I knew a Vietnam vet who said ham with lima beans saved his life. He hated ham with lima beans, and when that was the only thing left in the box, he went into the Amtrak to check another box. While he was inside, a mortar around landed and killed everybody in this squad except for him. So ham and lima bean saved his life
I was in the MC from '66 to '68. In Infantry Training after boot camp, we were given C-Rations with the infamous Ham & Lima Beans. They were from the early 60's and the boxes were marked Bay of Pigs. But the contents in the can didn't look like this one. The lima beans were so big that they were STACKED one atop the other, taking up the entire inside diameter of the can. There were about 4 or 5 lima beans a little larger in diameter than a golf ball. The sauce was hardened like lard. The meat was on the bottom, so you always opened the can from the bottom if you got this meal. But the ham was not mixed with the lima beans or sauce as this video shows. It was a large chunk of boiled ham, and it was tender and tasted pretty good. But even if you heated up the lima beans and sauce together, when you bit into them it was like taking a bite from a stick of butter... really greasy and it left a heavy film on your teeth that was slimy. You only tried eating the lima beans once, and you learned never to eat them again. Thank God for the two chicklets they put in the ration box. That helped clean off your teeth after you used your fingernail to scrape the grease off them. When anyone got this particular meal, they would moan out loud... Oh No! Ham & Mother F-ers again! And that's what we called that meal... Ham & Mother F-ers. Like I said, the ham was good, but you threw the lima beans and sauce out.
@@theunknown7683 dont know about right now but even in 2012 I heard the spaghetti was one of the most desirable and the pizza was one of the most controversial.
Easily the most hated when I was in service from June 68 to Feb 72. I went to Vietnam in July 69 and left for the last time in Feb 72. We called this ration "ham and motherf___ers". I believe they were last produced in the early 60's, but were still in the supply chain into the early 70's. The ham and eggs was, as stated by David Burdette, the second most hated. However, the ham and eggs saved me. I was a scout dog handler from the 33rd Inf Plat (Scout Dog) working with a unit of the 1/22 (Regulars by God!) when we were cut off from supply b/c of clouds in the days leading up to the rainy season. I went over three days with nothing to eat but worse, more than two days with nothing to drink. We humped from one intermittent blue line (the lines on a map indicating a water source) to the next in the southern highlands of III Corps. Nothing. Finally a LOCH braved the clouds with the rocks in them and got 10 cases of Cs to us. I drew the ham and eggs. It had a 15.5 oz can of fruit cocktail. My lips had started to crack in the heat after more than two days w/o water. I look back on my life in two parts: before that can of fruit cocktail, and after. I have in my car right now, 5 Nov '16, two commercial one gallon canteens in the rear floor boards, and one E. German just shy of 24 oz canteen hooked over the gear shift. I never travel w/o water.
When I was in the Marines, I was an 81mm mortarman. We used to joke that we should launch the pound cake over to the enemy. If it hit them, it would kill them... if they ate it, it would kill them... : )
My dad was in the Marines during Vietnam. He said some people would find some onions to cut up and mix in with the ham and Lima beans to make it taste better.
I was 23 months in country...and the C's we were even older...I had some packed in the 40's. but when its all you have to eat...I have had hundreds of the ham and limas...you just scarf them down as fast as you can...often its dark and the bugs are buzzing around you and you know when something is crunchy, you are eating some bugs...we laughed and said hey more protein. The pound cake was valuable...sometimes you could trade your ham and beans for stew that was called beef steak with potatoes and gravy = a few chunks of old fatty meat with some taters on greasy gravy. Not enough to cure your hunger but enough to keep you alive...we did get some hot meals when inside the wire.
As a US Marine Lance Corporal in the Dominican Republic I became rather fond of the meal. I maintained a good supply of Tabasco Sauce and Worcester Sauce from my mom. Still love ham and limas today. I am 80 years old and still quite well and fit so it wasn't that bad back then.
202nd Infantry "The Big Spesh" embedded with Swedish UNMIK battalion in the Kosovo 1999-2002. They ate so much stinky fish, fermented nasty shit, bad for morale. And all their rations came in ziplock bags, cans of Strommstorminng, pickled herring, you name it, they would leave the latrine door open, leave fishy stench everywhere. My buddy Kyle Johnson aka "Special K" he saw them Swedes sitting around, ready to open their nasty ass rations. He dropped trou, shit in a discarded ziplock bag, handed it to their squad leader "Swedish Chef" and said just one single word... MURICA.
My father served in Vietnam, I showed him this video and felt nostalgic from watching it. He remembered eating this alongside his brothers in arms. Thanks Steve.
I grew up in the 60s on a farm in SC...ham and lima beans were a staple. My uncle brought one of these back from Vietnam. I thought it tasted better. My grandmother beat me with stick for saying it.
Well, we're working with the limited palette of a 7 year old. The ham was saltier and the lima beans were just as chalky but a bit firmer. That's about all I remember. Very one dimensional, though. My grandmother's version of the same was more tasty and nuanced but I was a little kid..what did I know. I enjoyed all the c-rations my uncle brought back. Especially the cornflake bricks. You could gnaw on one of those all day long. Keep up the good work! Enjoy your stuff!
crpope10 Was your uncles last name Pope, too? Just curious, I have a great uncle who was in Vietnam and his last name was Pope. We are in western NC, and I have cousins in SC, not far from us. Like I said, it was just a curious coincidence I noticed your name and comment!
I am one of the few that liked this one.The camels were my favorite followed by the Pall Malls, the Lucky Strikes.I used to trade a lot, I liked asll the rats, but my favorites seemed to be what no one else liked.
Ron, you and I are kindred spirits! I was in the Army--airborne infantry and SF--from 1970 to 1996. I actually liked the Ham and Limas and the Ham and Eggs. Remember those little plastic bottles with the screw cap that you filled with LSA (gun oil)? Well, I got a clean one and kept it filled with Worcestershire sauce. Many guys used Tabasco sauce. Anyway, I would add a little to my Ham and Limas and they seemed fine. Thing was, being a non-smoker, I could always trade for a fruit can or even get a Ham and Limas for free! Ham and eggs always tasted OK with a dash of hot sauce and some of that flat can of cheese spread melted over the eggs--Mexican Omelette. Ranger School back then taught me the "Eleventh Commandment": Throw nothing away. Eat everything and be thankful."
