# Dishes That Have Gone Out of Style? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 23, 2016, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472 "2016-12-23T19:54:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/121 "2016-12-25T03:02:56Z")
Don’t want to drag the thread too far off topic, but we did something similar the other day, from VEFA’S KITCHEN, the enormous Greek cookbook published by Phaidon. Absolutely delicious. Cut pork loin into kebabs, skewer, and season with salt, pepper, and oregano. While they’re grilling, brush some pita or naan with olive oil and set alongside to heat through. Cut the flatbreads into sections on each diner’s plate, then drizzle with a little hot stock to soften. Spoon a couple tblsp of thick Greek yogurt over the bread, then top with a portion of the grilled pork. Finally, spoon a simple tomato sauce – just garlic, oil, tomatoes, salt & pepper – over all. ---
**Author:** ![Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/85e7bf/32.png) [@Hey\_Hey\_Paula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_Hey_Paula)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 3:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/122 "2016-12-25T03:12:59Z")
> [@bobot](#): > > I was going to ask if anyone still did this one, with the potato chips on top. Yes, but with French’s French Fried Onions on top rather than crushed potato chips. I don’t make it very often anymore due to the fact that I usually end up throwing half of it out. ☹ I need to cut my recipe down by about a third, my recipe just makes too much for me and the husband. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/123 "2016-12-25T03:19:02Z")
Lobscouse. Spotted dog. Drowned baby. Soused hog’s face. Roly-poly pudding. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/124 "2016-12-25T03:27:05Z")
I’ve always wanted to try and make city chicken with actual chicken, just for kicks. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/125 "2016-12-25T03:32:46Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > actually those are pretty bogus articles. Neither my parent or I saw any of those dishes at any time, outside of a magazine ad- where we’d make fun of them. Other than Perfection Salad and other Jello salads that is, since Moms back then would put anything in Jello. > > See there’s a huge difference between “recipes some food company put in a magazine” vs “Foods Your Grandparents Ate”. I can look today and see equally crazy recipes in magazines, and know the chances of ever seeing them (let alone eating them) is minuscule. Maybe not your grandparents but it doesn’t apply to all. Some people use the phrase “like your grandmother used to make” as a compliment. That is an insult to me. Both of my grandmothers were horrible cooks. One barely cooked at all because she was usually passed out drunk or fighting with someone and the other was sweet as could be but decent cooking simply wasn’t happening unless it came straight out of a box and, even then, she still misread the directions about half the time. The nice grandmother made me bastardized versions of many foods on that list. I ate them happily because it was the late 70’s/early 80’s and we simply didn’t know any better back then. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/126 "2016-12-25T04:21:23Z")
Dishes that have gone out of style: Those delft-blue faux Chinese transferware with the gardens and bridges Depression/Carnival glass 😃 ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/127 "2016-12-25T04:33:40Z")
> [@Shagnasty](#): > > Maybe not your grandparents but it doesn’t apply to all. Some people use the phrase “like your grandmother used to make” as a compliment. That is an insult to me. Both of my grandmothers were horrible cooks. One barely cooked at all because she was usually passed out drunk or fighting with someone and the other was sweet as could be but decent cooking simply wasn’t happening unless it came straight out of a box and, even then, she still misread the directions about half the time. The nice grandmother made me bastardized versions of many foods on that list. I ate them happily because it was the late 70’s/early 80’s and we simply didn’t know any better back then. Sorry to hear that. My maternal grandmother made the best Pierogi in the world. And that is not just personal opinion, they won awards. Mind you some of her boiled to death “greens” were not so great. Farm cooking, from the Old Country. My Paternal Grandmother passed before I was born. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/128 "2016-12-25T06:16:41Z")
> [@Musicat](#): > > According to Leonard Wibberly, [long pig](https://www.amazon.com/Feast-Freedom-Leonard-Wibberley/dp/0688015689) is a favorite of Omo Lau or Omo Levi (I forget which), especially when the US VP visits. I have that book! Plus quite a number of other he wrote. Did you ever read The Seven Hills(originally titled The Testament of Theophilus)? ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/129 "2016-12-25T08:09:01Z")
