# Jersey Pork Roll (Taylors Ham) with Pics



## couger78 (Jul 31, 2011)

My wife & her family are all from New Jersey and practically every time her relatives come west to Calif, they bring several rolls of tangy pork roll (a.k.a. "Taylor's Ham"). You cant get it out here so for my wife & sons, its a real treat. One can order online & have it mailed, but the shipping is killer ($$!). So.....I decided to give it a try. I know a number of members have used Len Poli's recipe so that's the one I used.

Onward.....

Got the pork. Ten pound batch so got plenty of pork shoulder plus 3 pounds of good hickory-smoked bacon; both well-chilled.
	

		
			
		

		
	








Not a lot of ingredients. Deviation from the recipe: I used ECA for the 'tang' rather than a culture.







Ground the bacon with a fine plate (3mm); the 7 pounds of pork shoulder went through a 4.5mm plate.

Ingredients in & well-mixed.







What to stuff? I have a few synthetic casings on hand, but came across several never-been-used muslin bags I use when I roast coffee beans. The size of one is approximately the size of the Taylor hams. "Sweet Maria's" is where I buy my green coffee beans (local). Wound up with one muslin chub and a 24" long syn. red roll.







Plan was to give the rolls about 90 minutes to 2 hours of hickory smoke (like the bacon) and slowly increase the temps until the IT reached 155°. Note to SELF: keep rolls under 24" or they wont fit in the smoker! As it was, a tight squeeze...







Put the pork rolls in about 8:00 am. Temp at 120°. Added smoke after about 90 minutes & gave it about 2 hours of hickory. Increased temps progressively up until I hit 165°. Kept it there until the IT reached 155°—which happened *16 (!) hours* later about 1:00 the following morning. Next time may do a poach & cut my time waaaaaaaay down.

Into an early morning ice bath:







Let the rolls sit overnight in the fridge. 

Next morning, time to slice 'em up!













Into the pan for a quick fry:







The Results: The flavor is VERY close to the target 'ideal' (Taylor's Ham); probably NOT as salty as the commercial brand; nice tanginess to the slices and tasty smokiness ("bacon-y"). Makes a great sandwich in the morning and a HUGE step above products like SPAM & the like. So far, it's been well received by the family taste-testers.

—Kevin


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## rdknb (Jul 31, 2011)

Looks very good


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## roller (Jul 31, 2011)

Nice job that look very interesting ....


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## SmokinAl (Jul 31, 2011)

Looks delicious!


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## meateater (Jul 31, 2011)

Excellent.


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## fpnmf (Jul 31, 2011)

That looks great!!

Bet it's good cold on a cracker too!!

  Craig


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## tiki guy (Aug 1, 2011)

OH MY GOD !      I LOVE Taylor Ham !  I lived in North Jersey for a while , and absolutely LOVE that  stuff !    I hate when people compare it to SPAM   its is NO WAY the same .. That looks fantastic     I love Taylor ham egg and cheese on a hard roll and a side of french Fry's    Last time I went to Jersey I had to stop and get one first thing .


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## Bearcarver (Aug 1, 2011)

Kevin,

That is an excellent job you did there!!!

It looks exactly like Taylor Pork Roll, and I have loved that since I was a kid.

Back in the 60s, the only sammies I ever ordered around my home town was Pork Roll, Pork BBQ, and Cheesesteaks!!!

Nice job & great thread!!

Bear


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## couger78 (Aug 4, 2011)

Already down to the last 2 pounds of a ten pound batch........
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Gonna be time for another batch real soon.