A fair few of us are just kinda fascinated with the science going on here. Maximizing portability, nutrition and taste. I imagine some don't care much one way or the other regarding other military related things.
I am 33 and never been in the military, but my dad was and I have learned so much from your videos and it gave me some things to talk about with my dad. thank you so much for your videos. I really enjoy learning about the older MREs
Rumour has it that the GIs would toss Ham and Lima bean cans half opened into VC bunkers, they had to stop once the VC complained to the Geneva convention about the US deploying chemical weapons
Hell YEAH!!! YOU try living in a hole, or a track, on 2 hours of sleep a day. No matter what else is messed up, you've got Joe and smokes to make your day.
They were still issuing MCI's when I was in Beirut Lebanon in the early eighties. They were pretty vile back then. When they started issuing the new MRE's in the mid eighties they weren't much better. Combat rations sure have come a long way since then ! Glad our service members are eating better now. They deserve it !
Hi Steve, I just ran across one of your vids and laughed so much I had to watch another one, and I can't help but laugh at you and your aromatic discomfort! You are so funny!! My dad served in the Marine Corps in Vietnam, and when I was a little girl, in the mid 70's, he had a C-ration left, and we opened it. Your video brought back a clear memory of the cheese and crackers. I loved seeing this! Thank you so much!
Every time I watch one of your videos it feels like such a strange experience. Like I'm chilling out with a buddy I've known for a long time, enjoying a nice meal with a smoke and some coffee, even though we've never met. You're well spoken, super relaxing to listen to just straight up cool. I love the background and clothing/style as well! Thanks for doing what you do Steve, I really wish more people like you were around and I really appreciate it. It's so nice to take a break and just watch one of your videos that cover such unique and entertaining topics! Thanks again man!
I dunno what it is about this page but I can’t stop watching it before bed. It’s so wholesome and peaceful and he just enjoys doing this so much. Puts me right into REM sleep
I'm a history buff, I really appreciate the research you put into your videos your passion and knowledge comes through in every video. You respect your craft and that intern makes me respect you. Good speed sir, keep it coming.
Hey Steve..Great videos man. I never knew that watching someone open old/new military rations could be so entertaining. Something therapeutic about it. Nice....
in the field when i forget a lighter and have to resort to using my mre matches i use the ol flip the flap to the back and pinch the match between the striking strip and the cover method, its a pretty consistent deal until you strike about half the matches on one side then you gotta switch over
Steve when I watch your videos I think of how awesome you would be in your own TV show as a food critic. The way you describe the smells and the tastes that you experience is quite enjoyable to watch. Keep up the great work.
YES!!! I love getting multiple videos a week!!! I live for your videos...I so wish you were able to post every day but I totally understand how expensive these rations can be and how hard they probably to find. Just know you and your work is VERY appreciated!!!
Also I love it when, in videos where you have cigarettes to smoke or something that requires you to show your face, you chat with us about random stuff in your life. I would love a stream of consciousness video or something like that.
A friend of mine, a Vietnam vet himself, told me no one could eat ham and lima beans. They used to trade C-Rations with the Vietnamese for beer and they wouldn't even take it. :D
I have a buddy that is Vietnamese and also in the army. He has visited many countries around the world, as well as family in Vietnam and he’s a very avid beer drinker that tells me Vietnam has some of the worst beer he’s ever tasted in the world. That makes this MRE appear even worse
My dad (vietnam 68-70) used to tell me about "ba muoi ba", the Vietnamese beer they would get warm from the locals when they were out. He said he wouldn't be surprised if it was warm water buffalo piss, it was soo bad.
MatthiasMajoris dspsblyuth The Vietnam beer was so horrible back then because the US bomb the supply roads and prevent civilians from getting ingredients to make beer in the first place. Most of the beer during Nam wars are house made bastardized version.
I don't even smoke but getting a pack like that in a ration during vietnam (or any war) must have felt like christmas morning. Obviously if you smoke, but also you could probably trade them for almost anything
When I was in Nam with the Marines, I never smoked cigarettes; I smoked a pipe. But most of the guys who smoked cigarettes didn't seem to think too highly of the cigarettes that came with the rations. Guys claimed they were stale. So the smokes that came with rations weren't worth much for trading. Now if one had some weed.....................lol Another coveted item was hot sauce.
haha good to know, i've never served so I can only speculate... but I can only imagine how nice it would have been to pour some spicy hot sauce on whatever food/ration was available. Hell, even as a civilian I put hot sauce on everything, even my god damned pancakes.....
One of my friends got a bottle of hot sauce from home and proceeded to drink it all down. Although I love hot sauce, that action seemed a bit over the top. On rare occasions, we got fresh, hot peppers from the villagers. Those were great when mixed in with various C Rat meals.
I never had any nuoc mam in Nam. While on patrol one day, we came to a site where it was being made. Oh....................man, it was an awful smell. None of us had any interest in procuring any of it. After I came home, I bought some from a specialty food store, just out of curiosity. It didn't smell as bad as what I smelled in Nam, but I didn't find the stuff to be very good. As you might infer, it was a kind of sauce that was meant to enhance food.
well it might have looked a little different back then but still was nasty I bet. the only thing that disturbed me about this video is that I don't think he cleaned the clans off look at all the shit on the lid that's getting into his food
We didn't have to shoot the VC, we just left all the cans of Ham & Lima's where they could find them. After eating a couple of cans of that stuff, they would have diarrhea so bad that it would take them out of the action. LOL
You know Steve, this wasn't the main course I had in mind when you teased about another video. I'm horrified yet captivated at the same time. So thanks for that.
Excellent! One guy in our unit liked Ham and Lima Beans. We always traded them to him for anything. I remember he was an E-7 SFC. Thanks for the memory.
I'm one of those who went to 'Nam loving Ham and Limas. I found this meal to be very disappointing, but not horrible. The best thing was that if no other meal was around, you could always find one of these. I still make H&L and love it - and I use butter beans just like those instead of true limas.
Mid West? Dayton area? I was in a Giant foodstore and actually saw a can of ham & limas. No, I didn't buy to try. Thing is, I've never seen them, for sale, anywhere else. Truck driver.
