Pork roll
question is a notable element of New Jersey culture, and the division over what name one uses divides the state along roughly north–south geographic regions.
[10] George Washington Case, a farmer and butcher from nearby Belle Mead, created his own recipe for hickory-smoked pork roll in 1870.
[9] Following the Civil War, in the later 1800s, the American meat-packing industry experienced dramatic growth, bringing meat products like pork roll to rapidly growing urban areas.
[10][9] The 1910 legal opinion[12] which established "pork roll"[13] as a generic term described the product as: a food article made of pork, packed in a cylindrical cotton sack or bag in such form that it could be quickly prepared for cooking by slicing without removal from the bag.Both the "cylindrical cotton sack" and vacuum-sealed sliced forms are widely available in the region.
[15] For some time, Taylor also made "Taystrips",[16] which was the same kind of meat, but shaped into rectangular strips, similar to bacon or sizzlean.
"[19] Bryson and Haynie wrote "Think Spam, but pork roll is leaner, has a hint of smoke, subtly different spices — and it doesn't have the goo or come in a can.
[19][10][22] It is also eaten in many other ways, such as Taylor ham burgers (pork roll with beef on a burger bun), Taylor ham pancakes, and local items such as the "Shamewich" sold by a retailer in Montclair which is a pork roll, egg, and cheese sandwich with the bread replaced by buttermilk pancakes.
[10] Other recipes that it is incorporated into include the "Jersey Burger",[23][24] a pork roll Monte Cristo,[21] or a variation on deviled eggs.
[28][2] On May 15, 2016, President Barack Obama gave a commencement speech at Rutgers University's 250th graduation ceremony in which he referenced the "Taylor Ham vs. pork roll debate", saying, "I come here for a simple reason – to finally settle this pork roll vs. Taylor Ham question...I'm just kidding...There's not much I'm afraid to take on in my final year of office, but I know better than to get in the middle of that debate.
"[29] A 2014 survey of restaurant menus by documentary filmmaker Steve Chernoski found that the north–south dividing line was not quite as characterized, with restaurants in Monmouth County using the name "Taylor ham", which Chernoski hypothesized was the result of either northerners moving to beachfront properties, or restaurants catering to their tourist markets; a "Down the Shore Taylor Ham" product being sold south of Driscoll Bridge; and the main split being further south than Chernoski expected it to be, in Somerset and Middlesex Counties around the Raritan River.
[26] The 7th annual Pork Roll festival was scheduled for 2020,[38] but was delayed and ultimately cancelled due to the COVID pandemic.
[39] A Vegan Pork Roll Festival was held in 2015, on the same day as the other two, in Gandhi Garden on Trenton's East Hanover Street.
[45] The Jersey Shore BlueClaws minor league baseball team holds a Pork Roll, Egg, and Cheese Race at the end of the fourth inning of every home game.
Episode 9 from Season 7 of the television program Bizarre Foods Delicious Destinations[47] featured pork roll as a Jersey Shore specialty.
On October 28, 2020, Montana gubernatorial candidate Mike Cooney released a video of former New Jersey governor Chris Christie on the app Cameo.
