Some of the greatest recipes are those that have been passed down through generations, but there are also some dishes that should stay firmly in the past. We're talking about the sickly casseroles and multi-coloured ‘salads’ from your grandma’s vintage cookbooks, and the mid-century promotional recipes that involved copious amounts of Spam, Jell-O and Cool Whip (sometimes in the same dish). Here, we've rounded up the most outlandish culinary creations from a time when processed food was king and showy presentation was a given – counting down to the most horrifying dish of all.

Click or scroll through our gallery to discover 43 nightmarish retro recipes we wish we could unsee. Would you eat any of these today?

We've based our ranking on the shocking nature of each recipe, and on the opinions of our well-travelled (and well-fed) team. The list is unavoidably subjective.