The Once-Popular 1930s Sandwich That Was Born Out Of Necessity

Have you heard of ham salad sandwiches before? If so, you may have asked yourself: What is ham salad? It's not your typical greens kind of salad, that's for sure. It's usually made with diced ham and used like a pate or meat spread. However, in the 1930s, when America was in the grip of the Great Depression, people just didn't have the means to buy ham. They had every other ingredient needed, though. Enter: the mock ham sandwich. To this day, you have easy access to the cheap deli meat you can turn into a creamy, old-fashioned salad. It's bologna; the very same bologna that likely graced your lunchbox as a kid, right alongside the standard white bread and Kraft American cheese. 

In essence, this recipe is the same as a standard ham salad, but just substitutes the ham with bologna or even Spam. Back in the 1930s, bologna often used less desirable cuts of meat or organ meat, which you can still find in cheaper bologna brands to this day. This spread is still sometimes eaten, especially in the Southern states, and is sometimes just called bologna salad. 

It also retains some similarities to the dish known as Olivier salad, a mix of vegetables, ham, mayo, onions, eggs, and pickles commonly attributed to Russia or Ukraine. Yet pork is pork, and despite the differences in quality, mock ham salad scratched the itch of a comforting classic that many people craved.

These days, mock ham salad sandwiches have been relegated to the history books, primarily existing as one of 16 old-school sandwiches hardly anyone eats anymore. But "hardly" doesn't mean "no one." There's still a thriving mock ham sandwich-eating subculture, and you, too, can make your own pretty easily. You just need sweet relish, Miracle Whip, diced white onion, and bologna, diced or minced into fine pieces. Mix these ingredients together, spread it on a sandwich, and you're good to go.

Since we're not living in the 1930s anymore, you can and should gussy up your mock ham salad sandwich in whatever ways you want. Dill relish helps cut down on the sweetness of the sandwich, and using a different mayo may also reduce the sweet-leaning flavor profile. Kewpie is a good one for richness and vinegar-y tang. Green olives can add acidity and salt in the same way, as can slapping a few of your favorite potato chips between the filling and bread for more crunch and salt. You can't go wrong with Dijon mustard either, spread thinly across the bread or mixed into the spread itself. These ingredients will take this sandwich from Depression-era fare to a lunch you may just find yourself coming back to.