Posted on 05/28/2016 1:22:16 PM PDT by Olog-hai
It’s one of the most divisive issues in New Jersey, one that inflames regional rivalries and spurs fierce debate among residents and lawmakers.
Is the meat in the state’s favorite breakfast sandwich called Taylor ham or pork roll? […]
One lawmaker has introduced legislation that would designate the meat, egg and cheese combination as the official state sandwich. But he concedes that a final decision on which meat name is used in the measure will have to be negotiated. …
(Excerpt) Read more at hosted.ap.org ...
I had one this morning (minus the cheese, however).
If you’re from jersey it’s pork roll. I don’t remember ever seeing anyone use another brand than Taylor.
Believe it or not, you can make it from scratch for @ $2lb. Us displaced central NJ folks have to do something. I also had to learn how to make hard rolls.
In northern NJ, I’ve always heard it called “Taylor, egg and cheese”, with no reference to either ham or pork or (save the bread roll it’s served on) rolls.
Looks good. I’ll have to give it a try.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pork_roll
It’s Pork Roll - At least that’s what it was called in every diner from Somerville to Flemington back when they had the races at the Flemington Race Track!
(Can I get the recipe for a hard roll? - Last time I went to visit, I couldn’t even find a decent bagel)
Hmm.
There’s definitely a trend - Northern Jersey calls it “Taylor Ham,” while central Jersey (where I grew up) and South Jersey call it “pork roll.”
south of 287 it’s pork roll, probably 78 actually
Never heard anyone in Middlesex County refer to it as Taylor Ham.
Except maybe far down Rt.1
Of course, ObozoMustGo is correct. Every weekend morning, thousands of New Jersey fishermen heading for their boats, party boats or surf casting secret spots line up at hundreds of deli’s, diners and even some bait and tackle shops all over the state to order the exact same thing: pork roll, egg and cheese on a hard roll. As ObozoMustGo correctly points out, Taylor is just one particular brand name for their version of pork roll. Do you ask for “facial tissue” or a Kleenex? It’s one of those products where one particular brand name has been adopted by consumers as the name of the commodity itself. Ask any fishermen in NJ “who makes the best pork roll, egg and cheese?” and you really will have a controversy on your hands!
Whoever catches the first 15 pound bluefish out of the Manasquan inlet, please think of me for a moment - an exiled surf caster from Monmouth County...
The Bennies call it Taylor ham.
Taylor ham here, in NEPA.
Pork roll
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pork roll (regionally known as Taylor Ham) is a pork-based processed meat originating and commonly available in New Jersey, Delaware and parts of Pennsylvania and Maryland. It was developed in 1856 by John Taylor of Trenton, New Jersey, and sold as “Taylor Ham”. Other producers entered the market, and subsequent food labeling regulations required Taylor to designate it as a “pork roll” alongside their competitors.
Origin and description
While a similar item, packed minced ham, may have been produced at the time of the Battle of Trenton, John Taylor is credited with creating his secret recipe for the product in 1856. George Washington Case, a farmer and butcher from nearby Belle Mead, New Jersey, created his own recipe for pork roll in 1870. Case’s was reportedly packaged in corn husks.
Taylor originally called his product “Taylor’s Prepared Ham”, but was forced to change the name after it failed to meet the new legal definition of “ham” established by the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906. Marketed as both “Taylor’s Pork Roll” and “Trenton Pork Roll”, it saw competition from products with similar names like “Rolled Pork” and “Trenton style Pork Roll”. When their makers were sued by Taylor a 1910 legal case ruled that the words “Pork Roll” could not be trademarked. In North Jersey, residents continue to use the term Taylor Ham, while South Jersey residents generally use the term “pork roll”, with Central Jersey residents using a mix of the two.
In the 1910 lawsuit, it was described 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.” Some people compare the modern article’s taste and/or texture to Treet, bologna sausage, mild salami, or US-style Canadian bacon.
Taylor and Trenton are the brand names for pork roll made by Taylor Provisions,[5] of Trenton, New Jersey. Other companies making pork roll include crosstown rivals Case Pork Roll Company[6] and Loeffler’s Gourmet,[7] as well as Hatfield Quality Meats of Hatfield, Pennsylvania, and Alderfer Premium Meats[8] of Harleysville, Pennsylvania.
Pork roll is generally sold in 1, 1.5, and 3 lb. unsliced rolls packed in cotton bag, as well as 6 oz. boxes containing 4, 6, or 8 slices. Larger rolls and packages are available for food service customers. It is also sold at delicatessens, diners, lunch stands and food trucks in the region. It has also been a staple in public school cafeterias in New Jersey.
I have never heard of this.
You can buy it online. Jersey goodness
Thanks. :) My father was from New Jersey.
It is obviously properly called pork roll. The philistines in North Jersey may refer to it as ham but that merely shows their lack of culinary sophistication. But what can you expect from a region which thinks stromboli is a pizza turnover and fails to properly prononce “capicola” as “gabagool”?
Taylor Ham.
I’m surprised I never heard of this either, even living so close. I guess the New York equivalent uses Canadian or regular bacon and leaves out the cheese, putting it on a kaiser roll.
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