4) Vinegar Cobbler. Government initiatives like Aunt Sammy’s radio program aimed to educate the public on how to create nutritious and inexpensive meals. Thousands of people lost their jobs. Homemakers became proficient in making cakes without butter and eggs, and pie crusts from crackers. Pictures Pictures Popular Foods during the Great Foods invented or introduced during the Great Depression of the 1930's. Chicken and dumplings was already eaten widely in the South by sharecroppers, but the dish became popular far and wide during the Dust Bowl years. Food "disguises" were popular in the 1930s including pigs in blankets, mushrooms made out of cream cheese and "bunny salad" made from a canned pear half. Creamed Chip Beef. But, as more people came to eat this food, it became a normal part of our diets. Even in the midst of food shortages convenience foods were beginning to become popular as they often were cheaper than their fresh counterparts. Potato Pancakes. Jane Ziegelman and Andy Coe, authors of A Square Meal, discuss food … Corned Beef Salad. Creamed chip beef looks about as appetizing at it sounds. It’s hard to conceive that less than 100 years ago broccoli wasn’t a commercially grown crop in the U.S. Just imagine if you’d never been told to finish your broccoli before you could leave the table! But, they became a popular substitute for meat sandwiches due to their low cost and ease of preparation. With many men now out of work, it often became difficult for families to support themselves… James Beard Foundation Book Award Winner. In the video below we get to see how they’re made from a woman who survived the ’30s and loved her mother’s baked apples. Here are some foods invented during that time. Some of the most desirable foods were going scarce during the 1930s and new recipes made the best of the food that was available. Clearly it works because we are still making casseroles today. The Wonderfully Wacky Fashion of the 1940s, The Nearly 200-Year-Old History of the Word “OK”, Bob Dylan to Just Sold the Rights to His Entire Music Catalog, 8 Foods Made Commonplace By The Great Depression. This dessert substituted a large amount of vinegar for more expensive fruit, in … Yet even during the Depression, many new foods were invented or introduced including: Also during the 1930s, Colonel Harland Sanders developed a secret formula of spices to flavor the fried chicken at his Sanders Court and Café (motel and restaurant) in Corbin, Kentucky. Potatoes are a classic budget-friendly meal option, and they were popular during the 1930s as well. The only thing you need are apples, sugar, cinnamon, and some butter. Bland foods were in. It meant stretching premium ingredients like protein and veggies. It's simple, yet delicious, and it's as good now as it was during the Great Depression. Great Depression Food and Drinks Back in the Great Depression Era the food was very horrendous. Chicken divan casserole, cherries jubilee, sweet potato-marshmallow surprises, and black bottom pie were very popular during the 1930s. Your mother might have called them refrigerator pies. Not widely eaten before it was provided as part of public assistance in the 1930s, grapefruit fulfilled the nutritional requirement for vitamin C and was at first only begrudgingly accepted as an edible citrus fruit. This meant new recipes were widely disseminated and the tastiest of the cheap dishes soon became old favorites. So, when novel foods did come along, many home cooks jumped at the chance to make something different. No-bake Pies. Of course, only families with a refrigerator or an icebox could partake, but these pies would become family favorites, especially in summertime. ©2020 Great Life Publishing and GreaterGood. Potatoes stored well and were inexpensive, making them a staple. Just like chicken soup, you can use a tough old chicken for this American staple and it relies heavily on flour which was cheap. Kraft Macaroni and Cheese - 1937 Spam - 1937 3 Musketeers (chocolate bar) - 1932 Nestlé Crunch (chocolate bar) - 1937 KFC - 1930 Krystal - 1932 Swensons - 1934 Big Boy - 1936 Krispy Kreme - 1937 Dairy Queen - 1940 McDonald's - 1940 Carl's Jr - … Now they are regularly at many breakfast tables and at most restaurants. A culinary heroine emerges toward the end of A Square Meal: Sheila Hibben, author of The National Cookbook (1932). And, it meant less preparation time as well. Here are 8 foods that might not have become common were it not for the Great Depression. Mothers often moved in with other family to save money. When they ate at all, it was often cheaply or disgustingly — NPR describes one popular Great Depression era recipe as "canned corned beef, plain gelatin, canned peas, vinegar, and lemon juice," and if you got all the way through that description without gagging, congratulations because certainly no … 1930s Bologna Casserole There are many meals that families ate during the Great Depression that stretched the shopping budget as far as it could go. Due to high prices, low incomes, and high demand the government had to institute rations to insure most people had at least a little food. The book even includes recipes for abominations such as Liver Loaf and Chop Suey with Milkorno, a 1930s breakfast cereal developed (scientifically, of course!) The preparation of pies using fruit juices and gelatin (or sometimes pudding) meant a reduced cost overall. By 1933 approximately 25% of the entire population was unemployed. As more homes were connected to electricity, more