The 1970s - heaven or hell?

Duck59

Duck59

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Defining eras by decades is not terribly scientific - the early 1970s saw the tail end of the hippy era and by the end of the decade, punk had more or less exhausted itself. It is, though, convenient to divide time into decades, so let's have a look at the 1970s in food and drink terms.

The general feeling is one of overall naffness. There must have been some good things, but it's easier to remember a whole heap of things were were not good. "Not good" is heavily understating the case in the following examples.

Soda siphons: wheeled out at Christmas in an attempt to make bad whisky taste half decent.
Liebfraumilch: another Christmas delight, delivering horrible wine to the masses.
Pot noodles: "instant" was everywhere and unbelievably, these abominations are still with us.
Boil in the bag curry: dear God.
Instant mashed potato: awful beyond measure (and that was just the adverts).
Arctic roll: sickly vanilla ice cream with a thin veneer of jam stuffed into sweet cake. Oh, yummy.
Keg beer: a crime against humanity. Think Double Diamond, Worthington E and Whitbread Tankard.

Please feel free to expand the list of 1970s evil. Even better, think of something that was good.
 
I disagree with two items on your list.

Firstly, I actually like instant mash! And yes, this is me who adores fine food and eating in Michelin starred restaurants. I wouldn't pretend instant mash was anything like making mash from scratch, but it has a flavour I'm partial too occasionally. Its also a very handy store cupboard ingredient. You can add it to home made soups and sauces as a thickener. You can also use it mixed with seasoning as a substitute for breadcrumbs to coat foods for frying. Believe me, this really works! Nigella has also used it to make gnocchi!

Secondly, I have fond memories of Artic Roll! I still rather like it. Its that retro feel which has become rather chic. :D Jamie Oliver has a recipe:
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/recipe/retro-arctic-roll/#xgBBOCDQbFfFUZjf.97
 
retro.jpg
 
There was a sense of things getting better in the seventies [here in the UK at any rate] the moon landings had just happened and all the remains of the war were finally over. Sorry to the downbeaters but as a young man in the seventies I had a reasonable job - so did most of my friends, [and NO difficulty in finding another if I wanted it and I am not a university educated genius], cash in the pocket, a car [ok I had to maintain it but with a bit of care they were ok]. I could afford clothes records and a night out. The music was fun - none of this deep meaningful hippy trash and medical science seemed to be advancing in great leaps. As for food well ok not the best BUT the whole accent was on trying new things - some worked some didn't [I agree about the pot noodle though]. Further there was always the £5 meal deals that for some reason people find amusing these days yet when asked 1 - do you like prawn cocktail [go on be honest] OR melon 2 - do you like steak 3 - do you like chocolate cake and cream OR cheese + coffee strangely most seem to say yes.
If we look at now - meals out cost a lot more - jobs are hard to find [if you are lucky] - technology’s highest goal seems to be the creation of either a thinner mobile phone or another operating system for our computers we don't really need and although the choice in supermarkets is vastly increased there seems to be many more people depending on foodbanks for basic meals. Are we much better off ?
 
sidevalve said:
There was a sense of things getting better in the seventies [here in the UK at any rate] the moon landings had just happened and all the remains of the war were finally over. Sorry to the downbeaters but as a young man in the seventies I had a reasonable job - so did most of my friends, [and NO difficulty in finding another if I wanted it and I am not a university educated genius], cash in the pocket, a car [ok I had to maintain it but with a bit of care they were ok]. I could afford clothes records and a night out. The music was fun - none of this deep meaningful hippy trash and medical science seemed to be advancing in great leaps. As for food well ok not the best BUT the whole accent was on trying new things - some worked some didn't [I agree about the pot noodle though]. Further there was always the £5 meal deals that for some reason people find amusing these days yet when asked 1 - do you like prawn cocktail [go on be honest] OR melon 2 - do you like steak 3 - do you like chocolate cake and cream OR cheese + coffee strangely most seem to say yes.
If we look at now - meals out cost a lot more - jobs are hard to find [if you are lucky] - technology’s highest goal seems to be the creation of either a thinner mobile phone or another operating system for our computers we don't really need and although the choice in supermarkets is vastly increased there seems to be many more people depending on foodbanks for basic meals. Are we much better off ?
Click to expand...

I like prawn cocktail and always have.

I was born Sept 1970 so cannot vouch for much of what you said regarding that era but I do agree with the rest, we have progressed so far yet seem to be going backwards regarding supermarkets throwing away so much food when there are people who need to use a foodbank. Are we better off is a very good question.
 
