Everyone knows about salted lard. Of course, the recipe for such fat will definitely appear on my blog. But today I want to talk about melted lard or lard.

Why is this product interesting for a bushcrafter, survivalist, hiker, etc.?

Firstly, lard itself is a high-calorie and tasty food.
902 calories per 100 grams of product.
It can be mixed with spices and made into a pâté like this.

Secondly, it is a common culinary ingredient. You can fry food on lard, use it instead of butter in dough, etc.

Thirdly, lard is a part of various impregnations.
For example, they can replace drying oil in a universal wax impregnation recipe.

Fourth, melted fat can be used in a variety of homemade cosmetics.
For example, various creams, homemade.
Yes, and pure lard can be used as an independent ointment from cold and chapping.

Fifth, because animal fat, unlike vegetable fat, does not polymerize, lard can be used to lubricate moving parts.
For example squeaky loops. I also met advice on lubricating with lard the blades of hacksaws for metal and thread-cutting tools.

Finally, I would like to note the use of melted fat in traditional medicine, for example, in the treatment of joints.

But let's finish with the theory and move on to the method of making lard.

We need pork fat, it's lard. Some sources advise using visceral fat, but it is painfully smelly.

I just bought lard at the market.

First, I washed the lard in water with a little vinegar added.

Then I cut off the skin and cut into small cubes.

The cubes were thrown into a cast-iron pan and put on a slow fire.

The fat will start to melt, sizzle and smell awesome.
We wait until the fat is melted, and the water that it contains does not evaporate. You can understand this by the fact that the fat cubes will become transparent.

I repeat that everything should be done on low heat, stirring constantly. Otherwise, the fat itself may burn.
I draw your attention to the fact that the temperature of the heated fat will be around 180 degrees. Don't get burned.

Carefully strain the melted fat into a clean, dry jar.

A good transparent unburned lard looks like this.

By the way, the transparent pieces of bacon remaining in the pan are greaves, which are also great for food. For example, I love scrambled eggs.

Here is such a recipe for multifunctional fat. I recommend to try.

For now, that's all. Thank you for your attention!

The fashion for everything natural that has recently flared up dictates its own rules. And often, under its influence, we have to not only invent new things, but also turn to the origins. Take, for example, melted pork fat - an indispensable product in the household, which was known to our ancestors many centuries ago.

Today, briquetted lard can be bought at any supermarket. And you can prepare it yourself - you can personally verify the quality of raw materials, and control compliance with the technology from and to, and even save money. And in order for the result to reward the efforts, we first study the materiel. So, let's look at all the intricacies: what is the name of melted lard, how is it prepared and what is it eaten with? And besides, we will find out how it can be used on the farm.

What is rendered lard

Melted fat is widely used in the household. Preparing it yourself is very simple, besides, it keeps well for quite a long time. When heated, pork fat completely changes its structure, passing from solid to liquid form. Later, as it cools, it thickens again. Moreover, this process does not even need too low temperatures - room temperature is enough.

Selection of raw materials and preparation for heating

Pork carcass has several large fatty layers. In structure, they are softer than fat, easier to cut into pieces and even crumble with your hands. Most of these layers are located in the abdomen and chest of the animal, under the skin and inside the cavities. When cutting, they are simply cut off in layers. Suitable for harvesting and ordinary fat, especially thin and soft, from the abdomen. It is desirable that it does not contain meat layers.

Another part of the carcass suitable for heating is the mesentery, a fatty network that supports the internal organs of the animal. It is suitable not only for kindling, but also for preparing various dishes. It is stuffed with liver, blood, minced meat or other stuffing, after which it is baked in the oven. But if for some reason this is impossible (for example, the mesh is damaged during cutting), then a wonderful lard can be made from it. The recipe for the preparation of melted fat from the mesentery and fat layers is almost identical.

When buying raw materials for homemade lard, we follow the same safety measures that are true for choosing any meat and offal: healthy appearance, pleasant smell, visual integrity. It is very good if there is a proven supplier that you trust.

Method for preparing lard

To prepare homemade rendered pork fat, thoroughly wash the layers, let them dry a little, if possible, remove excess water with paper towels.

It is convenient to cook melted lard in a wide cast-iron frying pan. We warm it up well and load our workpiece. The heating process is controlled without distraction to prevent burning and spattering of fat. Stir with a wooden spatula, evenly distributing the pieces in the pan so that they are heated evenly.

Boiling transparent fat is becoming more and more, and the pieces have become very dark and reduced in volume? Great, that means everything is going as it should. Let's move on to the next step.

Cleanly washed and dried glass jars are placed on the table. We attach gauze folded in 3-4 layers to the neck of the dish. This can be done with a rubber band. Pour hot homemade lard with a ladle or a large spoon. The cloth will filter out the unmelted pieces, preventing them from getting into the jar. Let cool at room temperature, covered with a clean cloth. When it cools down, we cover with ordinary ones. If necessary, jars with hot lard can be immediately rolled up with metal lids.

