Rendering Lard
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Grind or chop the fat into small pieces.
Render
Melt the fat over mild heat, stirring constantly until it reaches the consistency of thin gruel.
Sprinkle enough salt over the surface to help separate scraps from the clear fat.
Allow the fat to settle, then strain the clear fat into another vessel, removing all scraps.
Cook the strained fat for 15 minutes to roast any remaining scraps.
Store
Store the lard in a cool place; it will keep for a long time.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Fat (pork fat or lard)
- Forms the entire base of the lard, supplying the rendered fat that is the final product.
- Coarse sea salt
- Helps separate fleshy scraps from the clear fat during rendering.
The step that matters
Melting the fat over mild heat. Gentle heat melts the fat slowly while releasing water and scraps without scorching them. Stirring constantly keeps the pieces from sticking and burning, which would give the lard a browned, bitter taste.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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