Those were the days?: EATING IN THE UK... - Lung Conditions C...

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Those were the days?

wowsa profile image
23 Replies

EATING IN THE UK IN THE FIFTIES

* Pasta had not been invented.

* Curry was an unknown entity.

* Olive oil was kept in the medicine cabinet

* Spices came from the Middle East where we believed that they were used for embalming

* Herbs were used to make rather dodgy medicine.

* A takeaway was a mathematical problem.

* A pizza was something to do with a leaning tower.

* Bananas and oranges only appeared at Christmas time.

* The only vegetables known to us were spuds, peas, carrots and cabbage,

anything else was regarded as being a bit suspicious.

* All crisps were plain; the only choice we had was whether to put the salt on or not.

* Condiments consisted of salt, pepper, vinegar and brown sauce if we were lucky.

* Soft drinks were called pop.

* Coke was something that we mixed with coal to make it last longer.

* A Chinese chippy was a foreign carpenter.

* Rice was a milk pudding, and never, ever part of our dinner.

* A Big Mac was what we wore when it was raining.

* A Pizza Hut was an Italian shed.

* A microwave was something out of a science fiction movie.

* Brown bread was something only poor people ate.

* Oil was for lubricating your bike not for cooking, fat was for cooking

* Bread and jam was a treat.

* Tea was made in a teapot using tea leaves, not bags.

* The tea cosy was the forerunner of all the energy saving devices that we hear so much about today.

* Tea had only one colour, black. Green tea was not British.

* Coffee was only drunk when we had no tea….. and then it was Camp, and came in a bottle.

* Cubed sugar was regarded as posh.

* Figs and dates appeared every Christmas, but no one ever ate them.

* Sweets and confectionery were called toffees.

* Coconuts only appeared when the fair came to town.

* Black puddings were mined in Bolton Lancashire.

* Jellied eels were peculiar to Londoners.

* Salad cream was a dressing for salads, mayonnaise did not exist

* Hors d'oeuvre was a spelling mistake.

* The starter was our main meal.

* Soup was a main meal.

* The menu consisted of what we were given, and was set in stone.

* Only Heinz made beans, any others were impostors.

* Leftovers went in the dog.

* Special food for dogs and cats was unheard of.

* Sauce was either brown or red.

* Fish was only eaten on Fridays.

* Fish didn't have fingers in those days.

* Eating raw fish was called poverty, not sushi.

* Ready meals only came from the fish and chip shop.

* For the best taste fish and chips had to be eaten out of old newspapers.

* Frozen food was called ice cream.

* Nothing ever went off in the fridge because we never had one.

* Ice cream only came in one colour and one flavour.

* None of us had ever heard of yoghurt.

* Jelly and blancmange was only eaten at parties.

* If we said that we were on a diet, we simply got less.

* Healthy food consisted of anything edible.

* Healthy food had to have the ability to stick to your ribs.

* Calories were mentioned but they had nothing at all to do with food.

* The only criteria concerning the food that we ate were ... did we like it and could we afford it.

* People who didn't peel potatoes were regarded as lazy so and so’s.

* Indian restaurants were only found in India .

* A seven course meal had to last a week.

* Brunch was not a meal.

* Cheese only came in a hard lump.

* If we had eaten bacon lettuce and tomato in the same sandwich we would have been

certified

* A bun was a small cake back then.

* A tart was a fruit filled pastry, not a lady of horizontal pleasure.

* The word" Barbie" was not associated with anything to do with food.

* Eating outside was called a picnic.

* Cooking outside was called camping.

* Seaweed was not a recognised food.

* Offal was only eaten when we could afford it.

* Eggs only came fried or boiled.

* Hot cross buns were only eaten at Easter time.

* Pancakes were only eaten on Pancake Tuesday - in fact in those days it was compulsory.

* "Kebab" was not even a word never mind a food.

* Hot dogs were a type of sausage that only the Americans ate.

* Cornflakes had arrived from America but it was obvious that they would never catch on.

* The phrase "boil in the bag" would have been beyond our realms of comprehension.

* The idea of "oven chips" would not have made any sense at all to us.

* The world had not yet benefited from weird and wonderful things

like Pot Noodles, Instant Mash and Pop Tarts.

* We bought milk and cream at the same time in the same bottle.

* Sugar enjoyed a good press in those days, and was regarded as being white gold.

* Lettuce and tomatoes in winter were just a rumour.

* Most soft fruits were seasonal except perhaps at Christmas.

* Prunes were medicinal.