> [@nightshadea](#): > > [www.midcentureymenu.com](http://www.midcentureymenu.com) > > she makes them and the husband eats them… some good and some bad and lots inedible… > > there’s dinner is served 1972 which cooked a whole recipe card collection from 1972 …now she just cooks any recipe she comes across … > **[Home - Mid-Century Menu - Vintage Recipes & Shop](https://www.midcenturymenu.com/)** > > Ruth is the creator & culinary historian of Mid-Century Menu, where she recreates mid-century food much to the delight and horror of her readers. You misspelled your link. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/130 "2016-12-25T08:27:39Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Before the advent of powdered gelatin mixes making aspic, especially one refined enough to sustain fruit and other delicate flavors rather than whatever critter it was made from, was a long, labor-intensive process only professional and upper-class kitchens with professional cooks had access to. Then you get commercially made, highly refined gelatin mixes - and suddenly even the poor could eat like the rich! > > Can’t help but think that was a factor. One of my favorite movies ever is ‘Dinner At Eight’ (1933) and ‘cook’ labors to make a molded aspic of a British Lion for visiting uppercrust Englishmen. Aspics have long been a feature of classic French cuisine, using truffles and such for decoration. They’re the kind of thing that would be served when the Prince of Wales was visiting, say, Downton Abbey. ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 9:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/131 "2016-12-25T09:34:25Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Before the advent of powdered gelatin mixes making aspic, especially one refined enough to sustain fruit and other delicate flavors rather than whatever critter it was made from, was a long, labor-intensive process only professional and upper-class kitchens with professional cooks had access to. Then you get commercially made, highly refined gelatin mixes - and suddenly even the poor could eat like the rich! > > Can’t help but think that was a factor. I’m going to call bull on this. Anyone who has ever cooked with bones knows about gelatin. Gelatin has been used as a meat preservative for a long time. Fancy “French” aspic was a fad, but meat held in gelatin was always a thing, and it didn’t need powdered gelatin. ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/132 "2016-12-25T11:24:44Z")
> [@sitchensis](#): > > I’m going to call bull on this. Anyone who has ever cooked with bones knows about gelatin. Gelatin has been used as a meat preservative for a long time. Fancy “French” aspic was a fad, but meat held in gelatin was always a thing, and it didn’t need powdered gelatin. I touched on that. Sure, making say, chicken flavored aspic is dirt simple. I’ve done it myself. The problem is making _clear, flavorless_ aspic where you could have non-chicken things floating in it that didn’t taste like they were floating in chicken goo. It required further clarifying (I think egg whites were used, possibly other things) and thus an extra step and labor. Powdered gelatin had all that labor and stuff already in it. Mix with hot water and go. Which is why modern aspic/gel recipes start with unflavored gelatin. It’s the difference between starting instructions for roasted chicken with “Go to the butcher and get a dressed, whole chicken” vs. “chase down chicken, kill, pluck, butcher…” ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/133 "2016-12-25T11:47:12Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Before the advent of powdered gelatin mixes making aspic, especially one refined enough to sustain fruit and other delicate flavors rather than whatever critter it was made from, was a long, labor-intensive process only professional and upper-class kitchens with professional cooks had access to. Then you get commercially made, highly refined gelatin mixes - and suddenly even the poor could eat like the rich! > > Can’t help but think that was a factor. Indeed it was, as confirmed by a book I have that touches on the subject. It’s a wonderful book that is sort of a combination of recipe book and Edwardian culinary history in which the authors provide recipes that try to reproduce the dishes from the surviving menus of the Titanic, relying a good deal on knowledge of the styles and cookery of the era for authenticity. They make pretty much exactly that statement as an explanation for why different kinds of aspics were regarded as such delicacies before the wide availability of commercial gelatin. **sitchensis** is certainly correct that various types of jellied dishes are not necessarily difficult to make – there is a type of traditional jellied pork dish that is common in eastern European countries, for instance, that is considered a rustic country food and has been made for ages, but this is not the same as making a refined aspic for other foods, especially delicate ones. ---
**Author:** ![Bridget\_Burke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7cd45c/32.png) [@Bridget\_Burke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bridget_Burke)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/134 "2016-12-25T14:05:41Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > I touched on that. > > Sure, making say, chicken flavored aspic is dirt simple. I’ve done it myself. The problem is making _clear, flavorless_ aspic where you could have non-chicken things floating in it that didn’t taste like they were floating in chicken goo. It required further clarifying (I think egg whites were used, possibly other things) and thus an extra step and labor. > > Powdered gelatin had all that labor and stuff already in it. Mix with hot water and go. Which is why modern aspic/gel recipes start with unflavored gelatin. > > It’s the difference between starting instructions