If you check out the Armour web site, you will find a lot of recipes for using dried beef. I rinse dried beef in water and drain it well to remove some of the sodium before using in a recipe. -Grainlady

Here is a link that might be useful: Armour

I am fortunate enough to live in an area where freshly sliced dried beef is available at all of our farmers' markets and some of the grocery store deli departments so it is a somewhat different product than the packaged kind.

I use it in creamed chipped beef (aka dried beef gravy) but most often to turn twice baked potatoes into an entree I can heat later on a busy evening.

BEEFY STUFFED POTATOES

1/4 lb. (4 oz.) dried beef or ham, finely chopped
4 large baking potatoes
2 Tbs. butter or margarine, divided
1/4- 1/2 cup milk
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1 Tbs. celery leaves, finely chopped
Salt and pepper to taste
2 tsp. fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 Tbs. Parmesan cheese
Paprika

Bake potatoes 1 hour in a 350 degree oven until done. Slice in half lengthwise and remove potato flesh from skins and place in bowl. Save the skins. Add 1 Tbs. butter and enough milk to mash to a creamy consistency. Stir in beef, cheddar cheese, celery and parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stuff potato skins, mounding mixture on top. (At this point, these can be covered and refrigerated and finished later.) Dot with remaining butter, parmesan cheese, and sprinkle with paprika.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 - 30 minutes or until heated through. Can also be heated in the microwave but they will not be browned on the top.

I also like this dip, which I sometimes stuff into blanched snow peas on an appetizer tray.

DRIED BEEF PRETZEL DIP

8 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature
3 Tbs. crumbled blue cheese
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 to 3 tsp. horseradish
1/8 tsp. ground black pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped dried beef
1 bag of pretzel sticks

In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, blue cheese, Worcestershire sauce, 2 tsp. horseradish and pepper until smooth. Taste and add the additional teaspoon of horseradish, if needed. Stir in dried beef. Refrigerate until 30 minutes before the game and remove to let dip come to room temperature. Serve with pretzel sticks for dipping. Makes about 1 cup

Note: Recipe can be doubled.

Chopped dried beef can also be mixed in with the filling for devilled eggs or used in a quiche or omelet.

I also have had an appetizer made from cream cheese at room temperature, spread around dill pickles that have been dried with a paper towel, then the whole thing wrapped with dried beef, wrapped in saran and refrigerated. To serve, remove saran and slice about 1/3 of an inch thick and either serve as is or pot on a cracker.

I love dried beef! If your deli counter has it to fresh slice... it'll probably be $11-12/lb!?! Don't be put off by the price, cuz those little packets are probably more per pound and you have no idea how long they've been hangin around.

I like it sliced REALLY thin... just a notch thicker than "shaved". Remember having it creamed, liked it on toast, don't remember Dad ever calling it SOS.

Made deviled eggs one time. Threw a few slices of dried beef in mini-processor to chop up fine and mixed in with yolks. Yummy!

I love dried beef too - both in dips and "chipped" in a cream gravy. I've not had the pickle thingies that Linda mentioned, but will have to give it a try.

Oh, and I also live in an area where I can get it from the farmers market - it is truly amazing.

Alexa

DD used to make a dried beef chowder by sauteeing chopped onion, sweet red pepper and spinach. Then she'd cook some diced potatoes in broth or water to cover, along with the sauteed mixture and chopped dried beef and if I recall, either tarragon or marjoram.

When the potatoes were done, she added a can of cream-style corn and milk or half and half.

I guess you could add dried beef to any corn chowder recipe.

I'm so glad I read this thread. I haven't seen dried beef in 30 years, but thought about it the week before Christmas and walked through the grocery store looking for it. I was afraid to ask and have them look at me like an old lady trying to find her past, because I really didn't know if they still made it. LOL

We visited some of our grandchildren at Christmas and I took food that might have been served in Bethlehem for our meal after we read the Christmas story. Flat bread, kalamata olives, goat cheese, dates, raisins, figs, pomegranates, pistachios, etc. I had thought of adding some dried meat of some sort and dried beef was all I could think of as a "sub". Since I didn't find the beef, we just skipped that part. Now that I now Armour Star still makes it, I will look in a few more places for it.

klseiverd - Maybe your Dad was just too nice, since SOS meant 'Sh__ On a Shingle', in it's old military usage.