Foods of the American Civil War were the provisions during the American Civil War with which both the Union and Confederate armies struggled to keep their soldiers provisioned adequately.
Northern rations
According to the Revised United States Army Regulations of 1861, the daily rations for an enlisted Union soldier included: 12 ounces of pork or bacon; or 1 pound 4 ounces of fresh or salt beef 1 pound 6 ounces of soft bread or flour; or 1 pound 4 ounces of cornmeal; or 1 pound of hard bread (hardtack). These were supplemented per 100 rations with: 15 pounds of beans or peas 10 pounds of rice or hominy 10 pounds of green coffee; or 8 pounds of roasted (or roasted and ground) coffee beans; or 1 pound 8 ounces of tea 15 pounds of sugar 4 quarts of vinegar 1 pound 4 ounces of adamantine or star candles 4 pounds of soap 3 pounds 12 ounces of salt 4 ounces of pepper 30 pounds of potatoes 1 quart of molasses The fresh potatoes, beans, peas, rice or hominy could be substituted with desiccated compressed potatoes or mixed vegetables. In 1862 the ration was increased with more dried vegetables. When on the march, the "short" ration consisted of 1 pound of hardtack, 3/4 pound of salt pork or 1/4 pound of fresh meat, 1 ounce of coffee, 3 ounces of sugar, and salt. Soldiers were issued three to eight marching rations which were carried in their haversack or by their unit's baggage train.
Gail Borden's invention of condensed milk was very helpful for the Union army. Soldiers would also regularly drink coffee, however it was not always entirely coffee beans. Dandelion root served as a supplement or Ersatz good when coffee beans were scarce. Dandelion root was widely available and caffeine-free, tasting about the same as coffee.
Southern rations
The official ration for soldiers of the Confederate States army was supposed to be similar as that for the Union, with slightly less meat, coffee, vinegar and salt but more sugar. In practice the ration was rarely issued in full and Confederate soldiers were often required to live off the land; during the Maryland campaign Confederate soldiers subsisted largely off of green corn and apples picked from the fields. Cornbread was a staple of their daily diet, although it was considered coarse, dry and largely tasteless to such extent that they appreciated hardtack captured from Union forces. The peanut, while popular among both sides of the conflict, was often the only thing left to eat in the last years of the war as the Union blockade took hold. Coffee in particular was sorely missed by Confederate soldiers, who often made do without or used a substitute. While a variety of materials were tried – including corn kernels, dried apples, and acorns – the best equivalent was found to be wild chicory root. Whenever possible, Confederates on picket duty would trade scarce Southern tobacco for coffee with their Union counterparts.
Logistics
The Civil War required complex logistics in order to feed the massive numbers of soldiers in the Union and Confederate armies. The task could fall to the respective national governments or on the individual states that recruited, raised, and equipped the regiments and batteries.
Union Army
In the Union Army, the Commissary General of Subsistence was one of the "supply" departments which answered directly to the Secretary of War. Charged with securing and distributing rations to the soldiers, it like the other supply departments operated independently and with little central coordination throughout the civil war. The Commissary General maintained subsistence depots in major cities and producing areas; officers in charge at these locations were responsible for buying food in bulk and repackaging for delivery to field units. Beef cattle were contracted for delivery at specific points and herds were driven behind armies in the field.