* Surprisingly muesli was readily available in those days, it was called cattle feed.

* Turkeys were definitely seasonal.

* Pineapples came in chunks in a tin; we had only ever seen a picture of a real one.

* We didn't eat Croissants in those days because we couldn't pronounce them,

we couldn't spell them and we didn't know what they were.

* We thought that Baguettes were a serious problem the French needed to deal with.

* Garlic was used to ward off vampires, but never used to flavour bread.

* Water came out of the tap, if someone had suggested bottling it and charging treble for it

they would have become a laughing stock.

* Food hygiene was all about washing your hands before meals.

* Campylobacter, Salmonella, E.coli, Listeria, and Botulism were all called "food poisoning."

* The one thing that we never ever had on our table in the fifties …. elbows.

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wowsa profile image
wowsa
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23 Replies

oh.... before my time..... :)

Good one,bought back memories!! xx

Loved it so many memories, had a good laugh at the muesli one so true. I will c & p it and put it on my desktop for a reminder when I'm feeling low. xx

CyprusPat profile image
CyprusPat

Never laughed so much before 10 am before. Brought back so many memories just loved the raw fish one :)

music profile image
music

very good and so true

Mm, and the top of the milk on your cornflakes (when they caught on, of course)

phillips1 profile image
phillips1

wowsa

It is only reading your blog that made me realise how much our country (sorry, what was our country) has changed. Life was much simpler then in many ways. Bobby

wowsa profile image
wowsa in reply to phillips1

I too have got to the age where I look back and remember with fondness the old times. We had respect for other people - the doctor, the teachers, the police. I only called close friends by their Christian name. On the other hand, I appreciate heating my home at the touch of a button, the washing machine and dryer which, if loaded carefully, save me the job of ironing, choice of food, computer and, joy of joys, my bus pass!!

peege profile image
peege

I love the tea cosy one and I remember about 1965/6 having Vesta Prawn Curries and feeling like the bees knees - Fray Bentos (exotic name Bentos) a pie in a tin! And, it was full of real meat, no grizzly bits or scrapings :-)

wowsa profile image
wowsa in reply to peege

I have a Fray Bentos pie in a tin in my store cupoboard. Couldn't resist buying it! My husband and I used to wait until the girls were in bed on a Saturday night and treat ourselves to a Vesta meal. There again, I got two for one the other day. I won't be bothering with the second. It was vile!!

peege profile image
peege in reply to wowsa

God, do they still make them or is it 40 years old? I didn't know Vesta still exist either!

copdber profile image
copdber

Some were before my time some brought back happy memories.

For me, 50s were a happy, exciting time. I didn't take much notice of what I ate, food wasn't that important as long as I wasn't hungry. Remember sharing ham and chips with another student nurse. We were hard up.

letys profile image
letys

You have a good memory and a great sense of humour but if you were from Wales you'd know that seaweed rolled in oats (lava bread) fried in bacon fat with some freshly gathered cockles was a real breakfast treat.

wowsa profile image
wowsa in reply to letys

I didn't compose this letys. I pasted and copied it from elsewhere. I get sent lots of funnies and hope the ones I post on here will distract or amuse fellow COPD-ers.

lavender1 profile image
lavender1

Very funny and so true. Thank you wowsa! Liked the soup being the main meal, in some parts of Scotland so too was porridge (salt only added, unheard of to add sugar).

sillywitch profile image
sillywitch

Oh dear what a blast from the past & may they come whizzing back, along with teachers who teach, doctors who do home visits & policemen worthy of the name :) thanks wowsa

xxxx

I am old enough to remember ration books and being given my first banana. Asking for batter scratchings at the chippy - couldnt aford a fish. That was dads Friday treat when he brought home his weekly wage packet. Joyce

letys profile image
letys

keep them coming wowsa, brought back many happy memories.

Just read to my mum she says one thing wrong - leftover food was eaten the next day and called bubble and squeak , and one thing to add - the doctors did not close for the weekend they just came to your house. :)

in reply to

forgot to add we both enjoyed reading :) :)

KingoftheCocktails profile image
KingoftheCocktails

I had that in my emails yesterday.was going to post it tonight.It's very good

Oh, I did enjoy reading this. .At 58 I have a soft spot for this kind of nostalgia. Thanks wowsa! Seeing some youngsters on roller blades the other day brought to mind the fun I used to have in the early 60's. My own roller skates were adjustable by means of a key which when loosened made them longer or shorter. And of course the skates were attached to the shoes we already had on our feet :-D

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