A step by step tutorial on how to render fat into lard and the benefits of using it! Learn about the myths surrounding lard and animal fats, the history behind the industry, and how to make lard, store it, and use it!
Use this lard to make the BEST EVER Buttermilk Biscuits and the ultimate Lard Pie Crust!
Why We Stopped Using Lard (For All the Wrong Reasons)
Chances are the vast majority of people reading the title and looking at this bottle of lard will have a negative reaction. What will follow is the pronouncement of a string of health conditions that through decades of medical myths have come to be associated with eating lard. In the meantime our ancestors are shaking their heads, “our average lifespan was as long as yours and we didn’t have nearly the number of health conditions as you do today.”
So what happened? What caused us to so vehemently reject one of our ancestors’ most basic food staples?
I won’t attempt to give you all the reasons but I’ll provide a really good starting point. Where: The USA. When: Early 1900’s. Who: Proctor & Gamble.
They had a booming business producing cotton. Which, by the way, is not considered a food crop by the FDA. (That’s important. Keep reading.) But there was this unwanted portion of the cotton plant – cottonseed – that they couldn’t do anything with. And they had lots and lots of it. So they put their heads together to come up with something they could do with cottonseed in order to profit from it. Drumroll…They discovered a method of intense processing that enabled them to extract oil from the cottonseed – and at virtually zero expense to them! But they found the oil was unstable at room temperature and turned easily rancid. Enter Hydrogenation. They figured out that hydrogenating the stuff made it stable and last a long time. And here comes the “What”: The end result was an oil that looked like lard. They called it Crisco.
An issue of Popular Science summed it up this way: “What was garbage in 1860 was fertilizer in 1870, cattle feed in 1880, and table food and many things else in 1890.” And it changed the way we thought about food and the way we ate for generations. The legacy of the anti-lard and butter mindset it established still continues today.
Did you know that more marketing dollars were spent on making Crisco a success than any other marketing endeavor up to that point in history? What ensued from that point on can only be summed up as one of the greatest, most widespread and most misfortunate health scandals of all time with health consequences were are still reaping.
On the one hand, while Crisco was being marketed as cheaper and “healthier” than lard or butter, simultaneously marketing dollars were spent labelling butter and lard as intrinsically “bad.” They even gave away free cookbooks with every purchase of Crisco. And of course you can guess which ingredient replaced everything that normally would have called for butter or lard.
With so much marketing wealth and power behind the effort, it took only a few years to turn an entire nation away from the source of fat that had been used for centuries by their ancestors. And it was successfully labeled as hazardous to our health. Oh, the sad irony.
Decades later, when illnesses began mounting to the point where the statistics could no longer be ignored, the statement was finally released that hydrogenated oils are bad for you. But the fat phobia continued as did the manufacturing of substitute oils.
One such oil: Canola. Guess where canola oil comes from? (Hint: No, it’s not the canola plant. There’s no such thing per se. The “canola” plant was developed in the 1970’s and is nothing more than a modified, cross-bred version of the rapeseed plant.) The name is the shortened version of “Canada oil low acid” and comes from rapeseed. Another non-food crop. Here’s a little history on rapeseed oil: During WWII, rapeseed oil was used on naval ships as a lubricant. When the war ended, there was so much farmland in Canada already dedicated to growing rapeseed that they wanted to find other uses for it so they could continue pulling a profit. The problem with rapeseed oil: It’s such a terribly foul-tasting and rancid-smelling oil that it isn’t fit for human consumption. And so they spent the next few decades until the 1970’s working out a way to make it edible. That process requires heavy refining, bleaching and deodorizing using harsh chemicals (as far from “natural” as it gets) to finally yield the neutral-tasting, odorless oil that now sits on grocery store shelves bearing the American Heart Association’s seal of approval.
Fast forward to today: Almost all processed and pre-packaged foods – everything from chips and breakfast cereal to canned soups and salad dressings – are made with either canola, cottonseed, soybean/vegetable or corn oil. Why? Because they’re cheap to produce. And because we’re still in this mindset that they’re somehow better for you than lard or butter. (For more info on why soybean/vegetable and corn oil (and several others) are so bad for you, see this article for an explanation).
Well, we’ve come full circle. Medical research over the past several years has continued to confirm that fat is not the devil it’s been made out to be and that it is not the root cause of cardiovascular disease. Medical literature is finally starting to reflect this as are many health professionals in their medical advice. However, the notion that fat is bad has been so deeply engrained in our culture and medical philosophy for so long that it’s going to take some time before we’ve all caught up to the facts. Even many health professionals are still stuck in that archaic mindset, though we’re slowly starting to see the rhetoric change.