I was checking the monetary savings of DIY Taylor pork roll versus what I've done in the past (ordering by mail from NJ):

10 lb roll of *Taylor Ham* (@ $7.67/lb) = $77.00 plus $42.00 shipping  =* $119.00* (or almost *$12.00 a pound!*)

7 lb pork shoulder (@$1.89/lb) = $13.23

3 lb bacon (@$4.30/pound) = $12.90**  totals: *$26.13* (or $*2.60 a pound*)

using the 'cheaper' bacon:  totals: *$17.23 *(or *$1.73 a pound*)

*_*I have since found 3lb packs of bacon end pieces for $4.00 ($1.33/lb) which is the way to go rather than spend $$ on the 'premium' bacon slices I used in this batch._

Obviously I'm not taking into consideration my time & effort, or the cost of other ingredients (which I already have on hand), but you cant put a price on the enjoyment of making a quality food product that you & your family enjoy.


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## tiki guy (Aug 4, 2011)

WOW ! Thats great wanna sell some and ship it to Virgina ????


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## venture (Aug 4, 2011)

Another great post!  Sure did make me hungry!

Good luck and good smoking.


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## boykjo (Aug 4, 2011)

awesome taylor ham.......... thats some good stuff....................
	

	
	
		
		



		
		
	


	





Joe


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## inkjunkie (Dec 26, 2014)

Bit dusty in here....as a Jersey native I am truly glad I stumbled on this thread. Taylor Ham is not available near where I live...it can be found at Fry's grocery chain in AZ. Wife's family all still lives in AZ but shipping is a bit pricey....plus where is the fun in THAT? If the OP is still a contributing member on this kick ass site I would like to express my deepest gratitude for starting this thread....


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## Bearcarver (Dec 26, 2014)

Thanks for bumping this up, Ink!!!

Cougar is still around & has always made great Sausages.

I love Pork Roll & can get it locally here, but it is really expensive.

If you happen to drop by, Cougar, can you tell me if you had to adjust your cure in the mix because 3 of the pounds were already cured (Bacon) ??

Thanking you in advance,

Bear


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## inkjunkie (Dec 26, 2014)

No problem Sir. This is on the list of things to learn. When I lived in Jersey I used to go to this little deli in Whippany with my now Ex...2 Taylor Ham egg & cheese sandwiches with 2 cups of coffee...hell of a breakfast for $5


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## bill ace 350 (Dec 27, 2014)

Definitely going to try this.... can be found from time to time in the stores,  but making it wold be a fun project.


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## inkjunkie (Dec 31, 2015)

Will be trying to make my own....someday. But for now....


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## tropics (Dec 31, 2015)

This looks like it made my never ending list longer.

Richie


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## inkjunkie (Dec 31, 2015)

inkjunkie said:


> Will be trying to make my own....someday. But for now....


hmmm....where did my link go??
Wife recently bought me 3 Taylor Ham chubs. Shipping from Jersey was only $12.95. If anyone is interested in where she got it from please contact me...guessing a link to a retailer who doesn't rape folks on the shipping is not permitted...so much for freedom of speech...and trying to be helpful...


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## bill ace 350 (Jan 1, 2016)

Couger78 said:


> My wife & her family are all from New Jersey and practically every time her relatives come west to Calif, they bring several rolls of tangy pork roll (a.k.a. "Taylor's Ham"). You cant get it out here so for my wife & sons, its a real treat. One can order online & have it mailed, but the shipping is killer ($$!). So.....I decided to give it a try. I know a number of members have used Len Poli's recipe so that's the one I used.
> 
> Onward.....
> 
> ...



Want to try this very soon.  Could you share the quantities of all the ingredients?  Looks great!


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## inkjunkie (Jan 2, 2016)

Bill Ace 350 said:


> Want to try this very soon.  Could you share the quantities of all the ingredients?  Looks great!


http://wedlinydomowe.pl/en/viewtopic.php?t=6212


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## bill ace 350 (Jan 2, 2016)

Thanks Inkjunkie!


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## todd mossman (Sep 27, 2016)

Could you share the quantities of all the ingredients?


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## geo315 (Jun 3, 2017)

Just found this thread.  Oh yea going to try it. you bet.  Went to the len poli site for the recipe.  Ordering up the casings I need. Thanks for this info. Geo.


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