Have you ever looked back on history and wondered about how things have changed over time? How have they stayed the same in many ways? How similar or different are things today compared to when your grandparents were children?

Food is one of the interesting topics to watch as the trends change from decade to decade. An indicator of the state of the world, as well as influenced by changes in technology and globalization, food trends are as informative as they are fun to watch. 

So what have the last several decades looked like in America when it comes to food trends? 

The 1950s 

Post-war America saw many changes as the country returned to its new normal with soldiers returning home from war, women leaving their jobs to return home, and innovators returning to creating new tools for the next generation. Processed food and convenience foods became popular, with processed meats like Spam and canned tuna becoming staples of the decade and of casseroles. Casseroles themselves became widely popular, sometimes taking an hour to make, and incorporated a variety of ingredients. The main idea was to make cooking easier for families, so making food easier to cook or able to be eaten faster became the highlight of the decade.

A desire to try new flavor combinations grew. Sweet and savory combinations were the most popular, with pineapple appearing in both dessert and main dishes. It was used to complement meals like ham or grilled chicken and was the star of desserts like pineapple upside-down cake. It also became one of the popular ice cream flavors of the time in combinations like cherry pineapple. Gelatin was paired with fruit to make salads, such as ambrosia salad. Gelatin also became a minor art form, with people using molds to create a visually striking dessert or side dish. 

An interest in international food also began to grow, with the focus primarily on Chinese-American and Italian-American foods. The traditional food from across the ocean was often tweaked to fit American tastes and preferences, but as our country became more connected with the rest of the world so did the desire to try new and exciting flavors.

The 1990s

The 90s built upon the desire from previous decades to enjoy global cuisines and flavors. “Authentic” food from countries like Thailand, Mexico, and the Mediterranean was some of the most popular. Dishes including balsamic vinegar, sun-dried tomatoes, and pesto became mainstream. Other “authentic” options included Caesar salads and Chinese chicken salads. 

Options for home cooking still leaned towards convenience and comfort foods. Casseroles moved to new flavors, away from the Spam and the tuna varieties of the 50s, but they still maintained popularity, especially when combined with canned soups.

Those of us who remember the 90s may remember the amount of bright, vibrant colors in places like fast food restaurant carpets and bedroom sets. The food followed this trend, in both color and the intensity of the flavors, as seen in the variety of sodas, ranging from clear to bright green “rocket fuel” types. Candies had fruity and sour combinations like sour apple and “Toxic Waste”, as well as traditional British sweets and “fizz” candies. Desserts were innovated by creating molten chocolate lava cakes and fun options like dirt cups and pudding pops.

Despite the popularity of comfort foods and brightly colored sodas, another trend of this decade was the obsession with low-fat and fat-free foods. Those who wanted to lose weight but still enjoy a sweet snack gravitated towards cookies, snack cakes, yogurt, and other foods labeled as “fat-free”.

The 2010s

The overriding trend of this decade was the focus and demand for health foods. Tired of the over-processed and over-sugared food options available to them, Americans began really looking at the ingredients in their foods and wanting something with simpler, cleaner ingredients. Activated charcoal, which would turn food a striking black color, was added to foods like ice cream and cocktails. Bone broth was popularized by certain health groups, with some people adding it to their coffee or hot chocolate or even drinking it alone for the perceived health benefits. Perhaps the poster child for the decade, avocado toast became a staple, appearing first in a restaurant in Australia and quickly gaining popularity, especially among Millennials.

Beverage flavors also followed the health trend, with matcha powder finding its way into lattes and teas. Kombucha, a fermented drink, became a popular health drink, as did hard seltzers, because of their lower-calorie options.

Pumpkin spice, a flavor we associate with fall, appeared everywhere in this decade, ranging from donuts to coffee creamers. Bacon was used in desserts, giving them a salty and fatty flavor to balance out the sugar taste. And “unicorn” food, food that was bright and colorful and usually rainbow colored, became a viral sensation through the rise of social media, showing rainbow bagels and cakes. 

Food trends have continually evolved the same way, from soldiers returning with stories of meals overseas, to home cooks adapting “exotic” ingredients like pineapple or Chop Suey into something Americanized, to today’s viral mashups spreading across TikTok in minutes. The ingredients may change, but the pattern stays the same: curiosity, adaptation, and creativity.

So what does that mean for the future? Will the 2020s spark another wave of inventive fusion like past generations, or will nostalgic comfort foods make the strongest comeback? And what might the favorite dish of 2050 say about the world we’re living in?