Storage at home

The melted pork fat poured into jars is perfectly stored in the refrigerator or in the cellar. Moreover, it is itself a preservative. For example, many housewives know how to prepare pork liver, when the insides boiled until tender are twisted in a meat grinder or finely chopped, put in clean jars, poured with hot lard and rolled up. You can store such blanks for several months.

Melted lard can also be frozen in the freezer. Of course, if space permits. There is no special need for this, it is perfectly stored even at positive temperatures.

Use in cooking various dishes

There are many ways to use lard in cooking. The most common of these is to replace vegetable or butter with pork fat when frying. prepare roasts for first courses, fry cabbage rolls, meatballs, meatballs on it.

Often lard is part of baking. Replacing part of the butter with melted pork fat allows you to make the dough smooth and soft. This dough is well molded and keeps its shape. Homemade lard can also be used to make fish and liver pâtés. The cooking recipe is almost the same as the classic one (with butter). Is that at a cost significantly wins.

And this product is highly respected by tourists. Melt lard at home, add chopped greens, salt, spices to hot fat, squeeze a few cloves of garlic. Take such a blank with you on a hike, and it will become a real lifesaver! It is worth adding a couple of spoons to the cauldron with porridge - and the magical aroma will spread throughout the forest. And not only in porridge. Fragrant homemade lard will brighten up any camping recipe, whether it's kulesh, fish soup or a regular soup with instant vermicelli.

outside the kitchen

And who said that lard can only be used in the kitchen? It has many more uses.

Everyone who has been in the army knows that you can lubricate your shoes. The skin wears out faster, does not allow moisture to pass through, gleams dully. Lard is also widely used in folk medicine and home cosmetology as the basis for ointments, rubbing and creams. It is also suitable for lubricating creaking door hinges.

In general, try to cook homemade lard yourself, and this recipe will definitely take its rightful place in your culinary piggy bank.

Pork fat is melted internal pork fat and lard, i.e. subcutaneous fat. For a long time, pork fat, along with other animal fats, was criticized by scientists and doctors, it was blamed for increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol and other troubles. Today, fat has been rehabilitated and is re-entering culinary practice. True, buying animal fat in the store is still problematic. It is much easier to melt it yourself at home. How to melt pork fat and will be described in this article.

What is useful pork fat

For many years, the refusal to use pork fat was explained by the risk of high cholesterol, which is the main cause of heart and vascular diseases. It was classified as one of the most unhealthy fats and all our attention was turned to vegetable oils. Now many studies show that they do more harm than good.

Animal fats are made up of saturated, monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fatty acids. Most of the monounsaturated fatty acids are oleic acid, the acid found in olive oil. It is for the high content of oleic acid that this oil is considered one of the healthiest vegetable oils.

Saturated fats are also important for the human body. We need them to absorb and assimilate fat-soluble vitamins and some other nutrients. For example, when we drink skim milk fortified with vitamin D, there will be no benefit in it, since saturated fat is needed for its absorption. And if it is not enough, then no vitamin will be absorbed.

In addition, pork fat is rich in vitamins A, E, Omega-3 fatty acids. Not only that, this fat helps absorb and absorb these important nutrients and vitamins.

The low level of polyunsaturated fatty acids in pork fat means that this fat is slowly oxidized, it does not become rancid, i.e. it can be stored for a long time.

Pork fat has a high smoke point, i.e. it can be heated to higher temperatures without fear of release of carcinogens. It is suitable for frying at high temperatures that many vegetable oils cannot provide.

Which fat to choose

Pork fat is not the same in quality. For different needs, you need to take different fat for rendering fat.

Firstly, the quality of fat depends on what and how the pig was fed.

Secondly, from what part of the pig carcass will you melt fat.

To make it easier to figure out which fat is better, for which culinary needs to melt fat from which part, take note of these tips.

Salo or bacon. This is subcutaneous fat, which is usually salted. But it can also be taken for reheating. It is sold in the market or in the store in pieces. This fat is great for frying and stewing.

Fat from the abdomen or undercuts. Soft layered fat with meat. Mostly bacon is made from this part. This fat is suitable for frying.

Internal fat or internal fat. This is fat that is located on the internal organs of the pig. It is cut off in layers, soft. This is the purest fat. After melting, the fat will have a white color, practically odorless and tasteless.

The fat rendered from such lard is highly valued by bakers. It is added to the dough, pies are greased to get a fragrant beautiful crust. It always stays soft.

How to melt pork fat at home

The technology for preparing and rendering pork fat is the same regardless of which part of the carcass you will melt it from.

You can melt fat on the stove, in the oven, in a slow cooker. There are two different ways to get fat.

wet way. Place the chopped fat in a saucepan with a little water. Turn on the stove and bring to a boil. Reduce so that the water boils a little and melt the fat until it melts in the water. Cool and pour into a jar. This method is suitable for both rendering internal fat and fat.

Dry way. In this way, you can melt fat on the stove, oven, slow cooker, pan. Heat the dish in which you will melt the fat, and place the chopped fat in it. In this way, you can render both interior fat and lard. During the melting of fat by this method on the stove or in a slow cooker, periodically stir it with a wooden spatula.

