GUTTA
pork neck bones, or scraps from leftover pork
water
steel cut oats (aka "pin oats)  You may have to go to a health food store for
these...

Brown the pork in a large saucepan over med.high heat.(if raw) or put already
cooked pork in  the pan.  Cover with an ample amount of water and simmer until tender--several hours.  Strain the broth and chill it to solidify fat.  Remove fat from chilled broth. Remove pork meat from bones and chop finely.  Add to broth and bring to a boil. Add enough oats to cook into an oatmeal like consistency.  (This is the hard part because I have no proportions. For my 3 qt. saucepan I  use 4 handfuls of oats.  I cook like Grandma did...)   Cover and cook until oats are done and the mixture is thick.   Pour mixture into a lightly greased loaf pan and chill. Slice and dredge in flour and fry in just a bit of oil over med-low heat until crisp and golden. Makes a rib-sticking breakfast, has lots of fiber, and tastes great.

One of the largest producers of commercial Goetta is
Glier's Meats in Covington, Kentucky and Cincinnati, Ohio.
In fact, Glier's Meats bill themselves as ''the goetta people''
and the company says it is the biggest goetta producer in
the nation. It expects to sell about a million pounds of the
meat and oats product this year.

There are several theories as to its origin. One says
that Goetta is of German origin, similar to mush and almost
identical to what the Pennsylvania Dutch call scrapple.
Goetta is made with oatmeal and pork; scrapple is made
with cornmeal and pork.

One source says that Goetta, which is usually fried
as a patty or used as a stuffing, was first made as a winter
breakfast food around Hamburg, Germany, in the 1800s.
As Germans immigrated to Covington, Kentucky, and
Cincinnati, Ohio, goetta became popular there. Cincinnati
even has a Goetta Festival!

Some say Goetta (pronounced "gutta") comes from
Scrapple, a Pennsylvania "Dutch" (actually German) dish
from a neighboring state. Others say it's a frontier form of
Haggis, brought into the Ohio Valley by Scots/Irish migrants
via Kentucky.

Others believe that the Irish-oats pancakes
(actually, a polenta, or pan-fried thickened oat porridge
or mush) eaten by the Irish in Kentucky, and
sometimes enriched with humble pork (or organ meat)
scraps to make a hearty Haggis substitute, was
adapted by an Amish/German Scrapple recipe in
Cincinnati or Covington, using the Irish polenta in place
of the cornmeal polenta to thicken and stretch the meat
scraps into a cheap, high-energy meal.

One German cookbook lists its origin as mittleren
Westen der USA - the U.S. Midwest. So it could be
German-American, but not German.

Goetta has never made it far beyond the Cincinnati
area. Today, you can find goetta on the menu of many
restaurants with Cincinnati roots, such as Perkins. And
you can find it in the meat case of any area grocery,
alongside the sausage and pork brains. A 220-calorie
serving has 120 calories from fat!

The basic ingredients are meat scraps (leftover
pork, beef, or organ meat such as hearts) and steel-cut
oats (called "pinhead oats" in Cincinnati). Modern
recipes call simply for supermarket ground pork or
ground pork and beef, but traditionalists will use the
meat from boiled pork neck bones.

The steel-cut oats may be hard to find. You cannot
substitute Quaker Oats or rolled oats or any other kind
of oats (except pinhead oats) and get correct results.
Some specialty food stores, "health-food" stores, and
some upscale supermarkets carry McCann's Steel-Cut
Irish Oatmeal.

It is great by itself or with eggs for breakfast or with
a salad for lunch or dinner. Now it is even being used on
pizzas, in burritos, etc.

The recipe is easy to make, but the oatmeal will
stick if you don't stir more than occasionally.

Goetta is not what anyone would call a "health" food.

Here is the recipe that is commonly used in
Cincinnati, Ohio...

GOETTA

1 lb. ground pork
1 lb. ground beef
8 C. water
2 1/2 C. pinhead or steel coat oatmeal
1 large onion, sliced *
1 to 4 bay leaves, optional *
2 tsp. salt
Pinch of pepper

In a large pot with a lid, boil the water, add salt,
pepper and oatmeal. Cover and let cook for two hours,
stirring often.

Add the meat, onion and bay leaves. Mix well. Cook for
another hour, stirring often. Remove bay leaf.

Pour into bread pans (size doesn't matter).

Refrigerate overnight.

To serve: Slice the goetta and fry it in a little butter or
oil until crispy or just until heated through. Goetta may be
served with pancakes and eggs, on sandwiches or in place
of meat at dinner.

* Two teaspoons of savory may be substituted for the
onion and bay leaves.

Crockpot Method

Heat the water in a crockpot.

Add the oats and cook on HIGH for 1 and 1/2 hours

Add the meat, onions and spices and cook covered for
3 hours more on LOW. If it is not thick enough, then uncover
and cook a bit more until thick.

Pour into bread pans (size doesn't matter).

Refrigerate overnight.

To serve: Slice the goetta and fry it in a little butter or oil
until crispy or just until heated through.
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Goetta
Cincinnati pork-oatmeal scrapple
The origins of Goetta, a popular Cincinnati Oh./Covington Ky. breakfast food, are obscure, but it may be another excellent example of how regional cuisine is influenced by the blending of immigrant groups.
Some say Goetta (pronounced "gutta") comes from Scrapple, a Pennsylvania "Dutch" (actually German) dish from a neighboring state. Others say it's a frontier form of Haggis, brought into the Ohio Valley by Scots/Irish migrants via Kentucky. Adding to the mystery is the fact that the name "goetta" is not used anywhere outside the greater Cincinnati area.

2 lb pork sausage, ground pork and/or beef
or 4 LB neck bones
5 c pork broth or chicken or vegetable stock
or 8 c water
1½ c finely chopped onion
(1 large onion)
3 t salt
½ t pepper
½ t sage
¼ t thyme
4 bay leaves
2½ c pinhead or steel-cut oats
½ c cornmeal to thicken

Prepare The Broth and Meat Base
1. In a large stockpot or saucepan, brown the neckbones.
2. Add the chopped onion and saute until soft.
3. Cover with at least 8 c water, season with salt and pepper, add spices  and bay
   leaves.
4. Simmer for 2-3 hours until meat is tender.
5. Strain broth and reserve 5 cups.
6. Pull off meat from bones and return to stock.
7. Return onion to stock.
8. Degrease stock (best method is to chill overnight and remove solidified  fat from
   surface).
9. If using ground meat, saute meat and chopped onion in large saucepan  until
   meat is brown.
10.Season with salt, pepper, and spices.
11.Stir.
12.Add the chicken or vegetable stock.
13.Heat until boiling.

Prepare The Goetta Mixture
1. Heat the base until boiling.
2. Add the oats.
3. Stir.
4. Reduce heat, and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, one hour or until  thickened.
   If too thin, add cornmeal as necessary to achieve desired  consistency.

Prepare the Goetta
1. Spoon the mixture into lightly greased loaf pans.
2. Allow to cool.
3. Refrigerate overnight.

Finish and Serve
1. Slice or form into patties. (Surplus may be frozen.)
2. Dredge in flour if desired.
3. Fry in a small amount of hot fat.
4. Do not allow the slices to touch in the skillet or they will run together.
5. Brown each side until crisp and golden.

Serves 6
Note: Serve with eggs for breakfast, or as a polenta-like side dish, or use to make
   sandwiches.