Our ancestors had it right after all.
My philosophy and approach to diet is a simple one and echoes centuries of wisdom: 1) Eat real, whole foods as close to their natural state as possible and 2) eat things in moderation.
So that brings us back to lard. It’s a fully natural, whole food. It can be made in your own kitchen without any special equipment and the process couldn’t be simpler: Melt it. Strain it. Use it. And I’ll show you all the steps you need to make your own lard.
Benefits of Lard
Lard has several advantages over other oils/fats, one of them being that it, along with beef tallow, has one of the highest smoke points. That means it doesn’t oxidize when you heat it (oxidization = cancer). So lard is ideal for high heat cooking (i.e., anything above a light sauté).
Lard also has a high melting point making it the best choice for extra flaky pie crusts and pastries (beef tallow even more so – we’ll be addressing tallow next time.) Get ready to really experience the old-fashioned taste of yesteryear and what made grandma’s baking so famous.
Lastly, it tastes awesome! Get ready to make the best fried chicken, crispy hash browns and just about anything you want to taste just that much better.
Finally, it has health benefits. That’s right, lard is a good thing. To read about its health benefits along with several other reasons to use lard, check out this article: Top 10 Reasons To Bring Lard Back.
Types of Fat from a Pig
Belly Fat: This is what’s used in the U.S. to make bacon (in the UK it’s known as streaky bacon). As its name suggests, it comes from the belly of the pig and has layers of fat and meat. Pork belly has become popular in recent years in a variety of cuisine. You typically wouldn’t render the belly into lard because there is too much meat attached.
Fatback: This comes from the back of the pig, includes the shoulder and rump areas, and is the thick layer of fat directly underneath the skin. Once rendered it produces a lard that’s slightly yellow in color and it has a stronger pork odor and flavor than leaf fat (see below). It’s great for frying or sauteing. Fatback is also what’s used in sausage-making.
Leaf Fat: This is the fat from around the pig’s kidney’s and, like beef leaf fat, is the “cleanest” fat on the pig. It’s also the healthiest. Once rendered it produces a lard that’s white in color with a milder odor and flavor, making it ideal for use in pie crusts and pastries.
**NOTE: The health benefits of lard apply only to pasture-raised pork. Fat is where a lot of the bad stuff is stored and concentrated (ie, chemicals, additives, by-products of junk ingredients, etc) and for that reason we strongly recommend only using fat from pasture-raised pigs. Avoid fat from commercially raised pigs.
How to Store Lard
Lard was used and stored for centuries before refrigeration was invented. It will keep at room temperature for a long time (traditionally many kept it for up to a year). Nevertheless, today most recommend storing it in the fridge. It’s your call. In the fridge it will keep for at least 6 months and up to a year also and many say it’s less likely to get rancid in the fridge. I’ve heard of many people keeping it for even longer than a year in the fridge. Lard can be kept almost indefinitely and what determines if it’s still good is its smell: If it starts smelling rancid, throw it out and make another batch.
For longer storage lard can also be frozen. Freeze it in bars, in cubes, in tablespoon amounts, in tubs (slicing off what you need, no need to thaw), whatever you prefer. Lard can also be frozen in glass jars once the fat has solidified at room temperature.
It is best to only freeze it once though, not thaw and re-freeze.
Shelf Stability
Homemade rendered lard is very shelf stable. The process of rendering it removes excess water and other impurities, thus preserving the fat and keeping it from spoiling.
Is Lard Pasteurized?
Because lard is a pure fat and does not contain enough water to support bacterial growth (i.e., causing spoilage) lard doesn’t need to be pasteurized.
A word of Caution
If you choose to buy lard rather than render it yourself, be very careful about the lard you find in stores. Many of them are hydrogenated and many also contain large amounts of highly toxic benzene derivatives known as BHA and BHT. Avoid these. Plus, making it yourself is MUCH cheaper than buying it. Most “clean” commercial lard on the market charge more than $20 per pound. I’m able to make more than six times that amount for the same price!
If you have a local butcher you trust that makes lard from pasture-raised pigs, perfect. Otherwise I strongly recommend making it yourself, choosing fat pastured pigs that were raised responsibly. As noted earlier, fat is where a lot of the bad stuff is stored and concentrated (ie, chemicals, additives, by-products of junk ingredients, etc) and so it’s important to choose “clean” fat from pigs that were pasture-raised and avoid fat from commercially-raised pigs.
