FOOD
K-Rations to SPAM
Post-WWII America Reveled in Canned Meats
By Leitha Matz
As the 1940s drew to a close, America’s women retired from their wartime Rosie the Riveter jobs and the government released a generation of young men from foreign duty. One might assume these war-weary Americans would pile their plates with fresh meats and produce. After all, they’d subsisted for years on coupon-book grocery allotments and the Army’s canned field rations.
Instead, postwar America embraced a world of prepared foods. Canned meats, frozen veggies, and Minute Rice promised familiarity and convenience – benefits that stood head-and-shoulders over the labor-intensive nourishments of previous generations.
Meats had been available in metal containers since 1810, but the late 1940s and early 1950s launched a new boom. Seasoned canned meats such as SPAM, Prem, Treet, Snack, and the pastel-pink “deviled ham” from Underwood’s red-devil-covered tins were only a few of the highly processed comfort meats postwar families avidly consumed.
"Only 12 different varieties were available before the war, but postwar shelves will boast 40 varieties,” American Cookery magazine gushed in 1946. "Foods formerly manufactured solely for Army use will now be put on the civilian market.” Although G.I.’s called it “ham that failed the physical,” Hormel’s SPAM – a simple product of chopped and spiced gelled ham packed in convenient, shelf-stable cans – gained a global audience – the most popular of the canned meats on the market.
The same government propaganda agencies that convinced half of America’s female population to work outside the home during the war now extolled the virtues of domesticity to ensure that war veterans could return to their jobs. Recycled homemakers, no longer wishing to spend all day in the kitchen, looked to SPAM and the like for speed and efficiency.
Better Homes & Gardens told its readership: "It's just 1-2-3, and dinner's on the table. That's how speedy the fixing can be when the hub of your meal is delicious canned meat,” and its editors were far from alone in their fervor for speed and efficiency. The postwar public adopted military-style food manufacturing with gusto, purchasing canned meats like never before. By 1959, Hormel had sold more than 1 billion cans of its chopped and gelled pork.
Yet if postwar media and advertising campaigns focused on canned foods as liberating godsends for the harried housewife, old notions equating women’s worth with their domestic prowess still lingered in hearts and minds. What could a postwar homemaker do to cement her family’s ardor while retaining her newfound freedoms? Culinary creativity proved to be the answer, spurring a decade known less for the originality of its cuisine than for inventive dishes constructed with altered versions of packaged goods.
A prime example of creative food doctoring, “Deviled Ham Spread,” became one of the era’s fashionable treats in sandwich spreads and party dips. Period magazines and cookbooks invariably recommended using canned, deviled ham as a timesaving main ingredient, and the Good Housekeeping Cook Book’s 1959 edition went so far as to offer purchasing suggestions: "Deviled ham comes in large and small cans. Keep both on hand, so you won't have to open 2 small cans when 1 large one is just right."
While modern cooks might bristle at the thought of using a canned-meat proxy, they may forget that we enjoy the benefits of timesaving blenders and food processors that were uncommon 60 years ago. Without canned, processed ham, the homemaker of the late 1940s would have doubled or tripled her preparation time hand-chopping ham pieces to a smooth, spreadable texture.
Deviled Ham Recipes
The 1946 edition of Irma S. Rombauer’s The Joy of Cooking featured two Deviled Ham Spread variations:
Deviled Ham Spread I
Combine:
2 1/4 ounces deviled ham
1 tablespoon finely chopped celery
1 finely chopped hard-cooked egg
Moisten: 1/4 teaspoon curry powder with: 1/2 teaspoon olive oil
Add these ingredients to the ham mixture with enough mayonnaise to make a good consistency to spread. Season with salt, if needed, and paprika.
Deviled Ham Spread II
Combine: Equal parts of deviled ham and cream cheese.
Season with ketchup.
As a modern take on the recipe, I use freshly cooked cooked ham. I find its a great way to use up leftover scraps. I’ve added some mustard and mango chutney (I like Major Gray’s), and a dash of cayenne pepper to compensate for spice that the canned deviled ham would have added to the mix. The version here is just as quick to make as the original if you use a high-powered blender or food processor, and since you control the spice additions, you can decide how much heat you can handle.
Deviled Ham Spread redux
1 cup cooked, diced ham
1 finely chopped hard-cooked egg
2 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1 Tbsp mango chutney
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon finely chopped celery
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper, or to taste
1 Tbsp sliced scallion or chopped parsley, if desired for garnish
Pulse ham, egg, mustard, chutney, and mayonnaise in blender or food processor until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and stir in celery. Season to taste with cayenne.
Sprinkle garnish over spread and serve with toast points, pita wedges, crackers, or flatbread.
