Kentucky Burgoo For A Crowd

Today is a very special day. Today is Joyce@OctoberFarm's birthday. She is turning the "new forty". Please drop by and wish her a Happy Birthday. Check out her new ring while you are there. Beautiful! She truly is one of the best people I have known in my life, not to mention a fabulous friend and cook. We all know when she cooks she feeds the neighborhood, so I thought this would be an appropriate dish.

This is Mr. J.E. Wuersch's recipe that he used for his annual burgoo dinners over 50 years ago. That information is from the Kentucky Federation of Women's Clubs 1976 Cookbook. You do the math. This is really an old recipe.

To prepare this you will need a large iron kettle, 12 to 15 gallon capacity. It should be placed outside over a wood fire-hickory wood, if possible.

144 servings(that is correct 144 servings)
print recipe

5 large soup bones with meat
several marrow bones
3 pounds bacon
2 large chickens
10 pounds potatoes
3 pounds onions
4 pounds, navy or great northern beans, soaked overnight
2 pounds dried lima beans, soaked overnight
1 pound dried split peas, soaked overnight
2 cans peas
3 pounds apples
2 bunches celery
1 pound green beans
1 medium heat cabbage
3 or 4 bunches carrots
1 dozen ears corn or 3 large cans corn
1 bunch turnips
2 gallon tomatoes or 14 no. 2 cans
4 green peppers
4 red peppers
1 or 2 cups okra
parsley salt, pepper, cayenne pepper, a few hot pepper pods

Cook meat and bones for 3 or 4 hours in water. White meat is cooking, cup up the vegetables. Remove meat and bones from water. Cut meat and chicken from bones and put back in kettle. Add vegetables and seasonings. Cook, stirring often to prevent sticking, for 4 or 5 hours. If it thickens too much, add more hot water. The longer it cooks the better the flavor.