Three Ways to Render Fat
You can render lard in a heavy pot in the oven between 225-250 degrees F, on the stove top over low heat (start at “2” and once it begins melting turn it down to “1”) or in a slow cooker on LOW. Whichever method you choose, just remember that if you’re wanting a neutral flavor for using in pastries and pie crusts, cook it over very low heat, otherwise your lard will have a much stronger, “piggy” flavor (which is still fine for things like frying and sauteing where you want to add a little flavor boost).
Troubleshooting
Help, my lard has grown mold! Pure fat doesn’t grow mold, it goes rancid. So if there’s mold on it it’s because it wasn’t rendered long enough and/or it wasn’t strained properly. If there are any bits of meat or sediment left in the lard after rendering it, those will grow mold.
I’ve also heard some people recommend that if you’re going to store the lard in the fridge instead of at room temperature or freezing it, to cover it with cheesecloth or a tea towel and rubber band since a screwed on lid can trap moisture inside the jar.
How to Make Lard
Let’s get started!
I’m using leaf fat for this. Referring to the section above about different kinds of fat.
I highly recommend freezing the fat first because it makes the job of chopping the fat MUCH easier and cleaner!
Dice the fat as small as you can. The smaller you chop the pieces the quicker it will render and the more lard you will get out of it. (Note: I recommend chopping it smaller than the batch pictured below. That was my third batch that week and I was getting impatient.) **Also, if you have a friendly butcher who is willing to grind the lard for you, ask them. Alternatively you can freeze it and finely chop it in your food processor.
Place the fat in a slow cooker and set it to LOW.
If you’re melting it over the stovetop, place it in a heavy pot and set it to “2”. Once it begins melting set it to “1”. (Again, the key is cooking it over low heat to produce a beautifully clean and white lard with a neutral flavor.)
You can also render lard in the oven: Place it in a heavy pot (Dutch oven is perfect) and set the oven between 225-250 degrees F.
I leave the lid off to prevent water/moisture from building up, which can lead to spoiling. By leaving the lid off, any developing water/moisture will evaporate.
It will take several hours. The cracklings will soon sink down and then rise up again. Once they’ve risen again the lard is done. Another indicator that it’s done is that it will audibly crackle, gasp, and sigh!
If you over-cook it or allow it to burn on the edges, the lard will begin to brown and you’ll end up with a lard that has a stronger porky flavor. It’s still completely usable for things like frying and sauteing, it’s just not ideal for making sweet pastries and pie crusts.
What to do with those sad, limp bits of pork fat? Turn them into crispy cracklings! Transfer them to a frying pan and fry until they’re puffy and crispy. If you want, add some seasonings. Eat them as a snack or sprinkle them over your salads.
Strain it through a fine mesh colander to remove the cracklings. Then strain it again through 3 layers of cheesecloth to remove the remaining small bits and sediment.
It’s critical that you remove any bits of fat and gristle along with any tiny bits of sediment, otherwise your lard will get moldy. Pure fat doesn’t grow mold, it goes rancid. So if there’s mold on it it’s because it wasn’t rendered long enough to remove all the water and/or it wasn’t strained properly. So be sure to properly strain it.
In its liquid state, the color of the lard will be like lemonade or apple juice. Once it cools and hardens it will become white.
Place the melted lard in whatever container you want to keep it in long-term (preferably glass or, if that’s not available a non-reactive metal). Let it sit undisturbed at room temperature until it has to cooled down and is firm (it firms up pretty quickly).
For information on how to store lard, see the “How to Store Lard” section above.
Enjoy!
Be sure to also check out our tutorials on:
How To Make Lard
Ingredients
- 2 pounds leaf lard or fatback (depending on what you're using it forl; see blog post for description), diced as finely as you can (it's easiest to dice while frozen)
- NOTE: You can use this same method for beef tallow and other animal fats
Instructions
- This can be made in the slow cooker, in the oven, or on the stovetop. For the oven and stovetop method see the blog post tutorial above. Slow Cooker Method: Place the diced fat in the slow cooker and set it to LOW. Leave the lid off while to prevent moisture buildup which can lead to spoiling. It will generally take at least 3 hours, often more, for the fat to render, especially if you're making a larger batch or if the chunks are large. The pieces of fat will sink down to the bottom and then rise up again after a few hours, indicating that the they are done rendering. Be careful not to over-cook the lard or allow the edges to burn or you'll end up with lard that has a stronger pork flavor (though still usable for frying savory things, just not ideal for sweet pastries and pie crusts). Strain the rendered lard through a fine mesh colander and discard the chunks (these can be fried to create crispy flavorful pork cracklings). Strain the lard a second time, this time time through 3 layers of cheesecloth to remove any small bits and sediment which cause spoilage. In its liquid state, the color of the lard will be like lemonade or apple juice. Once it cools and hardens it will become white.Place the melted lard in whatever container you want to keep it in long-term (preferably in a glass jar). Let it sit undisturbed at room temperature until it has to cooled down and is firm.Store your lard in a cool, dark place. It will keep longer in the fridge if you have the space and you can also freeze it. 2 pounds of pork fat will yield roughly 1 to 1 1/2 cups of lard.
