- Categories:
- Food & Beverage
- Tags:
- Comfort Food
- Where:
- United States
- Date change rule:
- Every November 9
- Holiday emoji:
- 🥓
National Scrapple Day sizzles onto the calendar every November 9, celebrating the unique pork and cornmeal breakfast dish. Originating in the Mid-Atlantic, this comfort food transforms humble ingredients into a delicious, crispy treat. Discover its rich history, find new recipes, and share your favorite ways to enjoy scrapple today!
Want to sponsor National Scrapple Day? Learn how
Expected National Scrapple Day Deals
While we wait for official 2027 promotions to drop, history shows that local diners and breakfast spots in the Mid-Atlantic region often run specials on National Scrapple Day. Look for deals at establishments like Wawa, which sometimes features regional favorites, and family-owned restaurants such as Dinerama or Bob Evans, known for their hearty breakfast menus. Specialty butchers and grocery stores, including ShopRite and Giant Food, may also offer discounts on packaged scrapple brands like Habbersett or Rapa. We will update this page with confirmed live deals as November 9 approaches.
Platform Guide for National Scrapple Day
TikTok
Tag @www.nationaltoday.com and use #NationalScrappleDay. Film a ‘Scrapple Mukbang’ or a creative recipe video showing how you prepare and enjoy this unique dish.
Tag @nationaltoday_ and use #NationalScrappleDay. Share mouth-watering photos of crispy scrapple, perhaps alongside eggs and toast, or a gourmet twist on the classic.
Mention National Today (facebook.com/nationaltoday) and use #NationalScrappleDay. Ask your followers for their favorite scrapple toppings or memories of eating it growing up.
National Scrapple Day Hero
Pennsylvania Dutch Settlers
History of National Scrapple Day
Scrapple, also known by the Pennsylvania Dutch name, pon haus (which translates literally to “pan hare” or rabbit), is said to have been invented by German colonists who settled near Philadelphia and Chester County, Pennsylvania. As a result, you’ll find scrapple as a regional favorite around the Mid-Atlantic area.
When the recipe came to America, the buckwheat was often replaced or supported by cornmeal. For the colonizers, using local ingredients like corn was no problem as long as the meal was simple and modest and everything was used.
Created so that hungry, hard-working, prudent rural immigrants could make use of all manner of foodstuffs, scrapple originally consisted of a mixture of pork scraps, offal, and other trimmings, boiled with bones attached to make a broth, then simmered with cornmeal, wheat flour or sometimes buckwheat flour, onions, and spices like sage and thyme. The eventual loaf is then sliced and pan-fried as if it was a patty.
It was a dish born from a perspective of now wanting to see anything go to waste. While today’s scrapple – available primarily in Mid-Atlantic area grocery stores – adheres to different standards using FDA-approved animal anatomy, it is still a tasty tradition popularly served alongside sunny-side-up eggs and toast or in sandwiches. With the current trend in lighter, healthier eating, scrapple is also known to be made with turkey instead of the original pork, or with beef for a different flavor entirely. Scrapple is also appearing more and more on the menus of heritage-based restaurants in Brooklyn, NY, and beyond the Mid-Atlantic area.
National Scrapple Day timeline
Rapa, a Delaware-based company in competition with Habbersett, begins the mass production of scrapple.
Habbersett, the first brand to market scrapple, is created.
The dish is brought over by German immigrants to Pennsylvania.
The process of making dishes similar to Scrapple can be found in pre-Roman Europe
How Businesses Can Celebrate National Scrapple Day
Local diners and breakfast restaurants can create special ‘Scrapple Day’ menus, offering unique preparations like scrapple eggs Benedict or scrapple breakfast sandwiches. Butcher shops can highlight different regional scrapple brands and offer cooking demonstrations or recipe cards. Food trucks could experiment with gourmet scrapple sliders or wraps. Even local breweries might consider a scrapple-inspired brunch pairing, showcasing how this comfort food can be elevated and enjoyed in new ways while celebrating its regional heritage.
National Scrapple Day FAQs
When is National Scrapple Day?
National Scrapple Day 2026 falls on Monday, November 9, giving you the perfect start to the week with a savory breakfast. It’s a fantastic opportunity to enjoy this unique Mid-Atlantic delicacy.
What is scrapple made of?
Scrapple is traditionally made from pork scraps, often including organ meats, combined with cornmeal, buckwheat flour, and spices like sage, thyme, and black pepper. This mixture is cooked into a mush, poured into a loaf pan, chilled until firm, and then sliced and fried until crispy.
Which states are known for scrapple?
Scrapple is most closely associated with the Mid-Atlantic states, particularly Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and parts of New Jersey. It’s a deeply ingrained culinary tradition in these regions, especially within Pennsylvania Dutch communities.
How do you cook scrapple?
The most common way to cook scrapple is to slice it about 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick and pan-fry it in a little oil or butter until it’s golden brown and crispy on both sides. Many enjoy it with a slightly soft interior and a very crisp exterior.
National Scrapple Day Activities
Learn how to make it on your own
It is a bit of a process but finishes with a very tasty, filling dish. Look over the internet and find the one Scrapple recipe that resonates the most with you. Give it a try.
Pick up a good serving
Both Habbersett and Rapa are companies with years of experience manufacturing scrapple. Check out your local grocery store or online retailer and try for yourself
Look out for that festival
The Apple Scrapple Festival takes place every year in Bridgeville, Delaware. If you live nearby, it can be a fun experience for the whole family.
5 Facts About Scrapple
There is a Scrapple festival
The Apple Scrapple Festival in Bridgeville, Delaware attracts more than 25,000 visitors yearly.
Cities have their own variations.
Goetta is made with ground meat and oats and it’s popular in Cincinnati, while Livermush is eaten a lot in the South.
You can eat Scrapple Raw
Scrapple is fully cooked before pan-frying, according to most recipes.
It’s usually grey
It’s made usually with buckwheat flour, which gives it a grey color and a hearty texture
A slice of pan rabbit
Its original name stems from the words panhaas (“pan rabbit”) and skröppel (”a slice of”).
Why We Love National Scrapple Day
You can thank scrapple for Labor Day
It is said that in 1879, a union member at Philadelphia’s Panhas Packers, Rasher Liverburg, proposed a day where all the company’s workers get the day off to enjoy the scrapple they were making. “Enjoy Your Scrapple Labor Day” soon became a yearly tradition at the plant, and the idea spread across the country as a result.
It celebrates a historic dish
While the more modern roots of the scrapple can be traced to the Philadelphia area by German settlers back in the 17th or 18th century, the truth is that variants of this dish go way beyond, as similar styles of processed dishes can be found dating back to pre-Roman times.
It teaches us to make the best of what we can find
Scrapple is a dish that can teach us to take advantage of food we otherwise would not think of eating.
National Scrapple Day dates
| Year | Date | Day |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | November 9 | Monday |
| 2027 | November 9 | Tuesday |
| 2028 | November 9 | Thursday |
| 2029 | November 9 | Friday |
| 2030 | November 9 | Saturday |
Social Media Tips for National Scrapple Day
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