I've lost count of how many of Steve's ration reviews I've watched. Find myself growing increasingly curious what "coffee, instant type 1" tastes like, seeing as he pretty much always gives it glowing reviews. My only experience with instant coffee is (retail) Folger's and Sanka.
Aaah, the allmighty 'Ham and Mothers' from "The Short-Timers" (novel source for Full Metal Jacket). Since I was born at the height of the Viet Nam war, i've always had a fascination with it. I remember reading about this despised ration, never thought i'd see one. Thank you, Steve!
you sir, deserve your own t.v show on Viceland. 30Min show going into thorough details about the factorys an businesses tasked with keepin ur soldiers fed, interviews with our veterans on there memories with the best meals an there ways of making them better etc etc.... youre very entertaining an informative lol.
Plastic Cream: A term used for a cream containing as much fat as butter (80-83%) but as a dispersal of fat in water, while butter is water in fat. Prepared by intense centrifugal treatment of cream; crumbly, not greasy, in texture; used for preparation of cream cheese and whipped cream.
I'm convinced that there isn't a single person more perfect for giving such intricate detail of old ass MREs than Steve1989. I feel like I need a smoke after watching this one, and I don't even smoke.
Ciggs were taken out because of health risks of course but also because the cigarette companies were using the military MREs to promote and sell cigarettes to the troops mostly. Apparently the number of smokers skyrocketed once war was declared. People felt their soldiers were being taken advantage of. Ciggs are great but it effects your health and ranking officer's said it effected over all preparedness. Suddenly so many of your troops are smokers, it makes you pause and wonder what happened.
I actually liked them. The meat loaf wheels of various types were not high on my list. I liked the ham and eggs when many didn't. The thin round aluminum foil wrapped nestle crunch type chocolate I liked too compared to the fudge or chocolate covered coconut bars. Always appreciated the smokes. Hated to see that stop.
I have a friend who was a huey door gunner in Vietnam 68-70 and called these "ham n motherfuckers". He said they would save them for to throw at enemy soldiers during high speed low altitude passes while doing bomb damage assessments after B52 carpet bombings. I remember my grandmother would make these with fresh lima beans from her garden. They were so delicious (but this was 70s Alabama when everything was cooked in lard).
I was a USMC 0351 Dragon gunner 1977-87. We hated Ham and MFers too. Our C-rats didn't have cigarettes, evidently they were more dangerous to our health than possible combat. The pecan roll wasn't bad when it was "fresh" (less than ten years old). I liked some of the C-rats better than most of the Gen-1 MREs.
I'm a recent subscriber I've only been subscribed for about 2 or 3 weeks now this guy is the best reviewer on TH-cam bar none. Alright cool. In his voice that sounds so awesome. Wish I could party with this dude.
Steve, sorry you had to suffer thru the dreaded "ham and mothers", although the ones I ate back in the 80's had press formed ham patties in them, with rock hard lima beans. The pecan roll looked pretty good too!
Steve1989 MREinfo The last time I got handed a ham and lima beans MCI was back around 1990, and it was a 1976 or 77 vintage MCI, and I got it while we were in the field (overseas military, using up the last of these before we got the mre). Here I am, with an almost 14 year old meal, and the lima beans you could have used as shrapnel without any issues, they were harder than the rocks we were sitting on. I vividly remember opening the can and seeing a quarter inch thick layer of fat that had leached from the patties, and formed a seal on the top of the can, I remember grabbing the MCI spoon and pushing a corner of the fat seal and having it hiss , I was needless to say, a very disappointed human being, with the quality of the meal in front of me. When people talk about how horrible MREs are, I laugh, because they were never exposed to the true horror of the MCI as we "old-timers" knew it, even the beanie weenie MCI's were pretty foul, and those were some of the most sought-after ones in the cases, MRE's are gourmet eating in comparison to those old days.
Steve1989 MREinfo There is nothing sadder than a soldier in the field, staring at an MCI like this one, wondering where they went wrong in life, and why they were dealt such a horrible blow, you just have to muddle through and eat what you can, and in my case, I couldn't even eat the lima beans, not only because I'm not a big fan of lima beans, but also they were completely inedible, so they ended up getting buried somewhere along with the rest of the tins and garbage that was created during chow. I remember getting the first batch of MREs, when they still came in the dark brown bags, and I promise you that all of us who had to eat them on a regular basis were more than happy with the quality of the food and the menus. Hell, even the dreaded Five Fingers of Death was glorious in comparison to the canned spaghetti, the beanie weenie, or the ham and mothers from the old mci's. I still miss the chicken a la king mre's...
Now there's a scene they never show in the movies. A soldier standing in the rain, a can of lima beans and ham in his clenched fist, screaming up at the heavens "WHY GOD, WHYYYYY!!"
Exceptional hiss' from this ration, Steve. I'm so glad I stumbled upon your channel, it's a real treat everytime you upload a video. Never in a million years would I have thought I'd ever have an interest in military rations!
Quoted from another website: "Plastic cream is a highly viscous product than any other type of cream. It resembles to paste in texture. It contains fat between 60-85 %. However it differs from butter in that it is still a fat in water type emulsion in spite of containing fat near or equal to butter. The plastic cream is used directly for the manufacture of butter oil or in the preparation of standardized milk. It may also replace use of butter oil in the preparation of recombined milk."
I was in Ranger school in late summer of 1970. During the Florida patrol phase we were given often given just one C-ration per day. While initially disliked by all it quickly became the most popular meal. You ask why? The ham and lima was the largest can by far and for one meal a day it far outlasted the others. In the beginning us non-smokers could easily trade cigarettes for the ham and lima. Toward the end of the phase no one trade the ham and lima.
Takes drag of cigarette, stares deeply in to the soul of the viewer, takes a swig of coffee...
"Nice"
tokyosmash so accurate 😂
tokyosmash 15:19 sublime moment -
This is why I watch.
tokyosmash 😂😂 lmaoo I laugh everytime
so good lol
Takes bite of 52 year old cinnamon roll: "Yeah that's pretty dry"
Dylan Shannon 😂
Bro imagine if it was wet though
And I guess the floor is also made of floor.
@@kinagrill nah dude floors are made of ceiling ya effing noob
When he takes a bite of the bottom part of your mom, be like:
I knew a Vietnam vet who said ham with lima beans saved his life.
