The Obscure Jell-O Salad That Once Ruled Lunchtime Would Send Your Guests Running Out The Door
The times they are a-changin' — and a lot of lunches that used to be popular aren't around anymore. An old-school salad that nobody eats in the 21st century is Perfection Salad. The original recipe was created by Mrs. John E. Cook of New Castle, Pennsylvania. In 1904, Better Homes & Gardens and Knox Gelatine co-sponsored a recipe contest, and Cook's Perfection Salad took third-prize (a $100 sewing machine). Per the lore, one of the contest's judges was Fannie Farmer of the Fannie Farmer Cooking School and cookbooks.
Wobbly, savory, and gelatinous, Perfection Salad comprises a coleslaw-adjacent lineup of shredded carrots, sliced celery, shredded cabbage, chopped green bell peppers, and pimento. The ingredients themselves are normal and inoffensive, but it's the "wrapped in gelatin" aspect (or should we say "aspic" ... sorry) that's the turn-off. Still, acidic notes from the lemon juice and vinegar keep it bright, and the jiggly-crunchy textural interplay could make a whimsical way to showcase fresh produce.
To make it, an envelope of unflavored gelatin gets boiled with sugar and salt, then stirred with apple juice, lemon juice, and vinegar. From there, the toothy diced veggies are mixed in, and the whole thing gets transferred into a decorative mold and placed in the fridge to firm up. Alternatively, other preparations opt for lemon- or lime-flavored gelatin for a tangier kick. Others add chopped red bell pepper and black pepper.
Perfection Salad doesn't feel so perfect a century later
Jell-O salad was a weird yet enduring obsession that largely dominated 20th-century American food culture. Powdered gelatin packets first hit the U.S. market at the turn of the 20th century, but savory, retro Jell-O salads famously enjoyed the apex of their heyday around the 1960s, when home entertaining saw a fashionable and creative boom. By this timeline, Mrs. John E. Cook's Perfection Salad would have been a pioneer of the Jell-O salad craze, and the dish seemed to remain popular for several decades.
A Better Homes & Gardens magazine issue published in 1963 sang the praises of Perfection Salad, noting that the dish "has been a winner at the dinner table for generations ... Through the years, we have printed popular Perfection Salad many times." Of the 1904 salad's enduring fanbase, the magazine writes, "The first and second prize entries in the 'receipt' contest are forgotten, but the runner-up is here to stay" (debatable). The magazine recommends serving it as a side dish to pot roast, baked ham, or fried oysters. Cook herself suggested serving the salad sliced and topped with a dollop of mayonnaise for a touch of creamy, umami saltiness.
Fast-forward to today, however, and foodies' palates have changed. An Instagram post by retro-inspired account @june_cleavers_vintage_closet_ recreated Perfection Salad, and as the caption puts it, "Perfection Salad — we didn't find it perfect. ... All thumbs down. Oh well." Jelly coleslaw, anyone?