Porcupine Meatballs: The Rice-Studded Comfort Food
Picture tiny rice grains poking out of meatballs like quills on a porcupine – that’s exactly how these charming little spheres got their name. The uniquely-named dish consisted of rice-filled meatballs cooked in a tomato sauce while retaining their rice grains which resembled porcupine quills. The meatballs gained widespread popularity among American families during the 1940s through 1950s. What made this dish brilliant was its ingenious way of stretching expensive ground beef with affordable rice.
These weren’t your ordinary meatballs – they were budget-friendly genius disguised as dinner. While there are numerous mouthwatering meatball recipes, porcupine meatballs stood out for their ability to stretch ground beef with rice, making them a frugal yet flavorful option during lean times. This 1960s classic, Ground Beef Porcupine Meatballs is the ultimate comfort food! The ingredients are simple, the sauce is absolutely amazing and it’s perfect for dinner any day of the week!
Salisbury Steak: America’s Forgotten “Health Food”
Don’t let the fancy name fool you – Salisbury steak wasn’t born in an upscale restaurant but from one man’s obsession with meat as medicine. Salisbury steak is basically a Hamburg patty, which became popular in New York City during the 19th century when German immigrants brought over the recipe. Dr. James Henry Salisbury then adapted the recipe as a health food dish. This doctor believed that a diet of mostly meat could cure all sorts of ailments, though thankfully we’ve moved past that particular medical theory.
Despite its fancy, gourmet name, Salisbury steak is more of a hamburger smothered in rich brown gravy than an actual steak. While it’s delicious in its own right, diners expecting to cut into a thick, juicy steak may be surprised to find a ground beef patty hiding under the gravy, which is typically made with mushrooms. Over the years, Salisbury steak became a lunchroom staple and had a starring role in TV dinners, which became popular in the 1950s. Despite its humble origins, this dish deserves a comeback for busy weeknight dinners.
Calico Beans: The Colorful Church Supper Star
Nothing says potluck perfection quite like a bubbling pot of calico beans, named after the multicolored coat of a calico cat. It’s not clear exactly when the dish was invented, but it was wildly popular at potlucks and church dinners in the Midwest, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s. The dish gets its name from the medley of beans and meats that give it various hues, similar to the coat of a calico cat. Some folks called them cowboy beans, but no matter the name, they were always the first dish to disappear at community gatherings.
While family recipes for calico beans vary considerably, the dish typically includes ground beef, canned pork and beans, bacon, onions, and an assortment of canned beans like kidney beans, butter beans, and navy beans. All of that gets simmered in a barbecue-style sauce featuring ingredients like ketchup, brown sugar, cider vinegar, and mustard. The beauty of this recipe lies in its flexibility – you could throw in whatever beans you had on hand and still end up with something spectacular.
Hamburger Pie: Betty Crocker’s Brilliant Creation
Long before impossible burgers, there was the impossible hamburger pie – a dish that magically formed its own crust while baking. Hamburger pie is an old-school classic that uses ground beef in a rather fun way. It’s widely believed that this forgotten pie became popular after it was published in a Betty Crocker cookbook. The “impossible” version was even more fascinating because it literally created its own bottom crust from a simple Bisquick mixture.
What made hamburger pie so appealing to fifties families was its practicality and economy. Hamburger pie was admired back in the day for being a great way to stretch ingredients like ground beef while using up leftover veggies. Plus, the dish was easy to prepare. Thankfully, cooking up this forgotten ground beef dish is simple – and it can still be made with cost-effective ingredients. You can also customize the pie almost any way that suits.
Tater Tot Casserole: The Ultimate Midwestern Comfort
Before tater tots became a trendy restaurant side dish, they crowned the ultimate Midwestern comfort casserole. That’s because a while after tater tots came around in the ’50s, they featured in this wholesome casserole that became a staple in many American kitchens in the following decades. In Minnesota, they don’t even call it a casserole – it’s a “hotdish,” and that distinction matters to locals.
This one-pan dinner is simple to assemble using a few basic ingredients, and makes a warm and satisfying meal. While there’s more than one way to make this casserole, many recipes contain a mixture of ground beef and cheese topped with golden-brown tater tots. Plus, the dish was originally meant to make the most of low-cost ingredients when money was tight. This is why the old-school recipe was simple and used ground beef – and for the same reason, the traditional version needs a revival today.
