AKA: Betty Likens, Granny Put the Kettle On, and Henry Reed’s Favorite

Played on an old, fretless banjo of undetermined origin with an approximate tuning of aEADE.

Josh and Henry Reed, ca. 1903

I first learned this tune from a Miles Krassen banjo tab book, but it misses many of the wonderful nuances found in the original fiddle tune performed by Henry Reed. My favorite elements of the tune are the subtle shift between the lowerd third hinted at in the low section to the raised third in the high part, the descending pentatonic run, the triplet ornaments scattered around, and the asymmetrical form.

In, 1967, Alan Jabbour, the well-known fiddler and former director of the American Folklife Center, recorded Henry Reed performing the tune one two occasions, both times with different titles: “Betty Likens” and “Granny, Put the Kettle On.” Jabbour later recorded the tune with The Hollow Rock String Band, which is how it probably entered the popular repertoire. As good as the musicians are on that record, I’ve never liked the interpretation. Even compared to other tunes on the album (Traditional Dance Tunes, Kanawha 311, LP (1968)), there is something too relaxed and straight about the rhythmic feel. Probably my slower rendition loses the drive of Henry Reed’s performance, but without a fiddler to catch the fast notes, its how I prefer it.

I’ve written out a couple of banjo tabs that provide both the skeleton of the tune and a more elaborate version. I also have an older recording that is based more closely on these tabs. More information can also be found at the Fiddler’s Companion.

A recipe for a sandwich is about as useful as checklist for breathing. You put things on bread and eat it. At the same time, thinking about the individual steps can result in a better outcome. So here are some of the things that have worked for us. Purists would say that this isn’t a “real” bánh mì, because it lacks the rice flour baguette and the abundance of meats. But even more traditional incarnations are incredibly variable. So here is our vegetable (chay) version.

• bread
• grilled tofu
• pickled stuff (do chua)
• mayonnaise
• cilantro
• sliced jalapeño

That seems like a lot of work already, but the idea is to get the separate ingredients ready one at a time before you eat the sandwich. When you are hungry, you can just throw the elements together at the last minute.

Bread: Just get some bread you like. This was a nice loaf from the grocery store. I like to tear out a little of the bread on the top slice so I can fit in more filling.

Grilled tofu: Again, just use something you like. It could be store bought. In our case, we slice up a block of extra firm tofu and
marinate it in soy sauce or fish sauce and give it a little spice rub. Then we pat it dry, give it a quick brush of oil and grill it. You can
also bake it in a low oven until it gets to the sort of texture you like.

Pickled stuff: This time we used carrots, cucumbers, and radishes. Just cut them up how you like (julienne would be most traditional).
There are thousands of recipes for do chua on the web. There really is no wrong way to make it. I like to salt the vegetables and knead them for a few minutes in a colander to extract the water. Give them a quick rinse (don’t wash off all the salt) and into the brine. For the brine, I use about a ratio of 1 to 1/2 to 1/2 of vinegar, water, and sugar. The pickles should last about a week in the refrigerator.

Mayonnaise: You can just use plain mayonnaise, but we like to mix in some Thai garlic-chili paste and sometimes a little soy or fish sauce.

Cilantro is a must and the jalapeños add a spicy crunch. You can always add sriracha if it isn’t hot enough.

Then just pile everything together and eat it. Your sandwich may not look quite as ominous as this one, but it should taste just as good.