To Preserve Unmelted Lard for Many Months
Ingredients
Directions
Cure
Rub the inner fat with coarse sea salt generously and let it sit for 2 days.
Drain the fat and cover it with strong brine made from 6 oz of salt per quart of water.
Change the brine occasionally in warmer weather.
Prepare to use
When ready to use, soak the fat in cold water for 2 to 3 hours, then wipe it dry.
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
- Inner fat of pig
- Forms the main body of the lard, which is rendered and preserved after curing.
- Coarse sea salt
- Draws out moisture and preserves the fat by inhibiting spoilage microbes.
The step that matters
Soaking the cured fat before use. Soaking in cold water draws out excess salt from the cured fat. Without it, the lard can taste overly salty once rendered. Wiping it dry afterward helps it render cleanly.
“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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