The Cowboy’s Dictionary
Cowboys had their own language, especially when it came to life around the chuck wagon. If you’re going to eat on the trail, you better know what you’re ordering! Here’s a guide to some of the most common frontier cooking and slang terms.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Bear Sign | Doughnuts |
| Overland Trout | Bacon |
| Blue John | Skim milk |
| Boggy Top | A pie with only a top crust |
| Cackleberries / Hen-fruit | Eggs |
| Charlie Taylor | A substitute for butter (molasses and bacon grease) |
| Long Sweetenin’ | Molasses |
| Spotted Pup | Rice with raisins |
| Doughgods / Sinker | Biscuits |
| Love Apples | Tomatoes |
| Music Roots / Whistle-berries | Beans |
| Mysteries | Sausage |
| Bee-sweetenin’ | Honey |
| Pecos Strawberries | Beans |
| Salt Horse | Salted beef |
| Texas Butter / Sipper | Gravy |
| Son-of-a-gun Stew | A hearty stew using various parts of a calf |
| Wasp Nest | Bread |
| Roostered | Drunk |
Whether it’s a bowl of whistle-berries or some spotted pup, life on the frontier was never dull—and neither was the language!
