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Having invested so much time in the making of 1875 Pickled Walnuts, we looked into recipes using the interesting pickle and found one in the Mineral Point Tribune (June 5, 1878). This recipe for stewed beefsteak calls for only 4 ingredients – 3 if you want to make it more enjoyable: rump steak, onions, pickled walnuts and canned oysters.  

Being far from any ocean, you’d think oysters weren’t available in Wisconsin at the time. However, oysters were relatively cheap and were shipped to the Midwest in increasing numbers throughout the 19^th century. Gulf oysters traveled via the Mississippi River and even East Coast varieties became widely available as you can see in the 1874 oyster ad printed in the Watertown Republican.

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To recreate the 1878 dish, the onions are cut, the pickles are chopped and the steak is pounded and placed on top of them in a stewpan. During the next 1.5 hours, the meat is slowly cooked and develops a scrumptious aroma you’ll want to keep in your kitchen forever. The pickled walnuts provide the only seasoning and are vital to the dish. Finally, just before serving, you add the strained oysters and, in our humble opinion, ruin the entire meal.

The Recipe in 2020

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Ingredients

• 2 onions
• 4 pickled walnuts
• 1 rump steak (3/4 inch thickness)
• 1 can oysters

Peel and chop the onions and pickled walnuts, and place them in the bottom of a stewpan. Beat the steak flat with a rolling pin or meat tenderizer of your choice. Place the meat on top of the onions and pickled walnuts and cook on medium-low heat for 1.5 hours, turning it over every 20 minutes.

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10 minutes before serving, throw in the strained oysters – or don’t, it’s your choice.

 Enjoy!