How to melt lard into fat

First you need to cut into small cubes, no larger than 1x1cm in size. like this

The finer the fat is cut, the faster it will melt and you will get more finished fat. You can twist it in a meat grinder.

Transfer the chopped bacon to a bowl. Add water. For 1.5-2.0 kg of fat, about 200-300 grams of water.

Cover with a lid and put on the stove. As soon as the pan warms up well and the first bubbles appear on top, reduce the heat. Fat must be melted at the lowest possible temperature. When rendered at a high temperature, the fat is melted faster, but it turns out darker in color, and may even be brown.

About once every half an hour, the fat should be gently mixed with a wooden spatula. The whole process of rendering such an amount of fat can take from 4 to 5 hours.

Strain the melted fat through a sieve to separate the cracklings, and pour into clean, dry jars. Once cooled to room temperature, put in the refrigerator.

How to render pork fat in the oven

What is good for melting fat in the oven is that it is prepared, put in a saucepan and you can go about your business while the fat is melted.

Preparation of fat is the same as for rendering on the stove. First you need to finely chop pieces of bacon or visceral fat. The smaller the better. Can be twisted in a meat grinder.

Put everything in a pan that can be put in the oven. It is good to melt in cast iron.

Preheat the oven to a temperature of about 105-110 degrees. Put the pot in the oven. The melting time depends on the amount of fat. The more fat, the longer the fat is rendered. You can carefully remove the pan and mix. Just be very careful not to burn your hands with grease.

Separate the melted fat from the cracklings and pour into glass jars.

How to drown internal pork fat

The internal fat is soft and layered. Almost all of it melts.

Cut fat into small pieces. Place in a saucepan.

Add about 500-100 ml of water depending on the amount of fat. You don't need to pour a lot of water. It turns out a softer consistency compared to fat from rendering lard.

Put on the stove on a small fire. After about an hour, check the pan and stir. It is very important at the very beginning not to let the fat burn.

When melted, it will form cracklings, which will gradually settle to the bottom.

Strain the melted fat through a sieve or gauze and pour into jars.

Regardless of what you are rendering fat from, the most important thing at the initial stage is to clearly regulate the temperature. If the heating of the plate is strong, then the fat may burn.

Until the first melted fat appears, you need to monitor this process and mix the fat in time.

As soon as a certain amount of fat is rendered, the remaining pieces will boil in it, giving off fat.

It needs to be stirred periodically. This will ensure that all pieces of fat are melted more evenly.

It is not necessary to melt the fat until the cracklings are crispy. They should remain soft and light. They can then be sautéed separately to make them brown and crispy. They can be used to stew potatoes or other dishes. Fried cracklings can be sprinkled, for example, on potato salad.

Properly rendered fat in a glass jar should be pale yellow in color. When it freezes it will turn white.

Before pouring it into jars, cool the fat so that the jars do not crack and your work is not in vain.

Keep fat in a cool place. You can freeze.

Pork fat can be stored in such conditions for a long time, more than a year.

How to use pork fat

Pork fat can be used in the same way as vegetable oil. It can fry meat, vegetables, stew. Make the dough on pork fat. Only for baking it is better to take only internal fat and preferably in the kidney area.

Well, who doesn’t love crispy potatoes fried in fragrant lard? Try this easy homemade pork lard recipe. Homemade lard is not only fragrant and tasty, but it is also stored for a very long time.

The recipe for making lard is simple.

To begin with, the fat from which we are going to heat the lard must be washed and placed in cold water for 6 hours.

Then, the water must be drained, and the fat should be poured again with fresh cold water, and let it stand for another 6 hours.

Then, a little salted bacon must be cut into cubes as for frying.

It is best to heat lard in enameled dishes, always with a thick bottom. And so, we need to pour a small amount of water into the dishes for rendering lard (as they say, on the finger).

Then, you need to put chopped bacon into the pan, but not all at once, but in parts. After we put the first portion of the lard into the pan, you need to reduce the heat to a minimum and heat the lard, stirring it constantly (preferably with a culinary wooden spatula). It will be very good to put a flame divider on the burner, then the lard will be heated evenly.

As it melts into the pan, it is necessary to add new portions of fat. Thus, we drown the lard until all the fat is melted from the fat.

In the meantime, lard is being rendered, we can prepare jars for its packaging and further storage. To do this, you need to put jars in a cold oven (the optimal volume is from 500 to 800 grams). We turn on the oven and heat the jars so that they do not crack when we pack hot lard in them.

Pour the finished melted fat into jars, simultaneously filtering it through several layers of gauze. Then, let the melted fat stand in a warm place and once again filter it through gauze (fresh), leaving a sediment at the bottom of the jar.

Such homemade lard is usually stored in a cool, dry and dark place (a cellar is ideal).

You can use melted lard for various frying, or you can simply spread it on bread and sprinkle with coarse salt crystals.

The original recipe for how to make delicious and fragrant homemade lard with onions, see the video from the Juicy Cake Channel. So tasty it turns out that you will lick your fingers.