Did the wartime generation salt their food more than we do today?

During WW2 I understand that there was a significant shortage of onions/spices/herbs in much of the UK. So a lot of recipes/food relied on salt for flavour.

Salt certainly featured more in my childhood than it does today. My mum always added it to the saucepan and it was there on the table as well. I don’t think she uses much salt nowadays - as others have commented, food was much blander in war and post-war days so maybe it was required to make food palatable. I almost never use salt apart from when making my own bread. Dh has that Lo-salt version.

It didn’t do my parents any harm, dad lived into his 90’s and my mum is now in her 90’s.

I often wonder how chefs must feel if they see diners liberally shaking salt on their food before they have even tasted it.
I have seen so many people in restaurants doing just that.

I remember reading once about a top executive who used that method to weed out potential job applicants!

Strange I know but I grew up in a home where there were no condiments either in the larder or on the table. As a result I loathe salt, pepper, mustard, vinegar, ketchup, mayonnaise, salad dressing etc. People think I’m very odd sometimes!

My Mother's generation always put a hefty pinch of salt in when cooking vegetables, and salt and pepper were used at the table. I don't do either; I love freshly ground black pepper and sprinkle that liberally over my meals, but salt is used only on scrambled eggs- and then just a light sprinkle. I think you enjoy the true flavour of food without too much seasoning.

My Granny lived for 5 years under German Occupation in Guernsey. Salt ran out very early on. They had to boil seawater away until it left the salt. I think that generation were heavy on salt compared to today.

Yes because people found the food bland .whereas today most people buy frozen veg and that already has salt in it.so you don't need anymore

I was only discussing this with dh yesterday, we both remember our mother’s chopping a salt block, the size of a house brick and stored in a large salt pot and yes salt was added to everything. We rarely add salt as vegetables are steamed cooked, but we do use plenty of black pepper.

I don’t use much salt at all but it is on the table if we have people round for supper (remember when that used to happen!)
I prefer it if the diner tastes the food before using the condiments but whatever??‍♀️.
I do find that I get very thirsty when eating out as, usually, restaurants use a lot more salt than I do.
My grandmother and mum always salted the veg and then dolloped butter on top.

Good lord, Grandmamaoftwo, wonder how I totally forgot the salt block of my childhood! I was allowed to use a big blunt knife to break it up and put it into a crock by the cooker.

We use loads of spices and flavours and herbs etc., now in our cooking and very little salt, (sea salt now), but loads of black pepper. We have unsalted butter always and I now couldn't eat the wonderful Welsh and Breton butter which I always loved many years ago - it's obviously just something that your palate gets used to. Salt is no longer the flavouring which was so important in previous generations when there would have been little knowledge about the possible health issues. I'd agree that automatically seasoning food on a plate without trying it first, is just a bad habit - and a crazy thing to do eating away from home - too much seasoning could immediately ruin a meal!

It's true that the sense of taste does fade with advancing years - I saw that when preparing meals for my own Mum : at 103 she was no longer able to appreciate anything with a subtle flavour.

We do have to increase our salt intake in the summer though, because of the heat and loss of salts which can make one feel very peculiar!

I have diabetes and have been told to NOT have salt on or with my meals. They taste AWFUL. I guess it helps, as I can't eat much of anything, so I'm gradually losing weight. My mother and grandmother always put salt in their cooking, as well as having it available on the table. I have never pre-salted my food, either when cooking or eating, but I did enjoy eggs and potatoes with salt. Nothing tastes the same now!

I use low salt in my cooking and add black pepper to my meals ..must admit I find potatoes tastless without a bit of low salt added .

moggie I don’t think most people eat frozen veg. I never do!

The only time I use salt as a condiment is on a dippy egg. In cooking I use a little when I'm cooking finely chopped onions as it helps them to turn transparent -apparently!

I buy frozen peas! (I thought everyone did)
I'm just off to check the packet as I didn't realise frozen veg had salt in it.

I had just watched 2 episodes of Ina Garton, not only does she cook with huge amounts of salt ,she also adds Sea salt on the top of the cooked dishes before she serves them.

My DH is allergic to peas!

I find a lot of chocolate very salty. Galaxy in particular, but other brands too.

I like a bit of salt on fried mushrooms, or yes, chips, but I virtually never have those. That's about it.

After I was married I gradually gave up using salt when I was cooking vegetables. It was quite a shock to go back to my mother's and find that her vegetables were nearly inedible because all I could taste was salt. My father was one of those who pour salt all over their food before they've even tasted it. To be fair he had lost most of his sense of taste after he had flu.

My mother and my maternal grandmother always added salt when cooking vegetables. And my maternal grandfather added more salt at the table. Grandma lived to early 80s and granddad to 91. I never stayed with the other grandparents but I expect they used salt. I stopped adding salt to veg when the DDs were being weaned because they always ate what we were eating (within reason!). I now add a little salt when boiling potatoes but not to any other veg. DH and I never add salt at the table.

My uncle had kidney problems and salt was removed from his diet. The only thing he couldn't manage without it was potatoes.

Far fewer interesting flavours and spices available back in the day, I would guess. So salt would add some zing to potentially bland food.

My father used to say “You need more salt!” to my mother, who suffered night cramps. I don’t know if that is true or whether sea salt (which I use in moderation) makes much difference against ordinary salt?

I reckon 99% of people use frozen peas, Callistemon!

I do love a real pea but I don't grow them and never see them anywhere.

As for salt, my Grandma was in her 40's during the war. She would put salt in all vegetables and there would be salt and pepper on the table. In the cutest pots which I still have!

She also would toss a salad with a small amount of sugar!

Not sure if that was just her.

My job when I was a child was shelling the peas.
That's why I like frozen ones.