What Did People Eat In The 1950's

chirpychick

Hi,
I couldn't see if this had been asked before but I was wondering, does anyone here know what people ate in the 1950's type of era, (that is my inlaws and grandparents era but they haven't been much help).
Or if you don't know then maybe you could point me in the direction of a book?
I know there was less (or practically no) snacking so 3 square meals a day, what did these meals consist of? Do you know what kind of portion sizes they would have?

Im just curious really, but surely people like my grandparents knew how to spread their money and make the most of what they had and so if there is anything I can learn to help us then that would also be great

Hope a few people can help.

Thank you in advance.

Itismehonest

The easiest way to describe the difference is that the only take-away/fast food was the Fish & Chip shop.
So, everything was cooked from scratch.

Very few "foreign" foods were available so the basis of all main meals was "Meat & 2 Veg" & the veg was seasonal (fridges were just finding their way into homes & were enormous). So, peas were fresh in season (hours spent happily "podding") or tinned for the rest of the year.

The "3 meals a day" was a little loose. We had 4 ....
Breakfast (usually cooked - variations of Full English - but cornflakes & porridge were around)
Luncheon or lunch to most of us - Most people were at work/school so either took packed, ate in canteens/had school dinners, went home for a meal or bought lunch in a cafe
Tea (2 types) - High Tea (about 4pm) Much like Afternoon Teas you can still get in a few places with sandwiches, bread & butter, cakes, fruit when available; or what was really kids' tea for when they got home from school which might be something like egg or beans on toast.
Dinner - The evening meal when Dads got home from work. Young children may well have been in bed by this time. Dinner was the meat & 2 veg meal. Sweet/dessert/pudding was something like a fruit pie/pudding/rice pud etc.
Supper - This could be anything from another meal (in winter we often had a stew) to a snack before bed.

As meals were cooked from scratch they contained no additives but Mum's back then often added monumental amounts of salt or sugar.
In some ways the diet was healthier but in others it wasn't. Lots of sugar, fat, salt but not processed.
The main difference was not so much what was eaten but the fact that everyone burnt off many, many more calories by exercise so kept fitter & slimmer.

Edit: Portion sizes depended on how much the family could afford. Often they were larger than people might think but then, as I said before, when calories were burnt off much faster it offset.

mardatha

Proper home cooked 2 course meals, always had either soup or pudding plus main course. A lot of fillers-uppers like thick veg soup, lentil, lamb broth, then rice pud or semolina or apple sponge and custard. If the main course was not filling enough then put bread & butter on the table. Lots of potatoes and veg - but portion sizes were smaller. A two course meal always makes you feel fuller than one huge one somehow. I cant remember eating crisps or sweets much at all. Try looking at this ladys blog-although its the 1940s, but she's doing it today with young kids and managing fine.
http://www.facebook.com/groups/291017210947164/

lynnemcf

What about this book ... however the reviews say there are few photos of the finished dishes

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Feeding-Nation-Nostalgic-Recipes-1940-1954/dp/0600614727/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1339757887&sr=8-4

Itismehonest

I forgot salads. Seasonal again. They tended to be mainly tomatoes, cucumber & lettuce with ham, cheese, boiled egg & home-made pickles.

Fruit. Again seasonal but also from the "store" which may just have meant apples laid down to store or bottled when in season to eat in winter.

It was very much about eating what was in season &, therefore, normally cheaper, too, or bottling/pickling/preserving when there was plenty for the times when no fresh was available.

Bread & butter was served with just about everything. It was considered rude not to....... don't ask me why.

oldtractor

They ate proper food. No chicken nuggests no frozen chips much less chocolate type bars .. Proper home cooked meals. EG Cottage pie and carrots and cabbage. Sponge pud and custard. Rabbit pie. Offal was eaten eg bacon and liver casserole. Brawn faggots ox tail tongue. Heart.Pidgeon.

Gintotmelinda

hi all

I remember bread pudding as my family were bakers cottage loaves anyone? Kippers on Saturday evenings with bread and butter yuk!
Roast beef on Sundays, salad and cold meat -tongue, ham, victoria sponge, pineapple chunks jelly and blancmange.

Don't forget the offal -I like lambs liver but I remember my mother liking chittlings. Of course bread and dripping.

Hotpot too in the oven beef or lamb-not thickened-and rice pudding and steamed puddingd-spotted !!!!!! or jam pudding.

OH and I remember that Dad as the breadwinner had things like chops for tea and we had sausages with mum. We ate earlier too.

Rationing went on I think to 1953/4.

Gintot

mardatha

We eat this way, I found it much better, I dont buy rubbish, just real food

lizzyb1812

Ditto Mardatha

Have a look here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/6687553.stm

Margerite Patten has a book called Post-War Kitchen - Nostalgic food and facts from 1945-1954 - the recipes and anecdotes are grouped in years.

For something a bit posher (at the time), Elizabeth David wrote 4 of her books in the 1950s - easy to get hold of cheaply secondhand.

WeegieWumman

mardatha wrote: »

We eat this way, I found it much better, I dont buy rubbish, just real food

I LOVE real food. I usually batch cook. If my freezer breaks down, I'll either die of malnutrition or live on sweet, cakes etc.

chirpychick

mardatha wrote: »

We eat this way, I found it much better, I dont buy rubbish, just real food

That is nice to know.
We have been "talking" about it for a bit, but I have been so exhausted and poorly the last 4 months I haven't done much research into it but hubby and I were saying we would really like to eat like this and establish a good routine and get out of the habit of eating junk food ready for when our little one comes along.
I really don't want our baby to be brought up on the kind of junk (ready meals, frozen processed rubbish) that I was so we are actively doing our best to change

Thanks everyone so much for all the info it is both fascinating and helpful

Please keep it coming x