for roasted chicken with “Go to the butcher and get a dressed, whole chicken” vs. “chase down chicken, kill, pluck, butcher…” [PBS ran _Fannie’s Last Supper_ recently.](http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=130536078) In which outgoing _America’s Test Kitchen_ host Chris Kimball hosted a dinner based on a menu from Fannie Farmer’s cookbook published at the end of the 19th century. He had a kitchen full of skilled chefs (just like on his show)–who used traditional methods. Including a wood-burning stove. The link includes the gelatin recipe made from calf hooves. Commercial gelatin was invented about that era–for households with smaller staffs. Interesting show. My own researches extend back to 1961’s edition of the _New York Times Cookbook_. Including rumaki like Betty Draper served. Some recipes are quite rich–to be reworked with less butter & cream or just served as very special treats. And they certainly cooked the hell out of spinach. Still, it’s got some fine recipes. My Grandma’s cookbooks reflect Depression poverty & Wartime rationing–so, not so fine. Although she was an excellent cook. Among items mentioned in previous posts–some will not be missed. But quiche is still popular–not as “cuisine”–but as a hearty brunch or lunch dish. Several neighborhood place prepare “fancy” deviled eggs as appetizers; one tops each one with a freshly fried oyster. Liver & onions are served at Luby’s cafeteria; they are popular soul food. Authentic Dirty Rice includes chicken livers & gizzards–alas, blander versions with only sausage or even ground beef are also common. Fancy cocktails? They are several spots featuring them–including that artisanal Tiki Bar… ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/135 "2016-12-25T14:51:37Z")
> [@Ukulele\_Ike](#): > > Deviled eggs and chicken Tetrazzini OUT OF STYLE? Bite your tongue, sir! > > You know what was weird? My Mom used to make something called “city chicken” in the '60s in Cleveland – it was veal skewered on little wood skewers, and it tasted like crap. > > At the time, veal was cheaper than actual chicken? Hard to believe these days, when veal scallopini is fetching $22 a pound at Whole Foods. my grandmother used to make it all the time. I liked it, but looking back she’d overcook it too. not completely dry, but definitely chewy. basically it’s been pretty common in cities which had large populations of Eastern European immigrants, basically the Coal and Rust Belts. My grandparents were from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. It’s traditionally made of meat scraps/trimmings which could have been anything except usually not chicken. IIRC they hadn’t moved to the ruthlessly efficient and cheap way we raise chickens today, so chicken wasn’t as common or inexpensive as now. anymore, if you find pre-assembled city chicken in a Polish meat market, it’s typically just cubed pork on a skewer. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/136 "2016-12-25T15:53:00Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > When I was a kid, we’d have Sloppy Joes maybe once a month. Does anyone make that anymore? Me too growing up. For maximum confusion, at some point in Northern New Jersey Sloppy Joe also came to mean a triple decker turkey sandwich with cole slow and Russian dressing but it will always be the Manwich type to me. I thought of another one: in the 90s you couldn’t go out to eat without seeing someone get served a Fajita served in a sizzling pan. It was a whole big production. That seems gone for a long time now. ---
**Author:** ![ioioio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ioioio/32/316_2.png) [@ioioio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ioioio)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 4:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/137 "2016-12-25T16:12:53Z")
Fajitas are available here at any Mexican restaurant, usually with choice of beef, chicken, or shrimp. Otherwise yes, the fad has passed. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/138 "2016-12-25T17:12:58Z")
Turkey tetrazzini… Chicken a la king… I thought that stuff was just made up to sell frozen dinners. ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/139 "2016-12-25T17:27:39Z")
Those dishes were, and to some extent still are standards on the “cheap banquet” circuit. Go to a county Academic decathlon banquet in a “lesser” county sometime and that’s what you will be served. Same-same at the local Oddfellows banquet. There is a trend towards healthier, less “gloppy” food, but catering menus in the hinterlands change slowly. The US Army recipe is still on the books. Serves 100. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [December 25, 2016, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472/140 "2016-12-25T18:19:31Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Sorry to hear that. My maternal grandmother made the best Pierogi in the world. And that is not just personal opinion, they won awards. Mind you some of her boiled to death “greens” were not so great. Farm cooking, from the Old Country. > > My Paternal Grandmother passed before I was born. Oh man, we had pierogies last night – using my grandmother’s recipe. Polish/Slavic food is the best. (Of course, my grandmother also used canned vegetables – yick) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472.md?page=6) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dishes-that-have-gone-out-of-style/775472.md?page=8)