Homemade Scrapple

Ah, scrapple.  A Pennsylvania Dutch and Coal Region staple that people either love or hate (also found in other areas of the mid-Atlantic including  Pa, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware, and Amish communities across the country).  I love it fried crispy  and served with either ketchup or maple syrup.  

The original scrapple recipes (“Pon Haus” in Pa. Dutch) were created to eliminate waste and use as much of the butchered animal as possible so original scrapple was made of hog offal, such as the head, heart, liver, and other trimmings. Seasonings, like sage, black pepper, and others are added to broth. Buckwheat and/or cornmeal is added to create a “mush”. Buckwheat was very popular in Germany so it comes as no surprise that the Pennsylvania Dutch (Deutsch = German) preferred buckwheat for thickening scrapple.

This recipe is for scrapple lovers who would like to make their own or who are living somewhere where scrapple is completely unobtainable and they dream of having a piece once again, conjuring up memories of “home”.  Although originally created from the “scraps” left over from butchering, homemade recipes do not ask you to go to that extent to obtain the ingredients to make your own. 

This recipe uses “normal” ingredients found in today’s meat section of the grocery store. Each scrapple maker has their own special recipe that varies somewhat, but this recipe is a good starting point for you to embark on your own scrapple-making adventure.

My personal favorite way to prepare it is to slice it into 1/4 inch slices, dust both sides of the slice with seasoned flour (all purpose flour with salt and black pepper added) and fry in a cast iron pan with a little oil in the bottom. I like it very brown with a firm crust and slightly creamy interior. Do not turn until browned well or it will fall apart.

Homemade Scrapple

Recipe by A Coalcracker in the KitchenCourse: Entree, BreakfastCuisine: Pa. Dutch, Coal RegionDifficulty: Intermediate

Ingredients

• 2 pounds lean pork with bone

• 2 quarts water

• 1 tablespoon salt

• black pepper, to taste

• 1-1/2 teaspoons dried thyme

• 2 teaspoons rubbed sage

• 1 teaspoon ground savory

• 1 cup cornmeal, fine

• 1/2 cup buckwheat flour

• OPTIONAL: add a small amount of pork liver to the pork when cooking to add even more authentic flavor

Directions

• Put meat in pot, add 1-1/2 quarts of water, salt and pepper. Simmer until meat is very tender, 2 to 2-1/2 hours. Skim fat from top, strain the broth and set aside.
• Remove meat from bones and chop it very fine using a food processor or by hand.
• Pour broth into sauce pan, add meat, thyme, sage and savory and bring to boil.
• Combine cornmeal and buckwheat. Slowly stir 2 cup cold water into mixture. Then add that mix a little at a time to meat, keeping it simmering continuously. Lower heat so scrapple will not scorch, stirring occasionally and watching carefully. Stir until mixture reaches the consistency of soft mush. (wooden spoon stands up in mixture).
• Pour into two 9″ X 5″ X 3″ pans, rinsed with cold water or lined with parchment strips to help with releasing from the pan. Chill thoroughly. Remove from pans and wrap loaves tightly with plastic wrap
• To Serve
• Cut into 1/4″ or 1/2″ slices. Dredge in seasoned flour, shake off excess. Pour some oil into the bottom of the pan. On medium heat, let brown slowly, but thoroughly on one side. Flip. Repeat for other side.
• Serve with condiments of your choice.