people bought refrigerators and freezers. After the stock market crash of 1929, the American economy plummeted. This was pretty common during the Great Depression. By 1933, the unemployment rate in … How a simple sugar drink became so big is a fascinating story, that you can follow here. The Great Depression forced thousands out of their jobs, but most of the burden was shouldered by the homemaker, who had to keep the family fed. During the time of the Great Depression, families often found themselves severely malnourished, sometimes even on the brink of starvation. Faced with limited funds and government-imposed food rationing, the Depression-era cook learned to work magic in the kitchen. However, this bizarre blend of baked onions and peanut butter was common during the Great Depression. The nation’s hunger and habits during the Great Depression are of particular interest to Jane Ziegelman and Andrew Coe, whose book A Square … And, cleverly, casseroles could disguise bland canned vegetables or canned meat and turn a ho-hum dish into something that had appeal for the whole family. People had to do things differently if they wanted to provide food for their families. In order to make the list of best selling products during the Great Depression we did a lot of reading and a lot of investigation in our history books. 2. How a simple sugar drink became so big is a fascinating story, that you can follow here. How the Great Depression Created the Double Popsicle How the Great Depression Created the Double Popsicle The popsicle was allegedly invented by an 11-year-old in 1905. What did people eat During the Great Depression? While some of these foods were eaten by small numbers of people in the U.S. before the Depression hit, they didn’t really catch on until folks were looking for ways to more efficiently feed their families. Searching for ways to increase profits, Japanese farmers in California in 1930 started cultivating a crop imported from Italy which most Americans had never heard of before: broccoli. Clarence Birdseye of Massachusetts introduced 26 frozen vegetables, fruits, fish and meats to consumers. Men often deserted their families simply because they couldn’t take care of them. First written and published in 2003. Also served during … Sugar prices were low, so women created desserts, cakes, cookies, and used marshmallows for the now-favorite Rice Krispie treats. Now, Kool-Aid is an international brand name. Fishing was a popular pastime during this era, not just because it was an enjoyable … … C reamed chicken on biscuits, as a variation of chipped beef. Surprisingly, a few of these were made by my mother and grandmother, traditions, I’m sure, from a more frugal era. During the Depression, cheap, nutritious and filling food was prioritized — often at the expense of taste. Chipped beef on toast Cucumber and mustard sandwiches Fish …. Civil Works Administration (CWA) The Civil Works Administration was also formed in 1933 to create … While it is possible that we would be eating these foods with the same frequency had the Great Depression not happened, the fact that these foods were either cheap or easy to prepare certainly made them more appealing in a time of scarcity and poverty. Some foods were invented during the Depression, such as spam, Ritz crackers, Krispy Kreme doughnuts and Kraft macaroni and cheese, according to livinghistoryfarm.org. The Great Depression in the 1930s was a time of hardship, but it was also a time of creativity. Many scenes of parents, children, and others struggling daily to gather enough food to eat played out during the lean years of the Great Depression. Pasta is another meatless way to stretch your budget and fill … … The U.S. food stamp program was launched at a time when the nation was facing a tragic paradox: As millions of Americans suffered from hunger during the Great Depression… Obviously, someone thought up the egg sandwich long before the Stock Market Crash of 1929. Poor Man’s Spaghetti. […] Written by Claudia Reinhardt and Bill Ganzel, the Ganzel Group. Food "disguises" were popular in the 1930s including pigs in blankets, mushrooms made out of cream cheese and "bunny salad" made from a canned pear half. This old fashioned potato soup uses very basic ingredients to keep costs down. at Cornell University and made from corn and powdered dry milk. Many Depression-era foods had to be economical and flavor was not always the main factor in creating new recipes. anything. At this point in U.S. society, most families relied on the man to work and provide a source of income, while the mother cared for children and the household. All rights reserved. Commodity prices fell during the great depression, with a drastic effect on Australian agriculture. With only four ingredients, this dish is cheap dessert. At the same time, farmers were looking to increase their profits wherever they could. 34 Recipes That Got Us Through the Great Depression Grace Mannon Updated: Feb. 07, 2019 Times were tough in the 1930s and people had to be … From the author of the acclaimed 97 Orchard and her husband, a culinary historian, an in-depth exploration of the greatest food crisis the nation has ever faced—the Great Depression—and how it transformed America’s culinary culture.. They were an invention of necessity: combining ingredients to make the most of every meal. And Kool-Aid was invented in Hasting, Nebraska in the late 20s and became a national brand in the 30s. 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