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sidevalve said:
There was a sense of things getting better in the seventies [here in the UK at any rate] the moon landings had just happened and all the remains of the war were finally over. Sorry to the downbeaters but as a young man in the seventies I had a reasonable job - so did most of my friends, [and NO difficulty in finding another if I wanted it and I am not a university educated genius], cash in the pocket, a car [ok I had to maintain it but with a bit of care they were ok]. I could afford clothes records and a night out. The music was fun - none of this deep meaningful hippy trash and medical science seemed to be advancing in great leaps. As for food well ok not the best BUT the whole accent was on trying new things - some worked some didn't [I agree about the pot noodle though]. Further there was always the £5 meal deals that for some reason people find amusing these days yet when asked 1 - do you like prawn cocktail [go on be honest] OR melon 2 - do you like steak 3 - do you like chocolate cake and cream OR cheese + coffee strangely most seem to say yes.
If we look at now - meals out cost a lot more - jobs are hard to find [if you are lucky] - technology’s highest goal seems to be the creation of either a thinner mobile phone or another operating system for our computers we don't really need and although the choice in supermarkets is vastly increased there seems to be many more people depending on foodbanks for basic meals. Are we much better off ?
Click to expand...

Yes, the 70's were pretty good to me too. It was a time of rapid change and that included the food scene. In the UK, foreign travel became more accessible to 'ordinary people' and there was much experimentation with 'new' ingredients, such as garlic and olive oil! I have some good cookery books from that era. Of course there was an awful lot of rubbish food too. But then, isn't that the case now? Unless you count Vesta curry, which remarkably is still on sale, convenience food didn't really exist.

Now, the amazing thing, is that Vesta are still in business and their product, more or less, still looks like it did thirty years ago. And it tastes the same, too. I followed the instructions down to the letter; adding the powder to a saucepan, topping it up with cold water, and then simmering it gently for- I think- fifteen minutes, twenty six and a half seconds. The result was, as Her Majesty might have said, "surprising": a watery, saline mess, studded with dried-up, bullet-like peas suffering from an identity crisis; the sheer horror of it all (almost as bad as being a participant in an Hieronymus Bosch tableau vivant) still lingering in my befuddled and confused brain to this day.
Click to expand...
http://lukehoney.typepad.com/the_greasy_spoon/2008/07/taste-the-myste.html

Its made (or owned and distributed) by Premier foods who also make Angel Delight (now we're talking!. Oh the sheer pleasure of Butterscotch Angel Delight ) and SMASH (instant potato). :D
 
The first home food processor was introduced in the early '70s by Robocoup, which was also Cuisinart back then. By the early '80s, everyone and their brother were making them! :wink:
 
Shermie said:
The first home food processor was introduced in the early '70s by Robocoup, which was also Cuisinart back then. By the early '80s, everyone and their brother were making them! :wink:
Click to expand...
Brother made food processors!!
 
Things weren't that bad in the 70's. You can now buy ready made mashed frozen potatoe in Iceland, (the shop not the country) and it tastes quite good. People always tend to think that things whatever it is gets better with time and it's not true. If things food wise are so good now, why do we have an epidemic re obesity, and people with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, and a whole lot of other health problems.


There weren't the slew of ready made, high salt, hight fat, high sugar ready meals, convenient meals that the shop shelves are awash with now. Yes there were problems re fried food etc, but every generation has its problems. These days, it seems its all about frozen something that you can throw in tne oven or microwave for half an hour. In the 70's, we still went to the butchers, the bakers, the fish markets, and vegetable shops and bought our food according to the season. Now everything is processed to within an Inch of its life. Carrots have to be straight. Every potato has to be the same size, meat is injected with water and antibiotics and growth hormones and god knows what else. No wonder kids are now so much taller heavier and generally bigger than kids in the 70's.

as with every generation and every decade, there are always good and bad things. Its about how we as individuals decide to live and eat that is the main thing.
 
Boil in the bag fish dinners. I remember them way too well. I think there were 2 flavours (in our household anyway, white sauce with herbs in it and a. n. other...) Yuck

Sliced banana and live yoghurt also entered our household during that time (shudders)

The hi fibre diet... (mother's latest diet fad...)

Rice salad - my favourite of the health food craze (could have been very early 80s)
 
Power cuts, three day weeks, bread shortages.
Queueing outside a shop at 8 in the morning, hoping they'd actually get a delivery that day.
As one of five, we were able to cover the local shops.
 
SatNavSaysStraightOn said:
Boil in the bag fish dinners. I remember them way too well. I think there were 2 flavours (in our household anyway, white sauce with herbs in it and a. n. other...) Yuck

Sliced banana and live yoghurt also entered our household during that time (shudders)

The hi fibre diet... (mother's latest diet fad...)

Rice salad - my favourite of the health food craze (could have been very early 80s)
Click to expand...
My mother had the fad of making yoghurt in the trendy 70s yoghurt maker , we had it all the time for what felt like months !
 
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