Vintage Foods That Were All The Rage In The 1950s

Food from the thrifty Fifties

In the 1950s, canned and convenience foods ruled, frozen meals and quick-service restaurant chains were all the rage, and no dinner was complete without a delicious, extravagent dessert. The decade also brought us Dunkin’ Donuts, McDonald’s French fries, diet soda, and Betty Crocker cake mix.

Click or scroll to discover the dishes everyone adored back then – including a few still cherished today.

Swanson TV dinners

In 1954, Swanson frozen TV dinners went on sale. The brand took inspiration from Birds Eye’s freezing technology and plane food packaging. Saving time on preparation and washing up, the convenience food was a hit and led to numerous ranges of ready-prepared meals.

Chex Mix

Wheat Chex cereal came along in the 1930s, but it took two decades for this mixed-up snack to follow. The company released ads with recipes for Party Mix (later switching the name to Chex Mix) in the 1950s. The snack is made from different Chex cereals mixed with butter, salt, nuts and Worcestershire sauce, then baked in the oven.

Baked Alaska

The most impressive dessert of the decade has to be baked Alaska, a pudding that features a layer of cake, ice cream and a crisp, meringue shell. It was invented to mark the purchase of Alaska in 1867, but made a comeback as a dinner party showstopper in the 1950s.

Tuna noodle casserole

Tuna noodle casserole is a resourceful, economical dish made from pantry staples: canned tuna, pasta noodles, peas, creamy sauce and a cheesy topping. It was a regular on the roster for home cooks needing to feed their families on tight budgets in the 1950s.

Pineapple upside-down cake

It’s an old recipe but pineapple upside-down cake is undeniably associated with the Fifties. Such was its popularity, US brand Py-O-My launched a cake mix that came with a can of pineapple rings and cherries. It’s now regarded as so deliciously retro it has had a bit of a resurgence.

McDonald’s fries

The decade food became fast, in 1955 McDonald’s opened its first franchise in Des Plaines, Illinois. The menu consisted of just nine items including its skinny French fries (which replaced potato wedges in 1949), a hamburger, cheeseburger, triple-thick shake, coke, root beer, coffee, orange juice and milk, that could be served in record time.

Del Monte Fruit Cocktail

A pantry staple in the 1950s, Del Monte Fruit Cocktail consists of pineapple, cherries, peaches, pears and grapes in a can. It was infinitely useful for whipping up quick desserts and the brand offered recipe suggestions such as “Party Fruit Basket”: an angel food cake hollowed out and filled with fruit cocktail in gelatin, and garnished with whipped cream.

Dunkin’ Donuts

Coffee and donut giant Dunkin’ Donuts was introduced to the world at the start of this decade. It began in Quincy, Massachusetts with one store, then franchised in 1955 and expanded its offering to 52 flavors. Today Dunkin' Donuts is still an essential pit stop for a caffeine and sugar pick-me-up, with locations in more than 30 countries.

KFC Original Recipe Chicken

Up until 1956, Colonel Sanders sold his Original Recipe Chicken (cooked in a pressure cooker and seasoned with 11 herbs and spices) from his restaurant in Corbin, Kentucky. However, when the highway which had been a main source of customers moved, he decided to branch into other markets and traveled the country setting up franchise agreements.

Liking this? Click on the Follow button above for more great stories from loveFOOD

Frosted Flakes

Already famous for Corn Flakes, in 1952 Kellogg’s introduced its sugary cousin Sugar Frosted Flakes (called Frosties in the UK). They're still marketed by legendary mascot Tony the Tiger and his famous catchphrase "They're Gr-r-reat!". In the 1980s, the word 'sugar' was dropped from the name.

Frozen pizza

A no-brainer when you want a break from cooking and cheaper than takeout, frozen pizza is great but it hasn’t always been an option. Brands started appearing in stores in the early part of the Fifties – thought to be inspired by restaurants selling refrigerated and frozen versions of dishes – but Totino’s became the market leader.

Peach cobbler

Although this dessert of baked fruit topped with biscuit dough has been around for centuries, it’s thought of as a dish from the Deep South in the 1950s. Adverts for tinned peaches were everywhere and the Georgia Peach Council declared 13 April to be National Peach Cobbler Day.

Betty Crocker cake mix

Cake mix didn't properly take off until the 1950s when savvy companies introduced frosting and other ready-made decorating items which made the process feel more hands-on. Cake-mix connoisseur brand Betty Crocker was brilliantly successful in capturing the hearts of home cooks and thrives to this day.

Bananas Foster

This indulgent dessert was invented at Brennan’s Restaurant in New Orleans, named after the New Orleans Crime Commission chairman Richard Foster, for whom it was created. Bananas are added to a sauce of butter, brown sugar and cinnamon, then doused with rum and flambéed tableside – and you can still order it from the menu there today.

Diet soda

Originally created for diabetics, diet soda became popular with health conscious drinkers in the 1950s. No-Cal Soda was the first zero-calorie soft drink in 1952, which came in 11 flavors including black cherry, lime and chocolate. Other diet brands such as Glamor (1954) and Diet Rite (1958) followed suit.

