote:

Originally posted by BEJ:
Overseas, in the 60's, SOS (shit on a shingle) also came in a tomato sauce and hamburger form. Matter of fact, where I was stationed, the menu even said "SOS". You were never sure which form you would get on any given day.
IMHO, the greatest, if not the worst for you, breakfast ever devised - Three pieces of toast, totally engulfed with home fries, covered with a huge laddle of SOS, with four over easy eggs on top.

Never heard of that one being called SOS. Sounds more like Sloppy Joe’s.

The Hawaiian’s have Moko-Loco’s for breakfast...white rice,hamburger patty, friend eggs...and all smothered in brown gravy. I think they call it the “heart-association†special!

All this talk of SOS actually has me hungry for some. I may have to make up a batch for the family tonight.

Yeh, funny what one comes to love...I still miss Schofield Barracks because pf the great SOS (chipped beef variety) they used to serve, and the fresh pineapples that were so ripe they were almost a transparent amber. Never could eat canned pineapple with pleasure again after the real stuff. Anyone else remember visiting the Dole canning plant on Oahu when on R&R? They had pineapple juice coming out of the drinking fountains.....

Alberta Canuck,

I lived on Oahu in 1953, 54, and part of 55 while my dad was stationed at Hickham...when it was still a Navy base. That was back when there were, I think, three hotels on Waikaki beach.

You could buy a whole pineapple for about a quarter at the road side stands.

Yeh, Rick -

I was there then too, but on active duty as an RA-"lifer" with 25th Inf. Div. which had just come back from Korea. Had a little house just across Kalakau Boulevard from the Moana-Surfrider and about 100 yards down a little street I can't recall the name of...cost me $75/mo. I think there were actually 4 civilian hotels...Moana, Surfrider, Royal Hawaiian, Biltmore, and a fifth for military only...Ft. DeRussey. When I got med-evac'd home through Tripler to Letterman a little later, they had started to build what would then first become the Hilton 1 block S of intersection of Kalakau and Ala Moana Blvds. (It has changed names two or three times since then.)

Last went back in '74. Unbelieveable change. SOS at Schofield was good as ever, though...

Alberta Canuck,

Did you ever eat at Kau Kau Corners...best hot fudge sundies on the planet.

I lived in the Navy housing just across from the big golf course, I think it was called Makalapa, or something like that.

out here in West Texas you order SOS in a small town dinner and they will bring you biscuts and sausage cream gravy...


hmmm, it is way to late-

quote:

Originally posted by lubbockdave:
out here in West Texas you order SOS in a small town dinner and they will bring you biscuts and sausage cream gravy...


hmmm, it is way to late-

Exact same thing, just substitute corned beef for the sausage and toast for biscuits.

Biscuits and Gravy is it’s own food group!

The ground beef and tomato is way to thin to count as a sloppy joe. The Navy serves several options; chipped beef and white gravy, ground beef and white gravy, sausage (ground or link) in(you guessed it) white gravy, or the canned crushed tomatoes and ground beef. At least for the last 20 years they've told us it was beef.

Hi again, Rick -

Don't ever remember eating at Kau Kau Corners, but may be that I just don't remember the name. (I'm not too good on names...the first six years I was married, I used to have to call my wife "Hey you...")

Two of the places I loved to eat the most were in Wahiawa. One was "Chez Michael's" where four of us went every "Eagle Day". One of the fellas had been a reporter for whatever the big newspaper was in Newark, N.J., when he was drafted. Through contacts there, he still managed to smuggle in genuine Cuban cigars, so we'd have a filet and a BIG cigar each, along with a B&B, for one supper every month. The other was a "breakfast diner" on the main east-west drag right in downtown Wahiawa. Half open air screened area around the counter (no tables), the other half was fully enclosed (the cook didn't like doing his thing right out in the rain). Anyway, would have linguisa & eggs, with a side of red potatoes, and a pitcher of coffee there almost every morning. Michael of Chez Michael's had moved the restaraunt to Waikiki when I went back in '74. He did remember us old doggies though. I bought a bottle of Chateau LaFitte Rothschild '67, and he provided a free 4-lb deep-sea lobster tail. We had a heck of a dinner.

(Danged right I live in the past! And it's a pretty nice place....)

Hey, Alberta Canuck,

Kau-Kau corners was a little place in downtown Honolulu and they had a big wooden pole out in front with wooden arrows pointing to cities and countries with the milage below the name. Not a fancy place at all just sort of a soda fountain hamburger joint...but great food!

I also remember the Sunday buffet at one of the Hotels on Waikiki beach that was all you could eat for .75 cents!

My dad was a Chief Petty Officer and the enlisted housing was Quonset huts. For the first year we were there we lived in “half†a Quonset with another family living in the other end. It was hilarious because the wall that divided it up didn’t go all the way to the ceiling and you could literally hear EVERYTHING that went on. Real interesting at times for a young boy.

Really makes you appreciate things later in life!!

“(Danged right I live in the past! And it's a pretty nice place....)“ quote from Alberta Canuck

Hey, like Yogi said...the problem with the future is that it just ain’t what it used to be!

Ah, Militery food. A few years ago, I had a friend who had unlimited access to Canadian army MREs. In fact, his family practically lived on them, not including his cache for Y2K. In his basement one day, I noticed piles of those boil and eat packets, all either maccaroni and cheese or ham omelets. I gratefully took them, as well as a couple of cases of other entrees, since I thought they'd be handy as hell for hunting off in the great remote.
I was cured of maccaroni and cheese after the first one and not many more of the ham ommelets. I still have a few of the other rations left and sill take them on occasion.
Grizz

Right on, Sam. I remember the "tomato & burger" SOS primarily in the Orient. Of course, there were other ingredients like onion, paprika, etc. IMHO it was, by far, the best of the several SOS varieties.

SOS is supposed to be "Dried chipped beef in a cream sauce" served on toasted bread......

However, IMO, in the Army at least, GROUND BEEF was generally substituted for the more expensive "dried chipped beef". It was NEVER chicken a'la king, or any other form of chicken.

I always had mine poured over three over-easy eggs which were placed on top of the toast first, then the whole mess topped off with a couple of tablespoons of Tabasco or the equivalent thereof.......

With hash browns and bacon/sausage on the side, plus about a half-gallon of strong, black coffee to drink along with it.

Ah, them was the days.......

Great messhall cuisine!!

Thanks Guys:
I am glad that my question brought back memories. My dad was stationed in Honolulu for a time during WWII. After the war when he was back Stateside he was in the hospital for a wile with a problem he picked up in Japan during the occupation. Ironically his nurse was m mother (prior to them being married). They had courted before he went overseas. Life had a picture of several service men surfing and there was dad in the group. I have not been able to find a copy of the picture. I have a large number of pictures mostly slides that he took while overseas. He never organized them, but they are some of the first color slides made. My daughter in law, bless her soul, asked me what they were, slides. I threatened to have a massive slide show one night, but faced armed revolt so that is off.
Judge Sharpe

JudgeSharpe,

I have all my dad’s color slides taken while he was in the Navy and some of them look like they were taken yesterday...the Kodachorome anyway. The Extochrome has turned orange and the AGFA has turned sort of a purplish sepia.

My kids and grandkids love looking at them.