Smokes & Ears

Last night, I checked off one more item from the Garden & Gun 100 Southern Foods You Absolutely, Positively Must Try Before You Die.

Martin's Redneck Taco - check
Prince's Hot Chicken - check
Bolton's Hot Fish Sandwich - check
Middendorf’s Thin Fried Catfish - check
Arnold’s Fried Green Tomatoes - check
Waffle House's Pecan Waffle - check

Big Apple Inn's Pig Ear Sandwich - check

That's right I had a pig ear sandwich. It was a take-out order from all the way down in Jackson, MS. This famous gelatinous sandwich is prepared on a brown and server roll with mustard slaw and some hot sauce. You would think that the texture would be somewhat chewy, but it is actually quite tender. However, it does not have the greatest flavor in the world. The ear its self is not too bad, but the roll and the slaw were not so great. These are the rolls that you would find in the freezer section at your local save-a-lot, and the mustard slaw was a little disappointing. I really think that it might be somewhat of an acquired taste.

I also had the Smokes sandwich. This sandwich is ground up sausage that is in a red casing with the mustard slaw and hot sauce. Again I had the same issue with the roll and the slaw, but I still would be willing to try them again hot off the griddle. To be fair, I don't think that a Krystal would be quite as good after it crossed state lines. It is really key to get them right off the cook top. Some day I would like to get the full experience of the Big Apple Inn, and stop in for 3 Smokes and 3 Ears.

I had never even heard of a pig ear sandwich until last week when I saw Joe York's short film about the Big Apple Inn, and it was compelling enough to make me want to try one. Watch the video for the full history of the pig ear sandwich.

SMOKES & EARS from Joe York on Vimeo.