Originally published on The Daring Gourmet May 15, 2017
Marci says
So I rendered the lard yesterday in a crock pot, it was lemonade color like you said, and now has solidified to white. I didn’t realize it had to be so completely strained and just used a metal strainer. Should I re-melt the solid lard to strain it better before storing? I made 6 quarts, so I don’t want it to spoil…
Also, what’s your favorite way to use it? Just in replace of olive oil or butter? thanks!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Marci, the little solid bits will cause the lard to spoil faster. What you can do instead of re-melting everything is freeze it. You can put the jars directly in the freezer. If they don’t all fit in the freezer you can keep some in the fridge and use that first. I use lard in baking – it can replace anything that calls for shortening. I also use it regularly for oven-roasted potatoes, it gives it the crispiest texture. Yes, it can be used as a replacement for most fats in cooking, including butter and olive oil.
Marci says
Thank you for your quick answer! I don’t see any solid pieces… it looks completely white, so I guess I’m good. I will freeze all but one just to be safe. One of them is 95 % white with the very bottom slice not solid and still that lemonade color. Is that ok? I was thinking that’s the one I would use first. Thanks again! While I know I will enjoy using the lard, I didn’t live the process. It’s kinda messy and gross looking! 😂
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Yes, that’s no problem and doesn’t mean it’s unsafe to use. Yes, the process can be a little messy for sure :)
Rita Laranjeira says
It’s lovely to see people “going back to basics” and thank you, Kimberly, for having a hand in it. We often do lard at home and it’s wonderful (as are those cracklings, sprinkled with salt). Back in the day, my grandmother used to kill a pig for the winter and then make lard, chouriços (not sure how to translate) and other goodies. The remaining pig would then be salted and preserved in a stone chest of sorts. It’s a shame we’re losing touch with all the goodness from back then… thank you for bringing it back!
Jason says
After about 4 hours of heating on stovetop in an aluminum pot, I obtain nearly dry cracklings, which I store in jars without frying. Then I add them to grain porridge or pasta along with some lard for intense flavor. The solid lard is light cream color, has a mild flavor, and is excellent on bread even without salt. I don’t know if this is considered overcooked.
A filter doesn’t appear to be needed. A small amount solids pass through the sieve, but they settle on the bottom at this level of doneness. I avoid squeezing or crushing the cracklings. I am reluctant to use an improper cloth or paper, to avoid infusing flavors from it.
Amazing how the false information about saturated fats has spread throughout the world where the Crisco brand baking margarine or corn sugar were never sold.
Elliott says
Exactly!
Wendy says
Hi,
If making Lard, you should try making a really ‘naughty’ cake from Southern England. ‘Lardy Cake’ or Lardy Bread. I think Wiltshire claims to be the origin of it, but you can buy it along the south west coast. Full of Lard, Sugar, fruit – like a gooey yummy heavy brick. Best stuff I brought was in Weymouth, Dorset. The bakery wrapped it in 3 bags and put it in a box.
Web link for a a typical recipe. https://www.travelaboutbritain.com/recipes/wiltshire_lardy_cake.php
Yummy.
Wendy.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Wendy, lardy cakes are one of my all-time favorite British pastries! Every time I go back to visit I make it a point to buy some at the bakery. I’ve also been working on perfecting a recipe for them which I’ll be posting on my blog :)
Anonymous says
Just remembered today my grandmother always cooked with lard. It’s only taken me 50 Yeats of marriage to remember!! I’m from Wiltshire in the UK and yes lardy cake was amazing when I was young, it’s a job to get these days we’ve lost all the local bakers. Off to make mince pies after I’ve prepared my lard. Then maybe try my hand at lard cake .
Bruce D. R. Grant says
At last, I have found somebody with a blog who appreciates, understands, and enjoys tallow! I am a Brit, although I lived in Canada for 24 years and I’ve now lived in Russia for 26 years (I’ve also lived in Egypt & Germany) but I’ve appreciated North of England village cooked fish and chips… where thwhere the food was cooked in tallow… mainly beef tallow, from grass raised beef.
