Scrapple

Ingredients

Meat

• 1.5 kgpork shoulder and pork bones
• 500 gpork liver, optional
• 2 litreswater
• 1onion
• 2bay leaves
• 1 tbspsalt

Grains

• 300 gcoarse yellow cornmeal
• 100 gbuckwheat flour, traditional in some counties

Seasoning

• 2 tspdried sage
• 1 tspdried thyme
• 1 tspground black pepper
• 1 tspground coriander
• ½ tspground clove
• ½ tspnutmeg
• salt, to taste

To fry

• bacon fat, lard or oil

To serve

• maple syrup, ketchup or apple butter, which people argue about
• eggs

Directions

1. Simmer the pork shoulder and bones with the onion, bay and salt for about 3 hours. Cook it until the meat falls apart completely, because it is going to be shredded to nothing. If using liver, add it only for the last 30 minutes.
2. Lift everything out and strain the broth, keeping about 1.5 litres. The fat is what makes scrapple fry to a crisp crust and stay moist inside, so do not degrease it thoroughly. Pick every scrap of meat off the bones and chop or shred it very finely. Chop it fine. Scrapple should be a smooth dense loaf, and any large piece of meat makes a slice fall apart in the pan.
3. Bring the measured broth back to a simmer and season it well with the sage, thyme, pepper, coriander, clove and nutmeg. Sage is the dominant flavour and it should be pronounced, which is what distinguishes scrapple from plain cornmeal mush.
4. Taste the broth and get the salt right now, because you cannot season it once the grain goes in. Pour the cornmeal in slowly while whisking without stopping. Tipped in at once it goes lumpy immediately and never smooths out.
5. Add the shredded meat and stir it through. Now cook it on the lowest heat for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring often. Cook it long enough that the cornmeal loses its raw grittiness, which is the fault of a rushed scrapple. It is ready when a spoon stands up in it and it pulls away from the sides of the pan.
6. Pack it into loaf tins lined with cling film, pressing out air pockets. Press it down firmly. Smooth the top, cool it, then refrigerate overnight. Turn it out and cut slices about 1 cm thick. Thinner slices break up in the pan and thicker ones never crisp through, so 1 cm is the working thickness.
7. Heat fat in a heavy pan over a medium heat and lay the slices in. Now leave them completely alone for 6 to 8 minutes. Turn once, when a deep brown crust has formed and the slice releases from the pan by itself. If it sticks when you try to lift it, it is not ready.
8. Fry the second side another 5 minutes. The result should be crisp and dark outside and soft, almost creamy, inside. Serve it hot with eggs, and with syrup, ketchup or apple butter depending on which county you come from.

Technique

• Commercial scrapple, principally Habbersett and RAPA, is a Delaware Valley institution.
• The loaf keeps a week refrigerated and freezes well sliced.
• Buckwheat is traditional in some Pennsylvania counties and cornmeal alone in others.

Substitutions

• Pork shoulder alone, without liver or offal, which is milder.
• All cornmeal, if buckwheat flour is unavailable.

Variations

• Made without liver, which many prefer.
• With buckwheat, as in parts of Pennsylvania.
• Goetta, the Cincinnati relative made with steel-cut oats.

History

Pennsylvania Dutch settlers brought panhaas, a German way of using every part of the hog; recipes were printed around Philadelphia by the 18th century.

Frequently asked questions

What is Scrapple?

Scrapple is a breakfast from United States: loaf of pork scraps and cornmeal, sliced and fried crisp for breakfast. Pennsylvania Dutch settlers brought panhaas, a German way of using every part of the hog; recipes were printed around Philadelphia by the 18th century.

How long does Scrapple take to make?

Scrapple takes 40 min plus overnight chilling of preparation and 4 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 2 loaves. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Scrapple?

Yes, within limits. Pork shoulder alone, without liver or offal, which is milder. All cornmeal, if buckwheat flour is unavailable.

What is the most important thing to get right in Scrapple?

Lift everything out and strain the broth, keeping about 1.5 litres. The fat is what makes scrapple fry to a crisp crust and stay moist inside, so do not degrease it thoroughly. Pick every scrap of meat off the bones and chop or shred it very finely. Chop it fine. Scrapple should be a smooth dense loaf, and any large piece of meat makes a slice fall apart in the pan.