Pastrami and Deacon Jones

David “Deacon” Jones died Monday.  He was 74.  An eight-time Pro Bowler and nicknamed the “Secretary of Defense”, he was called the greatest defense end ever to play football.  Part of the L.A. Rams “Fearsome Four” (along with Merle Olsen, Rosey Grier and Lamar Lundy), he invented the term “sack” for tackling quarterbacks.  His signature move, a head slap to get offensive linemen out of his way, was so dangerous it was later banned by the NFL.

 

Pastrami began in Turkey as pastirma, a spiced smoked meat. Spreading to nearby countries, particularly Romania, it became known as pastrama. It was brought to New York City in the late 19th century by Romanian immigrants, where it was called pastrome. Spreading through the American deli world, it was changed to the now-familiar pastrami to rhyme with the already popular Italian meat, salami.

Hungry yet?