Easy Pork Livermush (Scrapple/Liver Pudding)

I love scrapple, which is made from the leftover “scraps” of pork which often means the headmeat and organs. I first had it a few years ago, during a trip to Atlantic City, where it caught my eye on an unassuming diner breakfast menu. I had never heard of it before, which is a shame because I imagine my breakfasts would have looked very different had I knew about this scrumptious breakfast meat. I dislike waste, which means I prefer to eat all the parts of an animal, usually down to the marrow, so this particular recipe is best for people who want to minimize how much of an animal is thrown out.

If you don’t like liver, it might not be for you since it is made with it. I hesitate to call this a scrapple recipe, since I’m not using additional meats and organs—instead, this would be closer to its cousin: Livermush or liver pudding.

I know that doesn’t sound appetizing but if you love pate, it would be right up your alley. Originally I had planned to make use of the lamb liver I received with my lamb order from R&K Homestead, but I made a mistake and defrosted the pork liver I got from them instead. I used the chicken and pork gelatin broth I have frozen for other applications (such as my soup dumplings and ramen) for the liquid which would usually be made from the head of a pig (along with the meat picked clean) but you can use pork trotters instead. It will be the liquid the other part of this recipe, cornmeal, absorbs. Of course, I’m lazy so I used instant grits, which makes this particular recipe take about 20 minutes rather than hours.

I like frying the slices in the air fryer, and serving it with grits and eggs, or toast (in the image, I actually used my homemade hokkaido milk bread—shokupan), grilled tomatoes, and eggs. Evidently it is sometimes served with grape jelly or mustard on biscuits, which I will endeavor to try one day.

DO be aware that too much liver is a bad thing—as you can get vitamin A poisoning (ask me how I know) so eat responsibly! The upper limit is about 3oz a day.

Ingredients

• 1lb pork liver
• 1 cup instant grits (or cornmeal)
• 2 cups pork broth (or pork trotters boiled down to 2 cups broth, with meat)
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/2 cup onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tablespoons dried sage
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2 tablespoon chili powder
• Salt and pepper to taste

1. Sauté onion and garlic in butter until fragrant. Set to the side.
2. In a pot over medium high heat, boil the liver in the pork broth until cooked.
3. In a blender, combine all the onion/garlic, spices, and the liver/pork broth. Return to pot, bring to a simmer.
4. Add instant grits and flour and cook until grits have softened, stirring frequently to prevent burning. Pour into a loaf pan and cool in the fridge. Slice and fry when using.