Up next in 10
Mountain Man Breakfast | Cooking for the Army in Alaska
Sep 10, 2025
This week we're visiting the US Army in Alaska! Join us as we tour the military base at Fort Wainwright and get an up close look at an Apache helicopter. It's an exciting peek into military aviation in the last frontier. Used in this video: Rode wireless Go 2 mic: https://amzn.to/3seAQ7X Cowboy Hat: Chazhatz.com For more suggested products seen in our videos click here: https://www.amazon.com/shop/cowboykentrollins Check out our BEST SELLING cookbooks. Get your copy here: https://www.kentrollins.com/shop Also available at bookstores nationwide, and Amazon www.amazon.com/shop/cowboykentrollins --------------------------------- Connect with us! https://facebook.com/cowboykentrollins https://instagram.com/cowboykentrollins https://twitter.com/Kent_Rollins --------------------------------- Kent Rollins
View Video Transcript
0:00
Hey, this week we're in Alaska, the last
0:03
frontier up here at Fort Wayne Wright.
0:06
We're going to be cooking up some really
0:07
good grub for some soldiers, touring the
0:09
garrison, and getting up close and
0:11
personal with an Apache helicopter.
0:18
[Music]
0:38
in this week's episode. It's a little
0:40
different. Not going to be a recipe that
0:42
we're going to throw out there to you.
0:44
No. But we're up here at Fort Wayne in
0:47
Alaska, and we thought it'd be really
0:49
neat if y'all just followed us around
0:50
the next couple of three or four days
0:52
and see what's going on. Hey, you know,
0:54
this all started way back in January
0:56
when a good friend of ours, Delin,
0:58
reached out to us and said, "Hey, could
1:00
y'all come up here and maybe help me
1:03
boost morale, give these soldiers a
1:05
little recreational activity, but also
1:07
teach them something? Maybe how to cook
1:08
in a Dutch oven, maybe feed them a good
1:10
steak dinner." So, we decided we would
1:12
do that. This is a once-in-a-lifetime
1:14
opportunity for us to get to come up
1:16
here and do this. We hope you enjoy
1:18
because we had a blast. Now, y'all may
1:21
notice as Shan's filming along here,
1:23
you're going to see some camera crews
1:25
there in the background. Hey, this is a
1:27
little different, but hey, we have told
1:28
you big news was coming. They're filming
1:31
episodes for our new series out on the
1:33
Outdoor Channel, Castir Iron Cowboy. We
1:36
want you to be sure you tune in now.
1:38
Aired in September for the premiere.
1:40
This will come later as you're going
1:42
along. It's a little sneak peek behind
1:44
the scenes. First up here in Alaska,
1:47
breakfast.
1:53
[Music]
2:00
We got to feed about 12 of them soldiers
2:02
as they're going to come up and do PT.
2:04
This morning, we're going to be making
2:05
mountain man breakfast for these fellas.
2:07
As I got the fire going, looked off
2:09
there in the distance and were having
2:11
company, something I've never had. And
2:13
that is a moose coming off the hill over
2:15
there. They tell me that them things can
2:17
be pretty aggressive. So, hope
2:19
somebody's watching my back. You see, I
2:20
had my watch dog there. He was watching
2:22
the front. Now, if you're talking about
2:24
something that's going to give them
2:25
fellas a lot of calories, we're talking
2:27
about mountain man breakfast. And to
2:29
start that off, I need some pablanos and
2:31
some bell peppers roasted over an open
2:34
fire to get that skin blistered and give
2:36
me a little bit of that charred flavor.
2:44
Time to throw in the bacon. It is. And
2:46
we're going to brown up about 4 lbs of
2:48
bacon to go with this. One fell out. But
2:50
there's the culinary crew. He's going to
2:52
clean it up for me. Mountain man
2:54
breakfast. Got a lot of things in it. It
2:56
does. And Ma's going to make sure they
2:58
all get in the pot. Next, hash brown
3:00
potatoes. Then we'll go to sprinkling in
3:02
all them peppers we charred. Won't be
3:04
long after that. Mix all the sausage,
3:06
the bacon together, and throw in some
3:09
eggs because, hey, we got to have it.
3:29
There it is all put together. Mountain
3:31
man breakfast. Cinnamon rolls with some
3:33
homemade icing. Chow time it is. We're
3:36
going to watch them fellas go through
3:37
the line. Pour them up some coffee
3:39
there. Make sure they still have plenty.
3:41
And it is a great honor for me and Shan
3:43
to be able to feed these troops. It is.
3:45
We are so blessed to be up here at Fort
3:47
Wayne. Now, they no chairs that we
3:49
brought into camp, but they got a lot of
3:52
birchwood and they just saw us up some
3:54
stumps and brought over there so them
3:55
fellas can just have dining at its best
3:58
right here in the frontier of Alaska.
4:17
It was a great day it was and I hope it
4:19
gives them enough energy to get all
4:21
their PT done.