He hated ham with lima beans, and when that was the only thing left in the box, he went into the Amtrak to check another box. While he was inside, a mortar around landed and killed everybody in this squad except for him.
So ham and lima bean saved his life
MrJeffcoley1 dang. Poor squad.
Coretta Hattereaux Hope they aren't the squad that round up innocent civilians and mow them down with a machine gun
come ion pal really?that was a nasty war just let it go.dont be an ass
what is an amtrak?im not familiar with army terms
@@marcosperez6962 how do you let go of senseless deaths purely because it wasnt in this day and age
Jeez, "ham and nastys" as we called them... they really sucked, even when they were not 50 years old.
Were you in the service? If so, thank you for your service!💛
Thank you for your service.
Thank you for your service, John
Thank you for your service, sir 🇺🇲🇺🇸🇺🇲
Is that the nice way of saying Ham and mother fuckers?
I was in the MC from '66 to '68. In Infantry Training after boot camp, we were given C-Rations with the infamous Ham & Lima Beans. They were from the early 60's and the boxes were marked Bay of Pigs. But the contents in the can didn't look like this one. The lima beans were so big that they were STACKED one atop the other, taking up the entire inside diameter of the can. There were about 4 or 5 lima beans a little larger in diameter than a golf ball. The sauce was hardened like lard. The meat was on the bottom, so you always opened the can from the bottom if you got this meal. But the ham was not mixed with the lima beans or sauce as this video shows. It was a large chunk of boiled ham, and it was tender and tasted pretty good. But even if you heated up the lima beans and sauce together, when you bit into them it was like taking a bite from a stick of butter... really greasy and it left a heavy film on your teeth that was slimy. You only tried eating the lima beans once, and you learned never to eat them again. Thank God for the two chicklets they put in the ration box. That helped clean off your teeth after you used your fingernail to scrape the grease off them. When anyone got this particular meal, they would moan out loud... Oh No! Ham & Mother F-ers again! And that's what we called that meal... Ham & Mother F-ers. Like I said, the ham was good, but you threw the lima beans and sauce out.
Which rations were better? I hear a lot of people really liked the spaghetti & meatballs in tomato sauce.
Chef boy ar dee
@@0neDoomedSpaceMarine that one is old reliable. Can't get rid of it because it just works.
@@theunknown7683 dont know about right now but even in 2012 I heard the spaghetti was one of the most desirable and the pizza was one of the most controversial.
I wonder how bad the cheese spread was. I imagine cheap imitation. cheese whiz. Inedible even in 1964
Easily the most hated when I was in service from June 68 to Feb 72. I went to Vietnam in July 69 and left for the last time in Feb 72. We called this ration "ham and motherf___ers". I believe they were last produced in the early 60's, but were still in the supply chain into the early 70's. The ham and eggs was, as stated by David Burdette, the second most hated. However, the
ham and eggs saved me. I was a scout dog handler from the 33rd Inf Plat (Scout Dog) working with a unit of the 1/22 (Regulars by God!) when we were cut off from supply b/c of clouds in the days leading up to the rainy season. I went over three days with nothing to eat but worse, more than two days with nothing to drink. We humped from one intermittent blue line (the lines on a map indicating a water source) to the next in the southern highlands of III Corps. Nothing. Finally a LOCH braved the clouds with the rocks in them and got 10 cases of Cs to us. I drew the ham and eggs. It had a 15.5 oz can of fruit cocktail. My lips had started to crack in the heat after more than two days w/o water. I look back on my life in two parts: before that can of fruit cocktail, and after. I have in my car right now, 5 Nov '16, two commercial one gallon canteens in the rear floor boards, and one E. German just shy of 24 oz canteen hooked over the gear shift. I never travel w/o water.
Truly tested. Amazing comment! thank you for your service!
Wow, what a story! Best of luck to you sir!
Hey, if it keeps you alive it wasn't bad. Glad to hear that it helped. Thanks for your service man, more than I could do so much respect.
incredible story sir!, if you don't mind me asking, what did the ham and lima beans taste like when they were "fresh?" always wanted to know!
Thank you sir, for the kind words and for doing what you do to preserve history.
God i love when steve finds an old pack of smokes
He talks about it like its sex
"You can always count on Pall Malls, especially when they're 25 years old. "
NoProtect hunm... yeah... nice...!
NoProtect he does 😂😂
OMG....I never thought of it that way.... Great every time he discovers smokes, Imma think of him having MREgasm
NoProtect You know it's good if they're 45 years old
When he's smoking that cig and drinking the coffee-have you ever seen a more contented man?
donald trump is like a kid
and now he has a loaded gun and thinks its a water gun
Best thing in history :P
MWB Gaming and 10 months later it's still...... Trump! Trump! Trump! 🌎-💣-💥-😎
When I was in the Marines, I was an 81mm mortarman. We used to joke that we should launch the pound cake over to the enemy. If it hit them, it would kill them... if they ate it, it would kill them... : )
Lawl!
I was an 81mm mortarman too.. we had it made didn't we 🤣
Semper Fi!
Funniest thing I've ever heard on the internet. Thank you!
Hey, I Liked the pound cake!
My dad was in the Marines during Vietnam. He said some people would find some onions to cut up and mix in with the ham and Lima beans to make it taste better.
In some WW II manuals they warn GIs from eating local food, because you might have no idea what that tropical tuber or bean is.
I like to watch these while I eat my supper. They always make whatever I am eating taste so much better.
Ha
Great idea!💡
I was 23 months in country...and the C's we were even older...I had some packed in the 40's. but when its all you have to eat...I have had hundreds of the ham and limas...you just scarf them down as fast as you can...often its dark and the bugs are buzzing around you and you know when something is crunchy, you are eating some bugs...we laughed and said hey more protein. The pound cake was valuable...sometimes you could trade your ham and beans for stew that was called beef steak with potatoes and gravy = a few chunks of old fatty meat with some taters on greasy gravy. Not enough to cure your hunger but enough to keep you alive...we did get some hot meals when inside the wire.
Thank you for your service!..
Reminds me of jail lol
Thank you for your service 🇺🇲🇺🇲🇺🇲
Thank you for serving. I really do cherish you guys!!
Beef and rocks. And sometimes you got stuck with the apricots (Baby Heads).
