Pepperoni rolls get their due

The epicenter of the pepperoni roll, an Appalachian / Rust Belt specialty that has roots in the region’s mines, is Fairmont, West Virginia. That is where the roll was created, at least according to lore that surrounds this humble yet delicious creation. Writing for Eater, Danny Palumbo explains the appeal of this workingman’s food, and takes us on a tour of the best places to buy pepperoni rolls today.

Many West Virginians say that pepperoni rolls were created by a Sicilian immigrant who worked in the area’s coal mines before opening a restaurant in Fairmont, located in north central West Virginia. The region welcomed immigrants from all over the world to work in the mines and related industries, and Italians flocked to the area, accounting for about 30 percent of West Virginia’s foreign-born population in the early 1900s. Therefore it isn’t a stretch to believe that the pepperoni roll was created there.

Even if they originated in another location, pepperoni rolls quickly became one of the state’s iconic dishes. Although Palumbo describes the rolls as having slices of pepperoni, purists will argue that stick pepperoni is the only acceptable form. From my experience living in West Virginia for 15 years and eating as many pepperoni rolls as I could, stick pepperoni is superior but sliced is acceptable. Mozzarella is the preferred cheese if you are going to add cheese (which you should). Whatever you do, don’t put any tomato sauce inside – that is sacrilege.

Pepperoni rolls follow in the tradition of meat pies, which provide a convenient format for a filling lunch that is easy to pack and eat in rough working conditions. Surprisingly, I only found 6 pepperoni roll recipes in the EYB Library, and only 2 of those were available online, including the Pepperoni rolls from Simply Recipes by Sara Bir pictured above. If you have access to the Cook’s Illustrated/Cook’s Country recipe, use that one.