Did Women Cook “3 Times a Day, 365 Days a Year” a Hundred Years Ago?

Most people eat out several times a week, and many get take-out a few additional times. This differs from a hundred years ago when a much higher proportion of meals were eaten at home. Back then, most cooking was done by women, many of whom were homemakers. I’ve often heard it said that women in the early 1900s cooked 3 time a day, 365 days a year. This is an exaggeration, but probably not too far from the truth.

A hundred years ago, people sometimes ate out – at a lunch counter,  a nice restaurant, or something in between.  From time to time, people also ate at church or community picnics or pot lucks, family reunions, or holiday gatherings – though each of the women attending probably often made one or more dishes at those events. Home-packed lunches (often packed by the women in the family) were the norm for the mid-day meal for many workers and students.

The huge number of meals that many women prepared each year back then affected which dishes were made, and how they were prepared. Tasty dishes, which were also simple to make and used readily available, inexpensive ingredients, were generally preferred. Cooks also often needed to prepare meals on a very tight budget, so they planned carefully to avoid waste. Left-overs were reheated or repurposed as an ingredient in a new dish. For example, left-over potatoes might be used to make soup.

Many people today want to eat home-cooked meals, but find it challenging. They believe that they make healthier choices when they cook at home, and that it’s less expensive. They also believe that eating together improves the well-being of family member.  But there are many reasons why a lot of people don’t often make home-cooked meals. They are busy, and it takes time to cook. Family members may not have time to eat breakfast or other meals together, and they may be exhausted at dinner time after working all day. Some may find it less stressful to eat out or buy take-out. Older individuals, who once regularly cooked, sometimes “retire” from cooking and now go out or purchase prepared foods.

I don’t advocate that we go back to cooking 3 times a day, 365 days a year (frankly, that sounds boring and exhausting), but there are many health and economic benefits from cooking more meals from scratch. A friend believes that individuals today see beautifully presented dishes on blogs, Instagram, TikTok and other social media, and that they are disappointed when the dishes they make using the same recipes don’t turn out to be the “the best ever, most amazing [insert food name].” After being disappointed a few times, they decide that it’s too hard (or stressful) to cook and shift to purchasing mostly prepared foods.

Perhaps social media needs to give cooks permission to make foods that are less than perfect. Each food cooked from scratch is a learning experience. Often, they are still quite tasty, even if they don’t look perfect.

Like so many things, balance is key.  It’s important to figure out the right balance between eating out, take-out foods, and home-cooked meals. A hundred years ago, cooks generally made tasty, simple, economical dishes. We can learn something from those cooks of yore.