I'm here for 3 things. Nice, no hiss, nice hiss
Shane Curlee ,
Cool.
Mmkay
I am here for 2:16
Haha!
Why can't I stop laughing at our man Steve just sipping his instant coffee and enjoying a 50 year old cigarette. God I love him.
As a US Marine Lance Corporal in the Dominican Republic I became rather fond of the meal. I maintained a good supply of Tabasco Sauce and Worcester Sauce from my mom. Still love ham and limas today. I am 80 years old and still quite well and fit so it wasn't that bad back then.
They changed to Arthurjohnson 😂 why was this done
@@Psymindsducklings died 😭
This is the only meal my dad ever talked about. He hated it with a passion.
Nice, your dad survived
202nd Infantry "The Big Spesh" embedded with Swedish UNMIK battalion in the Kosovo 1999-2002. They ate so much stinky fish, fermented nasty shit, bad for morale. And all their rations came in ziplock bags, cans of Strommstorminng, pickled herring, you name it, they would leave the latrine door open, leave fishy stench everywhere. My buddy Kyle Johnson aka "Special K" he saw them Swedes sitting around, ready to open their nasty ass rations. He dropped trou, shit in a discarded ziplock bag, handed it to their squad leader "Swedish Chef" and said just one single word...
MURICA.
Same from my dad!
He is the bob Ross of mre reviews
That’s exactly what I said. “Isn’t that refreshing”...
Damn right he is !!
He's amazing and you are so right
„And here we have a nice hiss... but that‘s just our little secret.“ - Steve Ross
Instead of "Tiny little trees!" It " Nasty Ham and Lima Beans!"
My father served in Vietnam, I showed him this video and felt nostalgic from watching it. He remembered eating this alongside his brothers in arms. Thanks Steve.
He's eaten 119 year old beef but won't eat 50 year old ham
Smells super bad...
The beef did smell bad after he scrapped of the first layer
Maybe its 50 year old boar hog meat....UGH!!
@Juicelad nah man; bacteria only get more resilient over time lol also botulism will kill you. Can't be too safe
He’s eaten Civil War hard tack
I want a shirt that says "you can always count on Pall Malls, especially when they are at least 45 years old"
Drinking 52 year old coffee with a 52 year old cigarette? That's so cool.
xsanctom like Big Boss.
xsanctom I usually hate smoking, did since I was a kid, but I think I'd endure some second hand smoke just to chat with this guy about MRE's and such.
xsanctom shits probaby bad for u tho
groovy tony maybe the coffee but cigarettes are healthy
@@thetombawaits8998 I have some bad news for you …
I grew up in the 60s on a farm in SC...ham and lima beans were a staple. My uncle brought one of these back from Vietnam. I thought it tasted better. My grandmother beat me with stick for saying it.
It was a small stick.
Well, we're working with the limited palette of a 7 year old. The ham was saltier and the lima beans were just as chalky but a bit firmer. That's about all I remember. Very one dimensional, though. My grandmother's version of the same was more tasty and nuanced but I was a little kid..what did I know. I enjoyed all the c-rations my uncle brought back. Especially the cornflake bricks. You could gnaw on one of those all day long.
Keep up the good work! Enjoy your stuff!
crpope10 Was your uncles last name Pope, too? Just curious, I have a great uncle who was in Vietnam and his last name was Pope. We are in western NC, and I have cousins in SC, not far from us. Like I said, it was just a curious coincidence I noticed your name and comment!
This may be true but my favourite thing about this comment is the fact that if it’s true your what in your 60s late 50s
Hypebeast4life, why would that be your "favorite thing about this comment"?
I am one of the few that liked this one.The camels were my favorite followed by the Pall Malls, the Lucky Strikes.I used to trade a lot, I liked asll the rats, but my favorites seemed to be what no one else liked.
Hello sir, thank you for your service for your country.
Ron, you and I are kindred spirits! I was in the Army--airborne infantry and SF--from 1970 to 1996. I actually liked the Ham and Limas and the Ham and Eggs. Remember those little plastic bottles with the screw cap that you filled with LSA (gun oil)? Well, I got a clean one and kept it filled with Worcestershire sauce. Many guys used Tabasco sauce. Anyway, I would add a little to my Ham and Limas and they seemed fine. Thing was, being a non-smoker, I could always trade for a fruit can or even get a Ham and Limas for free! Ham and eggs always tasted OK with a dash of hot sauce and some of that flat can of cheese spread melted over the eggs--Mexican Omelette. Ranger School back then taught me the "Eleventh Commandment": Throw nothing away. Eat everything and be thankful."
i just asked my dad who served in vietnam about ham and lima beans and he actually said they were his FAVORITE lmao
Please tell him his internet friends said thank you very much for serving his country.
Your Dad is a wild man. 👍🏾
I bet he and everyone loved trading
Haha
there's gotta be at least one in every crowd who likes the thing everyone else hates I guess
The MRE community seems like a really cool group of people.
Thank you !
A fair few of us are just kinda fascinated with the science going on here. Maximizing portability, nutrition and taste. I imagine some don't care much one way or the other regarding other military related things.
Welcome
For whatever reason, I like watching these when I eat. It somehow makes it better.
i watch these to jerk off
*n i c e*
I eat when i jerk off to this classic vid
*t h a t s a c l a s s i c*
Your videos are strangely addictive:D Very cool.
is like a Nascar race .. we keep waiting for the 'retching wreck' of Steve actually puking :)
@Mystic I hope he never does, for me they have a much more calming quality. Just nice positive vibes the whole time.
***** LOl It's his voice :) soothing :)
Aaron Lane RIGHT?! I'm on the 4th or 5th one! :3 love em
I am 33 and never been in the military, but my dad was and I have learned so much from your videos and it gave me some things to talk about with my dad. thank you so much for your videos. I really enjoy learning about the older MREs
Rumour has it that the GIs would toss Ham and Lima bean cans half opened into VC bunkers, they had to stop once the VC complained to the Geneva convention about the US deploying chemical weapons
"Lets get this out on a tray.... nice!"
LOVE IT!!!!!
I usually need a TV show or something on to fall asleep. Tonight I'm using a playlist of Steve's videos because his voice is so calming
Generic Name ,yea,has a nice tone.