4:25
[Music]
4:26
Nestled just east of Fairbanks in the
4:29
interior of Alaska, Fort Wayne began its
4:32
life in 1939 as Lad Field. Established
4:36
as a US Army Airore cold weather test
4:39
station to evaluate aircraft equipment
4:42
and survival gear under extreme Arctic
4:45
conditions. During World War II,
4:47
Ladfield became vital to the Lind lease
4:50
program. Over 7,900 aircraft were
4:53
transferred here to the Soviet pilots
4:56
who would fly them across Alaska into
4:58
Siberia to support the Eastern Front.
5:01
After the war, it transitioned into Lad
5:03
Air Force Base. remaining active through
5:05
the early Cold War years, focusing on
5:08
strategic Arctic reconnaissance and
5:10
defense missions. On January 1st, 1961,
5:15
control returned to the US Army, and the
5:17
installation was renamed Fort Jonathan
5:20
M. Waywright, honoring General Wayright,
5:23
the recipient of the Medal of Honor for
5:25
his brave defense of the Philippines
5:27
during World War II. Today, Fort Wayne
5:31
spans over 1.6 6 million acres, making
5:33
it the largest US military installation
5:36
outside the contiguous United States and
5:39
remains the Army's premier Arctic
5:42
training ground.
5:46
I'm Elizabeth Cook and I am the cultural
5:48
resource manager for US Army Garrison,
5:51
Alaska. Ladfield and Fort Wayne were
5:54
founded in keeping um soldiers and
5:58
aviators safe because of our extreme
6:00
cold conditions here that can be
6:02
present. uh we were able to support the
6:06
military, the national defense by making
6:09
sure that aviators wouldn't freeze to
6:10
death in the beginnings of aviation
6:12
history and making sure that all of the
6:15
planes and the MREs that military
6:17
personnel used would actually work and
6:20
keep them warm while they were
6:21
operating. I think Alaska presents a
6:25
unique package in that you have the
6:29
access to natural beauty. You have the
6:32
testing of your metal in extreme
6:34
climate. The capacity to learn things
6:38
that a lot of soldiers wouldn't get to
6:39
learn any place else. They can hunt and
6:42
they can fish. They can um learn to be
6:45
an outdoorsman. They can hike in remote
6:48
areas. Being at the end of the road is
6:50
kind of nice. It's easy to approach some
6:53
place like Fort Wayne and say, "Oh,
6:55
we're going to learn how to survive."
6:57
But you don't. You're really learning
6:58
how to thrive. That's probably the most
7:00
unique thing about here is people see
7:02
from the outside see it as a survival
7:05
exercise and it's really not. It's an
7:07
expansion expansion thrive exercise.
7:13
[Music]
7:26
Tonight is a big night up here. We uh
7:29
going to feed about 250
7:32
and the good folks at Lazy Tea Ranch
7:34
furnish the beef. Now, these folks do a
7:37
lot for veterans uh and servicemen and
7:39
women. They always have. But it's no
7:41
simple task to get 250 steaks shipped
7:45
from Wyoming up here to Alaska. So these
7:50
folks, hey, we need to tip our hat to
7:52
them big time. Be sure and check them
7:53
out on their website. They have premium
7:56
beef. They do. I've got Clay and Sam
7:58
helping me today. And uh one of them is
8:02
unwrapping. One of them giving a little
8:04
lime juice cuz you know what that does?
8:06
The citric acid in there breaks down
8:08
connective tissue which is going to make
8:09
meat more tender.
8:12
And then I'll put a little of this
8:14
original seasoning on them. We'll let
8:16
them sit over there in the ice box for
8:19
I'd say 3 and 1 half to four hours. Let
8:22
this soak in really well and then we'll
8:24
bring them out about an hour and a half
8:26
before cooking time. Let them warm up.
8:28
Then we're going to throw them on the
8:29
grill, cook them. That's the way it's
8:32
supposed to be. Beef in Alaska for the
8:34
Arctic Angels.
8:59
We have three grills going and they're
9:02
gas. So, we added some soaked mosquite
9:05
chunks to this to try to up the game and
9:07
give it a little flavor. So, me and Sam
9:10
Clay, we fighting fire and turning meat.
9:13
You know, they've got some warming boxes
9:15
here that we'll hold these steaks on.
9:17
So, most of them are going to be cooked
9:18
to the high end of rare and then we'll
9:20
hold them. But if you don't have that,
9:22
preheat you a good Yeti ice chest, dump
9:24
the water out of it, and then put these
9:26
in there cuz they will continue to cook
9:28
a little, I promise you, in an ice
9:29
chest. But try to have a one cool end of
9:32
the grill when you're doing so many of
9:34
them to where you can have Hey, that
9:36
fell there's pretty fast. I'm going to
9:38
slow him down a little. Put him down
9:39
here on the cool end. So, we'll keep at
9:41
it. One of these days we'll get
9:43
finished.
9:44
[Music]
9:58
The highlight of the trip for me, and it
10:00
don't get no better than this, climbing
10:03
inside an Apache helicopter. And this
10:05
all it wouldn't have been possible
10:07
without Lieutenant Colonel Jeffrey Hayes
10:10
who set this up. And also a special
10:12
thanks to Sergeant Pelquin for walking
10:14
me through the Apache.