Unfortunately, my second wife, who is a Russian lady, found a 10lb block of tallow which I had purchased from a very good “Chippie” in Market Weighton, Yorkshire, England and brought it back to Russia to cook fish and chips and other products in, and she decided that because Russia did not sell tallow, and the fact that I have stored it on my window ledge in black plastic, that it was disgusting and should’ve been thrown away! I had kept it there for longer than three years!
There was absolutely zero smell, it was snow-white and very firm indeed and all I did was keep adding to 3 tablespoonfuls to my deep fryer, which kept the liquid fat as a slight light-brown colouring, after I had finished cooking. One of the beauties of cooking with tallow is that the fat does not take on the flavour of the product it is just cooked, providing the fat has not been burned. Since then, I have not been able to bring tallow back into Russia, because of Russia’s European product embargo!
I have not given up yet!
Eric Feinblatt says
I’ve done this before in the slow cooker, and it worked perfectly. This time, however, there’s a problem: I filled 2 pint jars with the liquid – after straining, of course – but only the bottom third of each jar solidified. The top portion is just a brownish liquid. Any ideas of what might have gone wrong?
Anonymous says
you didnt render long enough. there is still water in the fat
Lisa says
If this happened to me, can I simply restart the process and cook off the water?
Lee-Anne Setterington says
Thanks for all the useful information!
We did two batches, one worked out perfect and the other will not turn to a solid.
The lard is still mainly in it’s liquid state. What did we do wrong and is there a way to fix it?
Thanks in advance for any answers.
Lee-Anne
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Lee-Anne, that’s really odd since the first batch turned out perfectly. Clearly there was something different the second time and you’ll need to try and identify what. Either a lot of water got in it somehow or the room temp this time is a lot hotter….?
Lisa says
I have the same result with my Not Quite Lard…2 layer: white on bottom, yellow on top and not solidified. Since it seems it is because there is still water in it, can I simply heat it all back up and keep going?
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Lisa, yes you can do that.
Steve says
Afters years of procrastinating, got our first half pig a couple of weeks ago. I asked for everything, some of it going for pet food, I think. But along with everything else was many pounds of fat back and some pound of leaf lard.
I rendered out 2 1/2 lbs of fatback this week…via slow-cooker. The end result is perfect looking, smelling, clean, white lard. But think I’ll try an alternate method next time.
Maybe my slow-cooker is going on the fritz. It took me about nine hours, over two days, to get it to a point where the cracklings were browning a bit…and that was having it on HIGH for the last four hours!
Just finished frying some chicken in the end result…oh yeah!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Steve, I don’t recommend browning the cracklings in the slow cooker. The best way to do is is once the fat is rendered remove the cracklings and fry them in a pan to get them browned and crispy.
Lynette Truskett says
My grandmother, mother now myself do it on the stove top, I’m sick of “dry pastry” with short crust, I can still see and taste my mum’s with just a small quantity of lard.Those who are horrified, what do you think your pies/sausage roll pastry has in it?! LARD!
Rinne says
Great article! It tastes even better than what you can get in a jar, even at the highest standards.
The only thing I’ll mention is while it’s great to use, cast iron does not at all distribute heat evenly. Cast iron is actually very poor for even distribution of heat but it is a great way to maintain heat. For this project since you use such a low heat it (the Uneven heat) won’t have an affect on the rendering but I wanted to mention the myth.
Kelly says
Made some lard today off our fresh killed piggy. The lard came out a beautiful lemonade colour and is now setting. Thank you for your recipe and instructions.
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Terrific, Kelly, enjoy the lard! :)
Rebekah says
Where do you get the fat to make the lard?
melanie mckittrick says
We found it at a local farm that sells pastures pig, cow, chicken, etc.
elsie lim says
I tried today and my pork lard oil is not lemonade in colour but dark brown. May I know whhy?
bmissel says
It was rendered at too high a heat, for too long. I actually do mine in the oven at the lowest heat point to melt it nicely. I get a wonderful white finished product. If I forget to strain it off and leave it too long, it does get brown and tastes porky.
Barbara Lindo says
Hi, Kimberly, I was looking for what to do with frozen pork back fat from pasture-raised pork and this is very helpful! Question, can I store the cracklings to fry at a later date, or fry and store, or must fry and eat the same day as rendering the lard? Thank you!
Kimberly @ The Daring Gourmet says
Hi Barbara, I don’t have as much experience with the cracklings end of things but perhaps some of our readers can offer some insight into this.
bmissel says
My personal opinion: I would finish off your cracklings and then enjoy them like popcorn!! I LOVE the fried bits. My dad enjoys salt cod flaked in mashed potatoes and drizzles with pork cracklings. That’s a yummy way to use them for supper.