Wish I had your "not bad" attitude.
Just broke my legs. Ey, not bad.
Chris Macdonald damn hope you recover smoothly man 👌👍
Chris Macdonald nice
NJHC609 that's a doozy. This guy is great
Let's get these legs out onto a tray.
Nice!
I want to see a half hour video of him complimenting old cigarettes
Tigor you read my mind lol
When he hits one million subs he should have a big smoke-off.
Or, should I say, a chainsmoke-off.
Great idea for a compilation video
i’d rather see a supercut of every single time Steve has ever said “nice!”
@@ARSZLB Or every "Mkay!"
U.S. military: We can let the food go bad, but you better put in some fine ass quality instant coffee and cigarettes in these rations. XD
Ha
Hell YEAH!!! YOU try living in a hole, or a track, on 2 hours of sleep a day. No matter what else is messed up, you've got Joe and smokes to make your day.
Ham and Lima beans in juices.
War is hell.
Nothing beats a Pall Mall and coffee after a sucessful bodycount.
RackwitzG made me laugh
RackwitzG Nice...
RackwitzG And ham and lima beans in the morning definitely do not smell like victory.
Perktube1 Ham and Lima Beans fuel the body count from just pissing you off.
Death helped to cut the smell of the ham and Lima beans.
They were still issuing MCI's when I was in Beirut Lebanon in the early eighties. They were pretty vile back then. When they started issuing the new MRE's in the mid eighties they weren't much better. Combat rations sure have come a long way since then ! Glad our service members are eating better now. They deserve it !
Hi Steve, I just ran across one of your vids and laughed so much I had to watch another one, and I can't help but laugh at you and your aromatic discomfort! You are so funny!! My dad served in the Marine Corps in Vietnam, and when I was a little girl, in the mid 70's, he had a C-ration left, and we opened it. Your video brought back a clear memory of the cheese and crackers. I loved seeing this! Thank you so much!
That cheeses odor had a confusing effect on him, “what am I doing?” 😂
I never liked lima beans, but I received one of this as the first meal after three days in the field - I ate every bite.
"let's give it a whiff"
*teeny sniff* - oh ughhh, yeah it's just - ugh - what do i do?? um... um...
Every time I watch one of your videos it feels like such a strange experience. Like I'm chilling out with a buddy I've known for a long time, enjoying a nice meal with a smoke and some coffee, even though we've never met. You're well spoken, super relaxing to listen to just straight up cool. I love the background and clothing/style as well! Thanks for doing what you do Steve, I really wish more people like you were around and I really appreciate it. It's so nice to take a break and just watch one of your videos that cover such unique and entertaining topics! Thanks again man!
we used to call all those C rats cigarettes squares LOL
I dunno what it is about this page but I can’t stop watching it before bed. It’s so wholesome and peaceful and he just enjoys doing this so much. Puts me right into REM sleep
I'm a history buff, I really appreciate the research you put into your videos your passion and knowledge comes through in every video. You respect your craft and that intern makes me respect you. Good speed sir, keep it coming.
That cheese spread shows signs of life. Mars is up against some tough competition.
I can only wonder, how big is your stash of aged unfiltered smokes
revivedfears lol a year later... burn?
Probably puts Phillip Morris to shame.
I am literally so happy I found your channel. Your videos are so soothing to me lol watch them before I go to sleep 😊
yeah the boardroom
Me to
Bre I know what you mean, he needs to do asmr or something lol
Steve is the Bob Ross of ration reviews.
fiery with beauty trump etccccccc….. ----- is the defention of a lonely soy boy
Hey Steve..Great videos man. I never knew that watching someone open old/new military rations could be so entertaining.
Something therapeutic about it. Nice....
Thanks commentor he stood up as I was along 😎
in the field when i forget a lighter and have to resort to using my mre matches i use the ol flip the flap to the back and pinch the match between the striking strip and the cover method, its a pretty consistent deal until you strike about half the matches on one side then you gotta switch over
I'm surprised they haven't hired you as a spokesperson for cigarette sales. I don't smoke, but the way you describe cigarettes makes me want to.
George Patton he feeds the need for the occasional smoke😅
Don't do it! But yeah, as an ex-smoker I must admit he makes me want to go buy a pack again.
nothings wrong with smoking just be active so ur lungs don't turn into black death, u do enough moving around u cough the tar out
I don't smoke, but if I'm hiring someone to do some hard work for me, I'll pick the smoker over the fat guy any day.
@@soulsreaper7145 I don't know if it's really proven, but from my experience it's absolutely true.
14:24 Transported back in time...Smoking and Drinking exactly as they did Back in the Day...
...so Badass
ㅡ
Completely agree
Yeah, even he is trying a bubble gum and old coffee.. His stomach is like a badass ;0
Cigarettes and coffee_yum
Good Morning Vietname! :D
Special guest star Jimmy Hendrix
Steve when I watch your videos I think of how awesome you would be in your own TV show as a food critic. The way you describe the smells and the tastes that you experience is quite enjoyable to watch. Keep up the great work.
OMG Iwanted to vomit when I had ham and lima beans C-rats in Viet Nam, we'd heat them up on the truck manifold or use a piece of C4
Good grief, your showing Wrigley’s spearmint gum that I chewed as a kid like it’s an antique from another planet....lol.....now I really feel old!😳😂.
YES!!! I love getting multiple videos a week!!! I live for your videos...I so wish you were able to post every day but I totally understand how expensive these rations can be and how hard they probably to find. Just know you and your work is VERY appreciated!!!
Also I love it when, in videos where you have cigarettes to smoke or something that requires you to show your face, you chat with us about random stuff in your life. I would love a stream of consciousness video or something like that.
LynnMarie Rozwalka Someone's got a crush...;-)
Aww
I looove how happy Steve is when he hears a nice hiss :D
A friend of mine, a Vietnam vet himself, told me no one could eat ham and lima beans. They used to trade C-Rations with the Vietnamese for beer and they wouldn't even take it. :D
Jesus Christ! Lmao
I have a buddy that is Vietnamese and also in the army. He has visited many countries around the world, as well as family in Vietnam and he’s a very avid beer drinker that tells me Vietnam has some of the worst beer he’s ever tasted in the world.