10:17
I've put on a lot of things and seen a
10:19
lot of things at the Chuck Wagon, but
10:21
never in my life have I walked into a
10:24
locker room like this, put on a flight
10:26
vest, and got a helmet. I'm gonna trade
10:28
in my cowboy helmet for one of these
10:30
Apache helicopter helmets.
10:42
But this is pretty tight quarters as
10:44
they show me how you're going to get up
10:45
in this thing, crawl over everything in
10:48
there, and try not to break nothing. So,
10:50
well, after I get set down in there,
10:52
figure out sort of what's going on here
10:54
in my mind a little bit, Sergeant
10:56
Pelican, go ahead and get that helmet on
10:58
me and get everything hooked up to where
11:00
I got sound and he can communicate back
11:02
and forth to me. Like I say, this is
11:04
very tight quarters in here. Ain't a
11:06
whole lot of room to move around. So,
11:09
I'm telling you, these pilots that fly
11:11
these things, hey, I'll tip my hat to
11:14
them because there's not a lot of room
11:15
in here to get comfortable. So, we
11:17
finally get a little help to get
11:18
everything hooked up where we got sound,
11:20
but we also got vision. And folks, it
11:24
was a I've been to an eye doctor, but
11:26
this I didn't even know what was going
11:28
on for sure. And then I started seeing
11:30
the little circles and stuff, so it made
11:31
a little more sense. So, it is a great
11:33
thing. It is something I've never got to
11:35
do and something I'll never forget.
11:37
This this helicopter just for one thing,
11:39
that's to find, detect, identify, and
11:41
destroy enemy armored formations. So,
11:43
you can see on the left we got a large
11:45
rocket pod. If you ever played with
11:46
bottle rockets as a kid,
11:48
that's that's the coolest bottle rockets
11:50
there is. This isn't going to do you a
11:52
whole lot of good at 30 below. This is
11:54
the bare minimum in your vest. So, we
11:56
have a cargo pod full of extreme cold
11:58
weather. It's got a shelter. It's got
11:59
additional cold weather food. It's got
12:01
fire starting. It's got a titanium stove
12:03
in it. And anytime we're leaving the
12:05
local flying area, that's the kit that
12:07
we take. So, we take off the weapon
12:09
system and we put on the extra survival
12:11
gear while we're training here in
12:12
Alaska.
12:16
[Music]
12:31
Great job, sir. I want you to have this.
12:34
We flew this in an Apache for you on a
12:35
flight out on the out in the Alaska
12:37
hinterlands here. This says, "The
12:39
accompanying flag was proudly flown on
12:40
board H64D Apache number 0885565
12:44
by an air crew of 125 attack Frontier.
12:47
This flag was flown over the wilderness
12:49
of the great state of Alaska and
12:50
symbolizes the unshakable resolve and
12:52
dedication of United States of America
12:54
to defend freedom wherever it's
12:55
threatened. Presented to Kent Shen Rolls
12:58
in appreciation for the honor you show
12:59
to our servicemen and women every day,
13:01
we'll keep that old flag of flying."
13:03
Hey, brother.
13:04
Sir, it's been a great pleasure.
13:06
It has been my pleasure. You're welcome
13:08
back here anytime.
13:08
Another husband.
13:09
Yes, sir. Thank you, family, sir.
13:11
Thank you.
13:11
And thank you, Miss Shan. I appreciate
13:13
it.
13:13
You're welcome.
13:14
Thank you. This means the world.
13:15
Yes, sir.
13:19
[Music]
13:42
And these fellas right here, all these
13:43
men and women, they are taking great
13:46
care of us.
13:48
And to top it all off and end up, hey,
13:52
we going to do us a little Dutch oven
13:53
cooking clinic here. Now, we fed these
13:56
soldiers, but it's time they learn to
13:58
cook. We hosted this little cooking
14:00
clinic for the soldiers and their
14:02
spouses. Now, not only are we going to
14:04
teach them how to make biscuits, but
14:06
we're going to teach them how to cook
14:07
biscuits. I think everybody should know
14:09
this. It's a little wilderness survival
14:12
cowboy style. You know, this was a very,
14:15
very special episode. We have filmed
14:17
videos all across the United States,
14:19
ranches so remote, so beautiful. But
14:22
folks, here at Fort Wayne, the home of
14:24
the Arctic Angels, this may have been
14:26
the number one spot for me because I got
14:29
to meet soldiers, men and women who put
14:32
their life on the line, but also are
14:34
protecting our great nation. I got to
14:36
get right up close and personal so deep
14:38
in an Apache helicopter. And to hear
14:40
some of the stories from the pilots, it
14:43
don't get no better than this. Y'all
14:44
know how we always support our military,
14:47
but folks, stand behind them, stand
14:49
proud, because this is a great nation
14:51
and a great group of people. So, make
14:53
sure that you always remember Alaska and
14:55
these great men and women that are up
14:57
here defending our country. But it is
14:59
with great pride, privilege, and honor
15:01
that I tip my hat to all the servicemen
15:03
and women and all the veterans and all
15:05
the soldiers up here and all our bases
15:07
that have kept that old flag of flying.
15:09
We commend them all.
15:13
[Music]
#Cooking & Recipes
#Outdoors