Editor’s note: The following column was written by Lane Dyer, a Wilkes County native, now living in Raleigh. After graduating from West Wilkes High School, and after a few false starts, he completed a four-year tour in the U.S. Air Force. Afterwards, he returned home and graduated from Appalachian State University. Dyer spent 25 years working for the Employment Security Commission (ESC), where he held a succession of positions, retiring in 2014. Currently he works for the U.S. Department of Labor, with responsibility for programs that assist military veterans with their employment needs. He often speaks to groups about the value veterans bring to the workforce. In his spare time, Dyer enjoys writing stories and commentary, some of which is based on his life and experiences. In September 2022, he became a contributing columnist for The Wilkes Record.
By LANE DYER
Columnist
The Wilkes Record
I grew up eating Livermush.
In the 1960’s and 1970’s, it was just part of what we ate. My mother cut the thick one-pound block into slices, each about a half-inch thick. These pieces were fried until crispy on the outside, but remained soft and warm on the inside. I always had them in a sandwich with mustard, while still hot. Two pieces were a perfect size to fit between slices of “light bread,” as we called white sandwich bread in those days. I still mostly eat it this way today, except I try and use whole wheat bread now.
I know many other people consider it more as a breakfast food, and it is good served with eggs, but when I was growing up, it was a good and satisfying lunch.
Whether you eat it for breakfast or lunch, you might have wondered just what is Livermush? I will not dwell on this. Traditionally, it’s considered a pork food product made up of the liver and head parts of a pig, mixed with cornmeal, and spices like pepper and sage. Like the hot dog, your enjoyment of it is not improved by knowing exactly of what it is made.
I have been surprised over the years to find that Livermush is not well known outside a relatively small area of North Carolina. Over the years, I have occasionally asked work associates from other states, and even from eastern North Carolina, about it and have never met anyone who has heard of this food, unless they have spent time in the western part of our state.
In preparing this column, I read that if you draw a line from Charlotte northwest to Greensboro and Reidsville, those west of the line are familiar with Livermush, but after you cross that imaginary border, you will not find that knowledge.
In Raleigh, where I live these days, you cannot find it. Some grocery stores carry packages marked Liver Pudding, but even that is not widely available. Neese’s, that fine maker of sausage is the only brand I have ever found here. My casual research indicates this is not exactly the same thing.
The distinction is that Liver Pudding contains flour, along with some cornmeal. Livermush does not have flour as an ingredient, making it coarser and grainier. Truth be told, I’m not enough of a connoisseur of this wholesome liver pate to notice a big difference between the two.
Also like the hot dog, our German ancestors brought Livermush to North Carolina. It’s thought to have the same origin as Scrapple, a similar food found in Pennsylvania and the surrounding area, and favored by the Pennsylvania Dutch, who are actually of German descent, not Dutch by the way. The Amish are part of this group.
Livermush is a high protein, low fat product, that is not at all unhealthy, though frying it in grease no doubt will keep it from ever being labeled a health food. I did read that by North Carolina state law, genuine livermush must consist of at least 30 percent pork liver.
The old Smithey’s lunch counter on Tenth Street in North Wilkesboro always carried Livermush sandwiches, along with their unique burgers. The appeal of Livermush is obvious, like the Goodwill Burgers I wrote about a couple of months back. It was, and is, cheap and filling. In the 1930’s and 1940’s, a five-pound block of livermush reportedly cost around 10 cents.
My, ahem, research for this column cost $3.99 for a one-pound block, which I cut into exactly ten slices, and which made five generous sandwiches.
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Lane Dyer fried his livermush in a cast iron skillet. |
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And he made these beautiful sandwiches... |
The highly industrialized area, including Wilkes County, where Livermush is still found today had many, many factory workers who needed a solid lunch meal to get them through their long, hard day’s labor. Livermush was a staple of both lunch counters and lunch pails.
Like our factories, Livermush has been in something of a decline in recent years. Perhaps it needs a makeover for a true revival. For those who did not grow up with it, making a compound word out of liver and mush does not sound very appealing. It certainly does not do justice to the crispy, savory sandwich meat that I know and love.
Beginning in 1987, Shelby, North Carolina, in Cleveland County, northwest of Charlotte, started hosting an annual Livermush Exposition called Mush, Music & Mutts. Mark your calendars, the next event will be held on October 21st, 2023.
By the way, my good friend, Jerry Lankford, tells me that The Fork in the Alley in Downtown North Wilkesboro makes a fantastic Livermush Sandwich, if you are suddenly craving one. "I like mine with coleslaw and tomato on a big hamburger bun," Lankford said, adding, "It's one of the best sandwiches I've ever eaten."
