To Clarify Fat
Ingredients
Directions
Cut the fat into small pieces.
Place the fat in a saucepan with the cold water.
Leave the lid off and boil gently for about 1 hour, until the water has evaporated.
The fat will be clear, and the skin will be shriveled and 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
- Scraps of fat
- Supplies the rendered fat, which is the main product of this method.
- Cold water
- Gently heats the fat and carries off moisture as it evaporates, leaving clean fat behind.
The step that matters
Boil gently with the lid off until the water has evaporated. Water must fully boil away before the fat can clarify. Leaving water in would stop the fat from becoming clear and could cause spattering. A gentle boil renders the fat without scorching it.
“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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