scrapple

Scrapple is a savory mush in which cornmeal and flour, often buckwheat flour, are simmered with pork scraps and trimmings, then formed into a loaf. Small scraps of meat left over from butchering, too small to be used or sold elsewhere, were made into scrapple to avoid waste, a Pennsylvania Dutch tradition. Scrapple is typically made of hog offal, such as the head, eyes, heart, liver, bladder, and other scraps, which are boiled with any bones attached (often the entire head), to make a broth. Once cooked, bones and fat are discarded, the meat is reserved, and (dry) cornmeal is boiled in the broth to make a mush. The meat, finely minced, is returned, and seasonings, typically sage, thyme, savory, and others, are added. The mush is cast into loaves, and allowed to cool thoroughly until gelled. The proportions and seasoning are very much a matter of the region and the cook's taste. Commercial scrapple often contains these traditional ingredients, with a distinctive flavor to each brand, though homemade recipes often specify more genteel cuts of pork, with a consequently blander taste. A few manufacturers have introduced beef and turkey varieties. Scrapple is typically cut into thin (quarter-inch-thick) slices, pan-fried in butter or oil until the outsides form a crust, and served at breakfast, as an accompaniment to eggs. It is eaten plain or with ketchup, maple syrup, dark corn syrup, or apple butter. In some regions, however, such as New England, it is prepared by mixing the scrapple with scrambled eggs and served with toast.