That makes this MRE appear even worse
My dad (vietnam 68-70) used to tell me about "ba muoi ba", the Vietnamese beer they would get warm from the locals when they were out. He said he wouldn't be surprised if it was warm water buffalo piss, it was soo bad.
MatthiasMajoris dspsblyuth The Vietnam beer was so horrible back then because the US bomb the supply roads and prevent civilians from getting ingredients to make beer in the first place. Most of the beer during Nam wars are house made bastardized version.
Hearts on a drip 😂 you c the bean c backfired 😭
Fun fact: Pall Mall cigarettes were pronounced "pell mell" back in the day when there were still TV commercials for them.
Yeah,they send you running Pell mell to the doctor.
Yeah, Pall Mall are kinda skunk cigarettes.
Calling them excellent is a total Steveism. XD
OH MAN, I had a queasy feeling the second that juice leaked over the can top.
I don't even smoke but getting a pack like that in a ration during vietnam (or any war) must have felt like christmas morning. Obviously if you smoke, but also you could probably trade them for almost anything
When I was in Nam with the Marines, I never smoked cigarettes; I smoked a pipe. But most of the guys who smoked cigarettes didn't seem to think too highly of the cigarettes that came with the rations. Guys claimed they were stale. So the smokes that came with rations weren't worth much for trading. Now if one had some weed.....................lol Another coveted item was hot sauce.
haha good to know, i've never served so I can only speculate... but I can only imagine how nice it would have been to pour some spicy hot sauce on whatever food/ration was available. Hell, even as a civilian I put hot sauce on everything, even my god damned pancakes.....
One of my friends got a bottle of hot sauce from home and proceeded to drink it all down. Although I love hot sauce, that action seemed a bit over the top. On rare occasions, we got fresh, hot peppers from the villagers. Those were great when mixed in with various C Rat meals.
The book NAM - The Vietnam Experience refers to nuoc mam - was that the same as with the peppers? First thing to be swiped?
I never had any nuoc mam in Nam. While on patrol one day, we came to a site where it was being made. Oh....................man, it was an awful smell. None of us had any interest in procuring any of it. After I came home, I bought some from a specialty food store, just out of curiosity. It didn't smell as bad as what I smelled in Nam, but I didn't find the stuff to be very good. As you might infer, it was a kind of sauce that was meant to enhance food.
Man, that "ham" looks like someone stuck a rat in a blender. Nasty.
well it might have looked a little different back then but still was nasty I bet. the only thing that disturbed me about this video is that I don't think he cleaned the clans off look at all the shit on the lid that's getting into his food
Probably were a few rats that fell into the industrial meat pulverizes.
Loving the stream of uploads steve!
Same here. As much as I love several of the other MRE reviewers, Steve is *the* best.
I dont smoke but I would try one of THOSE Pall Malls
i’d really like to see a supercut of every single time Steve has ever said “let’s get this out onto a tray”, “nice!” and “mkay”
There's one on ifunny if you search his name
We didn't have to shoot the VC, we just left all the cans of Ham & Lima's where they could find them. After eating a couple of cans of that stuff, they would have diarrhea so bad that it would take them out of the action. LOL
001DesertRat
😂😂😂
001DesertRat dead laughing
Died laughing
Isn't that biological warfare?
You know Steve, this wasn't the main course I had in mind when you teased about another video. I'm horrified yet captivated at the same time. So thanks for that.
lethrington this was always, always called Ham and Muthaa Fuckers.
I swear to god. My fucking brain fabricated the smell that came with that hiss.
Good to know i'm not the only poor sod to get that back draft.
Shit is like negative ASMR
same here i could even taste them yuck
ManWhoLostTooth Anti-ASMR
Mathias Ryuzaki Made me gag.
Excellent! One guy in our unit liked Ham and Lima Beans. We always traded them to him for anything. I remember he was an E-7 SFC. Thanks for the memory.
Dude you gotta be like the coolest guy I've ever seen on TH-cam. The way you comment on all the rations is just so great
*examines moldy hardened cheese* "ew, look at that... not bad!"
I love how you always say "not bad" when what you clearly mean is "THIS IS VERY BAD" 😂
Classic Steveism
“not bad” either means “this is what hell is like” or “this is amazing”
I'm one of those who went to 'Nam loving Ham and Limas. I found this meal to be very disappointing, but not horrible. The best thing was that if no other meal was around, you could always find one of these. I still make H&L and love it - and I use butter beans just like those instead of true limas.
Rocky Raab Thank you for your service.
Mid West? Dayton area? I was in a Giant foodstore and actually saw a can of ham & limas. No, I didn't buy to try. Thing is, I've never seen them, for sale, anywhere else. Truck driver.
@@floydvaughn836 Probably from Lima, Ohio
Ay! See what i did there
I've lost count of how many of Steve's ration reviews I've watched.
Find myself growing increasingly curious what "coffee, instant type 1" tastes like, seeing as he pretty much always gives it glowing reviews. My only experience with instant coffee is (retail) Folger's and Sanka.
You can buy an accessory packet off ebay and give coffee instant, type 1 a try yourself, they aren't that pricey, I picked up a couple myself.
If I come across one I'll send it. Used to have a box full from leftover C Rats.
Wow it is very satisfying to watch you smoke the cigarettes that come with the mres. I know I would. ❤ Thanks for the amazing videos brother.
I laughed about everything until you got to the pecan roll. Then I just about cried. I loved those things.
Joke: why is Little Debbie in the can? She overcharged the Chief of Police.
Aaah, the allmighty 'Ham and Mothers' from "The Short-Timers" (novel source for Full Metal Jacket). Since I was born at the height of the Viet Nam war, i've always had a fascination with it. I remember reading about this despised ration, never thought i'd see one. Thank you, Steve!
you sir, deserve your own t.v show on Viceland. 30Min show going into thorough details about the factorys an businesses tasked with keepin ur soldiers fed, interviews with our veterans on there memories with the best meals an there ways of making them better etc etc.... youre very entertaining an informative lol.
Plastic Cream: A term used for a cream containing as much fat as butter (80-83%) but as a dispersal of fat in water, while butter is water in fat. Prepared by intense centrifugal treatment of cream; crumbly, not greasy, in texture; used for preparation of cream cheese and whipped cream.