Coronation chicken

This sandwich filler and baked spud topper was created for Queen Elizabeth II for her coronation banquet in 1953. It consists of chicken and sultanas smothered in creamy, curry-flavored sauce – and for those who like the delicately spicy, herby taste, it’s comfortingly nostalgic.

Tropicana

In 1954, businessman Anthony T Rossi, who founded the Tropicana brand in 1947, used flash pasteurization to preserve the fresh taste of fruit juice. The resulting product proved so popular that the company used a ship, the S.S. Tropicana, to transport millions of gallons of juice from Florida to New York.

Peanut M&M's

Peanut M&M’s were introduced to a soon-adoring American public in 1954, 13 years after the chocolate version. At the time they only came in a tan-colored shell. It wasn't until years later the variety of colors we enjoy today were added.

Ranch dressing

This salad dressing, made from buttermilk, herbs, spices, garlic and onion, was invented by husband-and-wife-team Steve and Gayle Henson in the early 1950s while they were working on ranches. The original was a dry mix in a jar, to which consumers added their own creamy sauce. Now the most popular salad dressing in the US, it's spotted accompanying everything from pizza and fries to chicken wings.

Carpaccio

Slivers of raw beef with olive oil and lemon juice may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but carpaccio is a popular dish at Italian restaurants. Named after Vittore Carpaccio, a Renaissance painter who was famed for his use of red paint, it was created at Harry’s Bar in Venice in 1950 (where, incidentally, the bellini was also invented).

Special K

Marketed as a breakfast cereal for those wanting to lose weight, Special K was launched by Kellogg's in 1955. Made from crispy rice, wheat and barley flakes, it was the first of its kind to contain seven vitamins and iron.

Budweiser

The 1950s was Budweiser's heyday, with its tagline (which continues to be used today), the "King of Beers". Thanks to the efforts of founder Adolphus Busch and persuasive adverts like this one from 1956, it was America’s best-selling beverage for much of the 20th century – and is still incredibly popular today.

Margarine

As a result of wartime dairy rationing in the UK, oil-based margarine became a popular alternative to butter and one that was believed to be healthier. By 1957, margarine sales exceeded butter sales. However in recent years, there's been a move back towards butter.

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola was already hugely successful in America by the 1950s, but this post-war decade is often regarded as the drink’s golden age. Coca-Cola launched different-sized bottles, TV adverts depicting the soft drink beamed into people’s homes and it was sold in more than 100 countries.

Burger King Whopper

The iconic Whopper was launched in Burger King’s first restaurant in Miami, Florida, in 1957. It's a beef patty topped with tomatoes, lettuce, mayonnaise, ketchup, pickles and white onion in a sesame seed bun. When it first came out, it cost only 37c. These days you’ll pay roughly 20 times that.

Eggo Waffles

Although you can make your own in minutes, 1950s households favored frozen waffles to fresh. Eggo Waffles were produced in the thousands on a carousel-like machine, invented by a man called Frank Dorsa, to keep up with demand. The speedy snack has recently enjoyed a renaissance thanks to an appearance on Netflix series Stranger Things, as main character Eleven's favorite food.

Slice 'N Bake cookie dough

Another creation that enabled home cooks to spend less time in the kitchen was ready-made cookie dough, with Slice 'N Bake first manufactured by Pillsbury in 1957. It came in a log shape, making it easy for consumers to slice off evenly-sized rounds for instant baking.

Flavored chips

It’s widely believed Irishman and owner of the Tayto company Joe “Spud” Murphy developed seasoned chips in the UK in the 1950s. They came in flavors such as cheese and onion, salt and vinegar, and smoky bacon. The first flavor to cross the Atlantic was barbecue, sold in Pennsylvania by Herr’s in 1958.

Pre-sliced cheese

In the 1950s, Kraft Foods introduced Kraft Deluxe Process Slices: pre-sliced cheese squares for cheeseburgers and sandwiches. A forerunner to Kraft Singles, which came out the following decade, the convenience, shelf life and mild flavor of both cheeses has helped them to endure over the decades.

Pizza Hut

The original pizza chain, Pizza Hut was opened by two brothers Frank and Dan Carney in 1958 with $600 borrowed from their mother. It quickly became a firm favorite with students at the Wichita State University where the first restaurant was located, and within a year began franchising.

Spam

Spam proved vital in feeding military troops through the Second World War. And the tinned meat featured strongly in the average 1950s diet too, illustrated by adverts and recipes from the era. By 1959, one billion cans had been sold. It continues to be popular in the state of Hawaii, which has the highest per capita consumption in the United States.

Jell-O

The 1950s saw a steep rise in Jell-O dishes in all shapes and flavors. While the wobbly food was previously a dinner party centerpiece, post-war it became a convenient way to serve canned foods. Jell-O “salads” contained the likes of tinned veg, cheese, fish and mayo, while sweet versions included fruit cocktail, marshmallows and cream.

Banana split

This was a soda fountain favorite in the 1950s. The classic recipe for banana split consists of a banana cut lengthways, served with vanilla, chocolate and strawberry ice cream, a drizzle of pineapple, chocolate and strawberry sauce, plus whipped cream, maraschino cherries and chopped nuts. It’s served in a boat-shaped dish and still features on diner menus today.

Liked this? Click on the Follow button above for more great stories from loveFOOD

Now check out foods we fell in love with from the 1960s