Seems like there’s a lot of places which have their own signature sandwich. They range from Philly Cheesesteak to Louisiana PoBoys to San Diego Fish Tacos to Cuban Sandwiches in Tampa or Milwaukee Bratwurst. A trip to one of these cities isn’t complete until you’ve tried it’s special concoction.
I lived for a number of years in Iowa. If there’s any distinction there it’s that the food tends to be a bit more bland than in a lot of other places. You’re not going to find any local dishes that are spicy. Sometimes it’s like you should carry around one of those tiny bottles of Tabasco Sauce just to kick things up a bit.
But that’s Iowa. And one thing Iowa’s got lots of is pork. And Iowa’s signature sandwich is the fried Pork Tenderloin sandwich. Oh man, what an incredible lunch. And you can get it in hundreds of restaurants—pounded thin, breaded, deep-fried hanging out over the edge of the bun goodness that might just burn your lips at first bite.
I’ve enjoyed many lunches of “Iowa Porkers”. One of the more memorable was in a tiny tavern in a equally tiny town near where we were pheasant hunting one Saturday probably 25 or so years ago. This thing was the size of a dinner plate—super thin and crispy—perched inside an oversized hamburger bun and hanging 2 or 3 inches over the side of the bun all the way around.
That’s what we’re making today—Iowa’s signature sandwich, known to many as a Pork Tenderloin sandwich and to some as the “Iowa Porker”.
I call it the “Iowa Porker” because I use boneless pork loin chops rather than the far pricier tenderloin. It keeps things on budget and the flavor is still fantastic. I use chops I cut from whole loins that I buy inexpensively at Costco. And I pan fry them because 1) I don’t have a deep-fryer and 2) I’m too cheap/frugal to use 3-4 cups of oil to deep fry instead of ¼ cup of oil to pan fry.
Recipe: Iowa Porkers
Summary: Iowa porkloin sandwiches are a signature item in hundreds of small town cafes and nearly every county fair in Iowa. It’s easy and cheap to make your own.
Ingredients
- 4 pork loin chops, boneless about 6 oz. each
- 1 cup flour
- ¾ cup crumbs—bread crumbs, cracker crumbs, potato chip crumbs
- Salt, pepper and granulated garlic
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 4 hamburger buns
- Condiments
- Lettuce and tomato (optional)
Instructions
- Get out your meat tenderizer or “whomping pan” along with a couple of 1-quart plastic bags.
- Put a chop in a bag and pound it gently until it’s less than ¼ inch thick. Do this to all of the chops. If you’re going to use homemade crumbs like cracker or potato chip or even homemade bread crumbs, use the second bag to pulverize those (3/4 cup or so of saltines comes out to about a half stack of crackers).
- Get out a flat container and a 2 paper plates. Crack the egg in the flat container and whisk.
- Put the flour and crumbs on the paper plate and add about a half tablespoon each of salt, pepper and granulated garlic. Stir it all together.
- Put a mid-sized sauté or cast iron pan on the stove with the burner turned to medium/medium high (about 5 o’clock on the dial on an electric stove.
- When the oil is heated (use the wooden spoon test—dip the end of a wooden spoon in the oil; it’s ready when small bubbles form on the wood).
- Double dredge. Put a loin in the flour mix and shake it off. Then dip it into the egg—both sides. Finally dredge it through the flour mix again, coating both sides.
- Gently lay the loin in the pan of oil. You can cook 2 at a time. Cook about 3 minutes per side until golden brown.
- Remove from oil, put on the 2nd paper plate that you’ve covered with a folded in half paper towel so it can drain. Cook the other 2 loins and serve.
- Put the cooked loin on the bun with a bit of mustard and pickles. Add lettuce and tomato if you want but “purists” tend to stick to mustard and pickles.
Preparation time: 10 minute(s)
Cooking time: 10 minute(s)
Number of servings (yield): 4
These are hot and tasty. The fried loin sticks out from the bun all the way around. Be careful, I’ve burned the corners of my mouth many times eating an Iowa Pork Tenderloin Sandwich.
This is great for lunch or a casual dinner. Make a batch of oven potato wedges, pour a tall glass of cold milk and you’re in heaven.
The Cheap Bastid Test: I buy a whole pork loin for about $2.10/lb so four 6-oz. porkloin sandwiches cost about $.79 each. Add $.15 per bun, and $.25 for oil, flour, crumbs and eggs along with $.15 for toppings and the cost of each sandwich is about $1.34. In Iowa this sandwich costs about $5. On the West Coast it would be about $8. This homemade version of the Iowa Porker is a bargain and it’s absolutely, incredibly tasty.
That’s the Cheap Bastid Way: Eat Good. Eat Cheap. Be Grateful!
I started my adult live in Omaha. These sandwiches are great. I enjoyed many and always thought of them as “schnitzel-on-a-bun.
The other eating-out thrill I remember the most was Joe Tess Place. This is all truly soul food.
Thanks Steve. Like you I discovered these delicacies as an adult living in Iowa. And there used to be a restaurant just east of San Diego in Santee which had a huge sign out front billing itself as the “Home of the Iowa Porker”. But it’s closed now. It’d make a great feature sandwich in a food truck.
I lived in Omaha for a few years and loved these sandwiches. “Schnitzel on a bun!
Kathleen, I agree. I’m not sure if pan frying is healthier than deep frying but it sure uses less oil. Thanks and, this same recipe can turn into pan fried loin with mashed potatoes and gravy–the pan drippings make a fantastic country gravy!
Walter, your recipes always make me smile. I got to get me a whomping pan. Might have to drop the ‘g’ off the end when I say it, though.
Rae, thank you for your kind comment. It’s deeply appreciated. I’ve had to shift over to a tenderizing mallet because I must have whomped too hard with my old saucepan and broke the handle off. Time for a trip to the Goodwill or Salvation Army store for a cheap but heavy saucepan/whompin’ pan.
Merry Christmas to you all. Thanks for you hard work Walter that makes it easier for us to put some great meals on the table.