Lard and Cracklings

Well, last week I decided that with Thanksgiving coming, I had to learn how to render lard. I had this HUGE box of fat and skin from the last hog we bought. It was taking up a large space in the freezer and I needed room. I had this idea that the kitchen would be full of grease and that the entire house would smell for days. I had visions of getting burned and that somehow the entire process would be difficult. Boy was I wrong!


NOTES

1. The lower, the slower, the better...seriously. It took about 8 hours and I think I could have gone even slower. I cooked it on my back left burner. Next time, I should use my back right burner with the ultra-low simmer.
2. This was the best starting place on how to do it http://www.obsessionwithfood.com/2006_01_01_blog-archive.html#113709378997673043 At the last minute I decided to skip the step of putting it in water, chilling it overnight, then melting it and jaring it. Instead, I removed as many of the cracklings as I could and set them to drain. I let the lard cool in the pan for about an hour and then drained it through a flour sack towel. It looked completely clear so I decided to jar it up. If it had particles I could always remelt it and then take the other steps. Turns out it was perfectly clear and creamy white when it cooled.
3. It was not hard! There was very little splashing. I used my largest stock pot which is 3 gallons and used about 10# of fat and skin. I was able to get 4 quarts of lard and 3 large plates full of cracklings. There was very little smell. Overall, a great experience.