My lard-awakening was in 2006 after reading a Seattle Times article called The Real Thing*, by Matthew Amster-Burton. He sang the praises of a miracle oil with no trans fat that produced the most beautifully crispy, non-greasy fried foods and impossibly delicate, flaky pastry crusts. Chefs around the country were embracing this fabulous “new” fat that had been around for centuries. As I continued to read about the virtues of cooking with lard my long held prejudices about animal fats began to melt away.
Tender, light biscuits made with lard
The former golden-girl of fats, hydrogenated vegetable oil, has been on the outs with nutritionists for some time and negative scientific data continues to mount against the healthfulness of these manufactured fats due to the presence of trans fats. Trans fats are the dietary villain of the moment and lard doesn’t contain trans fats. Like all animal fats however, lard does contain saturated fat, but less than butter (43% vs. 68% respectively) and less than the currently popular coconut and palm oils which come in at 91% and 51% saturated fat respectively (reference: How Baking Works by Paula I. Figoni, 2010). So when it comes to saturated fat, lard shouldn’t be the first fat that jumps to mind. Don’t forget that current dietary guidelines still recommend limiting consumption of all types of fat, so just because lard has some superior attributes compared to other fats, it’s not license to go hog-wild.
Unrendered Leaf lard
As is the case with most things, the more you know the better off you are and lard is no exception. Some lard sold in stores has been processed so extensively that it’s far from the pure, natural ingredient that’s been winning over health advocates and garnering culinary admiration. The full-proof way around this fat-trap is to take the processing into your own hands and render lard at home. If you buy pig fat from a farmer at your neighborhood farmer’s market you’ll know exactly what you’re getting because you can ask them questions. You can also specify the type of fat you would like, back fat or leaf lard. Leaf lard is the fat located around the kidney and abdominal area of the animal. It’s the most desirable fat for baking purposes because it has a milder flavor and softer texture than back fat.
Leaf lard chopped and ready for rendering
You might be able to buy rendered lard at your farmer’s market, but it’s cheaper to do it yourself and it’s really no more difficult than melting butter. Well, there’s a little chopping and straining involved, but essentially you’re just melting fat nice and slow. Rendering your own lard will also make you feel like a kitchen bad-ass and give you impressive bragging rights when people praise your fantastic pie crust or biscuits. An added bonus of rendering lard is the excellent seasoning it puts on your cast iron cookware. I think of it as a spa day for my cast iron Dutch oven.
Rendering lard is great for seasoning cast iron
Lard can be rendered on the stove top or in the oven; the important point is that the heat is low so it’s a nice slow process with minimal browning. A heavy pan is a must and if you’ve got a cast iron pan, that’s the one to use. The lard just needs to be chopped up, you can use a food processor if you want to go to the trouble of cleaning it, but I prefer to simply use a sharp knife. Some methods suggest adding a half cup or so of water to the pan with the lard to prevent the fat from burning as it starts to melt. I don’t add water, but always use a very low heat. With the exception of an occasional stir the lard can be left to render on its own. I also flip on my kitchen vent and crack open a window because the melting fat does have a bit of a porky aroma.
Rendered lard and solids
It can take 3-5 hours depending on how finely chopped the lard is and the level of heat. As the fat melts out solid bits of protein and connective tissue will be left floating in the liquid fat. Once strained, you’re left with beautiful golden lard that is as pure and natural as can be.
Rendered leaf lard
Lard can be used as the fat component in most any dish, but I tend to save mine for baking. Once the strained lard cools and sets, I cut my stash into individual pie crust portions, wrap them well and freeze until needed.
Rendered lard, cooled and portioned
The only potential hiccup with substituting lard for another fat is when it comes to butter. Lard is 100% fat, but butter is only 80% fat with 20% water. For general cooking a 1 to 1 swap will work fine, but when it comes to baking it’s a good idea to reduce the amount of lard by 20% and add a bit of water. To calculate the adjustment, multiply the weight of the butter by .80 to get the weight of lard that should be substituted. Then multiply the weight of the butter by .20 to determine the weight of additional liquid needed.
Example: if a recipe calls for ½ pound of butter the lard substitution would be 6.4 ounces (8oz butter x .80). The additional water needed would be 1.6 ounces (8 oz butter x .20)
If you’ve not yet explored what this age-old ingredient can do for your cooking, now’s the time. Find a good source for high-quality leaf lard and make yourself a pie. We are just rolling into rhubarb season with all the pie-licious summer fruits and berries to follow, so there’s no better time like the present.
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie with Butter & Lard Crust
*The link to The Real Thing article on the Seattle Times website dosen’t seem to work. So I’ve linked to a Google Docs version of the article.
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You can fry in lard too right? Like frying pork chops and cubed steak? Thanks!
Yes, you can absolutely fry with lard. It’s actually a great fat to use for deep frying as well.
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