Livermush

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Livermush (sometimes called liver pudding) is a Southern United States food product composed of pig liver, head parts, and cornmeal. (In South Carolina Low Country cuisine, liver pudding is usually made with white rice rather than cornmeal.) It is commonly spiced with pepper and sage. Vaguely similar to scrapple, livermush was most likely brought south through the Appalachian mountains by German settlers from Philadelphia. Livermush is colloquially known as poor man's or poor boy's pâté.

Shelby, North Carolina hosts an annual Livermush Exposition, which began in 1987 to celebrate the unique delicacy. In that year the Cleveland County Commissioners and the Shelby City Council passed resolutions proclaiming that "livermush is the most delicious, most economical and most versatile of meats." Other towns in North Carolina that have livermush festivals include Drexel and Marion. Sonny's Grill in Blowing Rock, NC, now closed, was famous for its livermush.^[1]

It is commonly prepared by cutting a slice off of a prepared loaf and frying it with grease in a skillet until golden brown, similar to the way Spam is prepared. At breakfast it is served alongside grits and eggs. For lunch it can be made into a sandwich with mayonnaise or mustard, either fried as above, or left cold. As livermush's popularity has risen, it has appeared as an ingredient in dishes such as omelettes and pizzas.