Chow Mein Casserole: The Crunchy Fusion Fantasy
Long before fusion cuisine became trendy, American home cooks were creating their own East-meets-Midwest masterpieces with chow mein casserole. Chow Mein Casserole, also known as Minnesota Hotdish or Chow Mein Hotdish, is 1960s classic midwestern casserole comfort! This ground beef and rice casserole with creamy soup and a crunchy chow mein noodle topping is super easy to throw together or can be made ahead and frozen! The dish represented the American dream of making exotic flavors accessible and budget-friendly.
What made this casserole special wasn’t authenticity – it was pure comfort food innovation. The combination of ground beef, rice, cream soup, and those irresistibly crunchy chow mein noodles on top created a texture party in your mouth. It was the kind of dish that made weeknight dinners feel special without requiring a trip to the grocery store for exotic ingredients.
Johnny Marzetti: The Ohio Original
Named after a real Columbus, Ohio restaurant owner, Johnny Marzetti became the unofficial state casserole of Ohio long before anyone thought to make it official. Johnny Marzetti is a comforting casserole, consisting of noodles, tomato sauce, ground beef, cheese, and sauteed vegetables. This wasn’t just another pasta casserole – it was a cultural phenomenon that spread from Columbus to church suppers across the Midwest.
The genius of Johnny Marzetti lies in its simplicity and satisfying nature. Unlike its more complicated Italian cousins, this casserole could be thrown together with pantry staples and still taste like a million bucks. It represented the best of American comfort food – hearty, cheesy, and guaranteed to feed a crowd without breaking the bank.
Grape Jelly Meatballs: The Sweet and Savory Sensation
Nothing says retro party quite like a chafing dish full of glossy, sweet-and-sour meatballs glistening under the kitchen lights. Sweet and savory BBQ Grape Jelly Meatballs are a classic 1960s party appetizer. Learn how to make homemade meatballs with this easy recipe! Or, save time and use frozen meatballs instead for a quick 3-ingredient dish. The combination might sound bizarre to modern palates, but trust generations of party hosts – this stuff works.
Cocktail meatballs used to be all the rage at potlucks and dinner parties. They were often slathered in a sticky, sweet-and-sour sauce and served with toothpicks for easy pick-up and eating. You’d often see them served alongside other finger foods like deviled eggs and party ryes. All you need to do is season some ground beef, roll it into mini meatballs, and simmer the meatballs in a sauce made with equal parts grape jelly and ketchup or chili sauce.
Hamburger Casserole: The Original One-Pot Wonder
When it comes to classic ground beef dishes, it doesn’t get more old-school than hamburger casserole. Even though the ingredients that go into this comforting recipe are basic, they blend together in perfect harmony. You can’t go wrong with this beefy, cheesy, creamy goodness, which can be traced back to at least the 1940s. This was the dish that taught America that comfort food didn’t need to be complicated to be completely satisfying.
The best part about this meal is that it can come together in just about 30 minutes, and will please a crowd of kids and adults alike. Since it’s filled with ground beef and cheese, it’s also ideal for those on a high-protein diet, or anyone wanting to stay full longer. The beauty of hamburger casserole was its flexibility – you could use whatever pasta shape you had on hand and whatever cheese was in the fridge.
Cabbage Rolls: The Eastern European Emigrant
Old-fashioned cabbage rolls offer an ideal way to get your greens, even if you’re typically not a fan of them. Also known as “pigs in a blanket” in some regions, cabbage rolls are said to have originated in Eastern Europe, and each country has its own regional variation of them. These little bundles of joy brought Old World comfort to New World kitchens, transforming humble cabbage leaves into edible presents.
What made cabbage rolls so appealing to Depression-era and post-war families was their ability to turn a small amount of ground beef into a filling meal for many. The cabbage provided bulk and nutrition, while the beef and rice filling delivered satisfaction. Plus, they could be made ahead and frozen – a huge advantage for busy mothers juggling families and sometimes jobs outside the home.
American Goulash: The Midwestern Makeover
American Goulash is an easy, one-pot, classic comfort food from the 1910’s made with ground beef, tomatoes, and macaroni noodles. Enjoy year-round, and delicious leftover, this irresistible Goulash Recipe is guaranteed to win over even the pickiest eaters! Don’t confuse this with Hungarian goulash – American goulash is its own beautiful beast, born from immigrant traditions but adapted for American palates and pantries.
The brilliance of American goulash lies in its simplicity and ability to stretch ingredients. Nobody can resist a saucy, classic ground beef casserole despite its Depression-era origins. A Midwestern dish of pasta, mozzarella, and cheddar cheese textures that create an outstanding meal. This was the kind of dish that could feed a family of six with a pound of ground beef, some noodles, and whatever vegetables were on hand.
