The Great Depression was triggered by several factors, including the stock market crash of 1929, but the entire nation felt its effects. Employment was drastically reduced, with almost 25% of the country out of work, and salaries were cut for those who still had jobs. Food was scarce, starting at the supply chain source where drought led to the Dust Bowl, causing mass destruction of land and crops, and grocers struggled to keep shelves stocked.
Lack of resources led to resourcefulness and Americans got creative by inventing new and imaginative ways to put food on the table. Basic pantry staples like bread, milk, eggs, and flour were not readily available. Once common breakfast items were no longer affordable, and the American diet was reborn. Inexpensive foods like Wonder Bread, Bisquick, and Cream of Mushroom soup were introduced.
To compile a list of foods people ate during the Great Depression, 24/7 Tempo used sources such as the Daily Meal, Eat This, Not That, Hunger to Hope, The Travel, and Historynet. Here’s our list of recipes, most of which aren’t worth repeating in our modern era.
This post was updated May 23, 2025 to reflect additional information.
1. Bacon roll-ups
- What it is: Stale bread cubes bound with egg and wrapped with bacon
2. Baked apples
- What it is: Cored apples filled with cinnamon-sugar mixture, then baked
3. Baked beans
- What it is: Navy beans slow-cooked with molasses and sometimes bits of pork (the basis for many common dishes at the time)
4. Bisquick
- What it is: A mix of baking ingredients initially meant for biscuits, but later repurposed for pancakes, dumplings, etc.
5. Cabbage soup
- What it is: Soup of cabbage, potatoes, onion, and bacon
6. Chili
- What it is: Cheap chili with crackers (which were free) at chili joints around the nation
7. Chocolate cream pie
- What it is: A simple dessert made with cocoa powder and sugar
8. Cornbread
- What it is: Made only with cornmeal, salt, and hot water
9. Creamed chipped beef on toast
- What it is: Toast covered with chopped dried beef in white sauce
10. Dandelion salad
- What it is: Dandelion leaves, often picked wild, soaked in clean water and rinsed, then dressed
11. Depression cake
- What it is: Fruit, nuts, spices, and flour (no milk, sugar, butter, or eggs because they were too expensive or hard to obtain)
12. Deviled eggs in tomato sauce
- What it is: Stuffed eggs covered with tomato sauce
13. Hoover Stew
- What it is: Stew with cooked macaroni, hot dogs, stewed tomatoes, and canned corn
14. Kraft Macaroni and cheese
- What it is: At just 19 cents a box, this iconic Kraft product was an instant hit when it was introduced in 1937
15. Meatless loaf
- What it is: Loaf made with peanuts, cottage cheese, and oatmeal or rice
16. Milkorno
- What it is: A product made from powdered skim milk, cornmeal, and salt, often eaten as hot breakfast cereal
17. Mulligan stew
- What it is: Similar to Irish stew, made with carrots, potatoes, cabbage or lettuce, and meat if it was available
18. Onion soup
- What it is: Onions, potatoes, and green beans simmered in milk
19. Peanut Butter Bread
- What it is: Made with peanut butter instead of butter or eggs, which were too expensive
20. Peanut butter-stuffed onions
- What it is: Onions stuffed with peanut butter and bread crumbs and baked
21. Potato candy
- What it is: No-bake treat also known as Depression candy, made of mashed potatoes, peanut butter, and powdered sugar
22. Potato pancakes
- What it is: Made of grated potatoes only; cheese, garlic, and onion were optional
23. Potato soup
- What it is: Made with potatoes, onions, salt, pepper, a bit of butter and milk
24. Prune pudding
- What it is: Chopped prunes (cheaper than other fruits) simmered with cornstarch, sugar, and cinnamon
25. Rice pudding
- What it is: Dessert made with white rice, milk, egg yolks, and sugar
26. Spaghetti with bacon
- What it is: A one-pot meal in which bacon was the substitute for meatballs
27. Spaghetti and carrot casserole
- What it is: Spaghetti with boiled carrots and a white sauce baked in the oven
28. Spam
- What it is: Canned processed pork product
29. Split pea pancakes
- What it is: Soaked and chopped split peas with a bit of flour and egg, sometimes served with tomatoes or sauce of some kind
30. Split pea soup
- What it is: Split peas boiled with onion, maybe some ham, and spices
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Glane23 / Wikimedia Commons.