The History of Hot Dish (2024)

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The History of Hot Dish? ›

1930: The first recorded hot dish recipe appears in the Grace Lutheran Ladies Aid Cookbook from Mankato, Minnesota. The recipe calls for two pounds of "hamburger" (i.e., ground beef), Creamette brand elbow macaroni and canned peas.

What is known, though, is that the term "hotdish" first appeared in a 1930 Mankato cookbook, published by Grace Lutheran Ladies Aid. "What's clearer is that the dish has become a symbol of Minnesotan identity," Deustch said. "That is exactly why there are so many debates over what a hotdish can be."

A concept that began as farm wives' solution to an economical meal, the first hot dish recipe recorded was in 1930 in, not surprisingly, Minnesota.

The first published recipe for hotdish was in a 1930s community cookbook published by the Grace Lutheran Ladies Aid from Mankato, Minnesota. The 90-year-old recipe was submitted by Mrs. C.W. Anderson.

Only a Midwestern staple for which every home cook has a go-to recipe waiting in their back pocket. A hotdish is essentially a casserole that typically consists of a starch (potatoes or pasta are most common), frozen vegetables, a meat, and a can of cream-of-something soup.

The Grace Lutheran Ladies Aid Cookbook, published in 1930, contains what is believed the be the first hotdish recipe ever printed. Familiar ingredients include hamburger, as the protein; macaroni, as the starch; a mix of veggies; and tomato soup, as the binder.

What Minnesotans — and some North Dakotans — call hotdish is a type of casserole, although its definition is somewhat narrower. A hotdish must be a main course, and almost always a hearty one that includes a protein, starch and at least some vegetables. It can't be a breakfast or side dish, for instance.

In Fargo, ND, a hot dish is basically a warm-ya-up, comforting casserole that's bursting with goodness. We think we hit the nail on the head with our recipe for Fargo Hot Dish. It's a layered casserole that features hearty noodles, ground beef tossed with tomato sauce, a savory cheese filling, and more.

The dish originates in the Upper Midwest region of the United States, where it remains popular, particularly in Minnesota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, and eastern Montana. Hotdish is cooked in a single baking dish, and served hot (per its name).

1930: The first recorded hot dish recipe appears in the Grace Lutheran Ladies Aid Cookbook from Mankato, Minnesota. The recipe calls for two pounds of "hamburger" (i.e., ground beef), Creamette brand elbow macaroni and canned peas. 1934: Campbell's debuts its condensed creamed soups.

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All hotdishes are casseroles, but not all casseroles are hotdishes. But the main difference between hotdish and other casseroles is where you make it. What someone in Minnesota or North Dakota would call hotdish, a person in Indiana would simply know as tater tot casserole.

Tater tot hotdish is an old-school, family-friendly Minnesota classic weeknight dinner. You might call it a casserole, but we Minnesotans call it a hotdish.

What is known, though, is that the term "hotdish" first appeared in a 1930 Mankato cookbook, published by Grace Lutheran Ladies Aid. "What's clearer is that the dish has become a symbol of Minnesotan identity," Deustch said. "That is exactly why there are so many debates over what a hotdish can be."

The appearance of monophthongs in this region is sometimes attributed to the high degree of Scandinavian and German immigration to these northern states in the late 19th century.