What am I watching at 2 am? It’s oddly satisfying watching you open the cans
OMG did I just watch 50 hours of MRE reviews? Indeed. Steve is the ultimate showman and gentlemen. HQ entertainment.
This meal actually held up really good for it being 52 years old.
15:12 Hands down, this is the most iconic "Steve move" ever.
I'm convinced that there isn't a single person more perfect for giving such intricate detail of old ass MREs than Steve1989. I feel like I need a smoke after watching this one, and I don't even smoke.
I am exactly the same.
Ciggs were taken out because of health risks of course but also because the cigarette companies were using the military MREs to promote and sell cigarettes to the troops mostly. Apparently the number of smokers skyrocketed once war was declared. People felt their soldiers were being taken advantage of. Ciggs are great but it effects your health and ranking officer's said it effected over all preparedness. Suddenly so many of your troops are smokers, it makes you pause and wonder what happened.
Or it has something to do with stress. Like 90% of ambulance crews smoke novadays.
This was my dads favorite C Ration. he told me there were always plenty of these around because no one would eat them.
I actually liked them. The meat loaf wheels of various types were not high on my list. I liked the ham and eggs when many didn't. The thin round aluminum foil wrapped nestle crunch type chocolate I liked too compared to the fudge or chocolate covered coconut bars. Always appreciated the smokes. Hated to see that stop.
YES!! We called those Nestle crunch type candies "sh*t discs!"
@@benjaminfrazier5419 the little toffee bits produced an effect called Full Auto Sharts.
"Nice"
I have a friend who was a huey door gunner in Vietnam 68-70 and called these "ham n motherfuckers". He said they would save them for to throw at enemy soldiers during high speed low altitude passes while doing bomb damage assessments after B52 carpet bombings.
I remember my grandmother would make these with fresh lima beans from her garden. They were so delicious (but this was 70s Alabama when everything was cooked in lard).
I love it when Steve savors the cig and coffee!!
You know a meal is crippling when the person about to eat it says *"I don't know what to do".*
Omg he looks so cool just standing smoking a cig while speaking to us
I thought I was the only one who noticed!
He may not shave his arms. I know a guy with almost 0 arm hair and he don't shave. It also may be the camera or lighting
He has the look of a man who inhales.
I KNOW RIGHT!!! Caps were necessary there
Its because smoking is something to do, instead of just awkwardly staring at each other in silence, that's why it's a social thing
did you just inhale, sip, swallow then exhale followed by a "nice"? yep this stuff keeps getting better. Props from Canada!
opening a box of flashbacks
I was a USMC 0351 Dragon gunner 1977-87. We hated Ham and MFers too. Our C-rats didn't have cigarettes, evidently they were more dangerous to our health than possible combat. The pecan roll wasn't bad when it was "fresh" (less than ten years old). I liked some of the C-rats better than most of the Gen-1 MREs.
I'm a recent subscriber I've only been subscribed for about 2 or 3 weeks now this guy is the best reviewer on TH-cam bar none. Alright cool. In his voice that sounds so awesome. Wish I could party with this dude.
Steve, sorry you had to suffer thru the dreaded "ham and mothers", although the ones I ate back in the 80's had press formed ham patties in them, with rock hard lima beans. The pecan roll looked pretty good too!
Steve1989 MREinfo
The last time I got handed a ham and lima beans MCI was back around 1990, and it was a 1976 or 77 vintage MCI, and I got it while we were in the field (overseas military, using up the last of these before we got the mre). Here I am, with an almost 14 year old meal, and the lima beans you could have used as shrapnel without any issues, they were harder than the rocks we were sitting on. I vividly remember opening the can and seeing a quarter inch thick layer of fat that had leached from the patties, and formed a seal on the top of the can, I remember grabbing the MCI spoon and pushing a corner of the fat seal and having it hiss , I was needless to say, a very disappointed human being, with the quality of the meal in front of me. When people talk about how horrible MREs are, I laugh, because they were never exposed to the true horror of the MCI as we "old-timers" knew it, even the beanie weenie MCI's were pretty foul, and those were some of the most sought-after ones in the cases, MRE's are gourmet eating in comparison to those old days.
Steve1989 MREinfo
There is nothing sadder than a soldier in the field, staring at an MCI like this one, wondering where they went wrong in life, and why they were dealt such a horrible blow, you just have to muddle through and eat what you can, and in my case, I couldn't even eat the lima beans, not only because I'm not a big fan of lima beans, but also they were completely inedible, so they ended up getting buried somewhere along with the rest of the tins and garbage that was created during chow. I remember getting the first batch of MREs, when they still came in the dark brown bags, and I
promise you that all of us who had to eat them on a regular basis were more than happy with the quality of the food and the menus.
Hell, even the dreaded Five Fingers of Death was glorious in comparison to the canned spaghetti, the beanie weenie, or the ham and mothers from the old mci's. I still miss the chicken a la king mre's...
Now there's a scene they never show in the movies. A soldier standing in the rain, a can of lima beans and ham in his clenched fist, screaming up at the heavens "WHY GOD, WHYYYYY!!"
You know something else you don't see that often ? Soldiers.Soldiers talking about food.
We must know different soldiers, because a bunch of the guys I know LOVE bitching about the food. I always just assumed it was cathartic.
Exceptional hiss' from this ration, Steve. I'm so glad I stumbled upon your channel, it's a real treat everytime you upload a video. Never in a million years would I have thought I'd ever have an interest in military rations!
Quoted from another website:
"Plastic cream is a highly viscous product than any other type of cream.
It resembles to paste in texture. It contains fat between 60-85 %.
However it differs from butter in that it is still a fat in water type
emulsion in spite of containing fat near or equal to butter. The plastic
cream is used directly for the manufacture of butter oil or in the
preparation of standardized milk. It may also replace use of butter oil
in the preparation of recombined milk."
Between the ham n mfkers and cheese you usally stayed regular 🐯
i'm fucking dying at his voice trembling at around 9:00 lmao
I was in Ranger school in late summer of 1970. During the Florida patrol phase we were given often given just one C-ration per day. While initially disliked by all it quickly became the most popular meal. You ask why? The ham and lima was the largest can by far and for one meal a day it far outlasted the others. In the beginning us non-smokers could easily trade cigarettes for the ham and lima. Toward the end of the phase no one trade the ham and lima.