6 Ingredients That Were Staple Items During The Great Depression

Shortly before World War II, the United States suffered one of the worst periods in its history to date. The stock market crashed in October 1929, tanking the economy and creating an epidemic of unemployment. The Great Depression made things difficult across all aspects of life, including everyday necessities like getting food on the table, and many people were forced to resort to desperate measures to ensure their families were fed.

Many struggling people also turned to thrift and innovation during this difficult period, using whatever ingredients they could get their hands on to create filling meals and stretch rations as far as possible. They discovered new ways to use household items (such as turning Spam into stew and eating bacon grease sandwiches) and made the most of what they already had on hand, such as some vegetables and livestock.

Some Depression meals were quite unusual, while others consisted of foods that we still commonly use today. We spoke to Elizabeth Nelson, Ph.D, Associate Professor at the University of Nevada, and looked into some research by other experts available online, to learn which simple ingredients were often utilized during this period.

Lard was a common ingredient used by Americans during the Great Depression. Lard is made by slowly rendering down pig fat. You can also use the fatty pieces leftover after straining the fat to make "cracklings," or fried crispy pork bits, which were often used to stretch meals in the Depression. Cracklings could also be eaten as a salty snack.

Lard was often used for frying other foods; however, it was also sometimes used for baking pastries or in other recipes, such as the famous Campbell's tomato soup cake. This retro concoction contained shortening, sugar, flour, cinnamon, and a tin of Campbell's condensed tomato soup. It was handy because it didn't require eggs and only needed minimal spices and seasonings if they were available.

Of course, lard was easier to get for those who kept livestock. Elizabeth Nelson says, "Generally, families in rural areas were more likely to have chickens or maybe a pig," — although she also asserts that people who lived in towns and cities sometimes had chickens. However, even those who didn't have access to pigs could still purchase lard. "People living in cities, in most cases, bought what they could afford in stores," Nelson adds. Lard prices dipped after the Great War and remained relatively stable during the Depression.

Another food item popular with Americans during this time period was cornmeal. This was a staple "especially in the South," says Elizabeth Nelson. When ground down into this mealy texture, corn becomes very versatile and can also be referred to as polenta, grits, porridge, or even mush. Native Americans mastered the art of cultivating corn centuries ago, and it became a key part of people's diets during the Great Depression.

There were several ways that Americans incorporated cornmeal into their daily lives. It was often eaten for breakfast, served simply with milk, and could even be made into cakes roasted over the fire. Even First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt kept cornmeal in her cooking rotation –- it was reported that she dabbled in a Depression-era supplement known as "milkorno", which was a combination of cornmeal and dried skim milk and provided nutrients during a time when nourishing food was scarce.

In other parts of the country, people also relied on cornmeal as a product that could bulk out meagre diets. In an interview with Inside Hook, food historian Andrew Coe describes one regional Depression-era eating habit that was called "The Three M Diet." This consisted of ""meat" (and meat means salt pork), "meal" (which means cornmeal, so they would make it into cornbread), and "molasses."" This diet was specifically eaten by cotton workers in the South, and often resulted in malnutrition. 

For as long as it has been around, people have always found different ways to cook bacon (although many people think cooking bacon in the oven is the best way). During the Great Depression, people relied heavily on bacon and crafted many unique meals with this now beloved breakfast item.

Due to other meats, such as beef, becoming scarce during the Depression, bacon was often substituted instead. Elizabeth Nelson explains the ubiquity of bacon during this time, adding that salt pork was another important protein included in Americans' diets: "They [stayed fresh] longer than fresh meat [and] might have been used to flavor things." Bacon's strong flavor went a long way, meaning it could be added to soups along with beans and other staples, fried alongside dandelions to create a salad, and, on some occasions, used as a replacement for meatballs in spaghetti.

Bacon was also helpful in other ways. When butter was inaccessible, bacon grease could be used as a hearty substitute. This leftover fat was even sometimes spread on bread to create a bacon grease sandwich, ensuring that truly nothing went to waste and making bacon a highly efficient food to buy when working with a limited budget.

Potatoes were a well-loved staple in many Great Depression meals, and a typical Depression-era breakfast, lunch, and dinner might include the tubers prepared in various ways. Since these starchy vegetables were commonly grown at home, alongside other produce, they were quite accessible to many people. They were also a great way to keep bellies full during a time when food was scarce.

One of the most famous Depression-era recipes was a dish called Mulligan Stew, which was basically just a combination of vegetables, meat scraps, and anything else the family could scrounge up to toss into the pot. "In some cases, people kept a pot on the stove, adding in whatever scraps there were — this became a kind of catch-all stew," says Elizabeth Nelson. Potatoes were a popular addition to this entree, as well as other soups, such as a simple vegetable soup. Another dish called Spam stew contained an entire potato, garlic, celery, and a tin of Spam heated with water and seasonings.

Another common Depression-era dinner was the Poor Man's Meal, made famous by Clara Cannucciari on her Great Depression themed YouTube channel. "We ate potatoes every day [...] My father used to buy a sack of potatoes," she says, asserting how accessible and common the vegetables were. "Potatoes were a dollar a sack."

While gelatin was popular in the early through the mid-1900s, it definitely raises a few eyebrows today. Fairly cheap and simple, this Great Depression ingredient was often used to make desserts during a time when little comforts were rare and well-deserved.

Gelatin became "Jell-O" in 1902 and was available in grocery stores for those who could afford it during the Depression. Jell-O was prepared using a mold and was often combined with fruits and water, although Coca-Cola Jell-O salads were enjoyed in the South. Jell-O was also used to make pies containing more indulgent options like chocolate or pumpkin.

However, gelatin wasn't only reserved for sweet treats. There were plenty of savory Depression-era dishes that used gelatin as well, such as the infamous "Corned Beef Luncheon Salad," which contained items like canned peas and vinegar. Other gelatin salads used mayonnaise as their primary ingredient, which would most likely turn a few heads today if it appeared on the average person's dinner table.

Canned goods are still a staple in any kitchen –- they're easy to stack for tight storage, and their longevity makes them cost-effective and helps prevent waste. Families during the Great Depression heavily depended on these pantry items for sustenance during difficult times.

Although today, fresh food is often favored over canned options, food historian Jane Ziegelman explains in an interview with NPR that this was not the case in the 1930s: "[Canned food] was the miracle food. Canned foods that came in every variety and which, according to the advertisers, were made from better ingredients that were actually fresher than the fresh food that you bought at the grocery store." Americans did not focus on freshness very much until after the Depression was over, Ziegelman continues: "You can see toward the end of the 1930s the beginnings of what we might call the kind of fresh, local, and regional food movement." Common canned goods in the Depression era included soup, beans, vegetables, and corned beef.