Mar 2, 2015

Rendering Lard

There are numerous websites and blog entries on how to render lard.  I've tried to do it a few different ways.  I've done it on the stovetop, in the oven and outside.  Everytime I do it in my home, my honey sleeps in his truck.  :)  He says the smell makes him gag.  I get a bit upset because the smell is perfectly fine for me.  But...Eureka!  I have found a solution that suits us both.  I render the lard in a crockpot out on the front porch.  The porch is enclosed and the dog can't help himself to the fat.  I can't do as much at a time, but it doesn't burn and doesn't have to be watched as closely  as on the stove.
The lard in various stages of cooling.
My "vintage" crockpot.

Crockpots can be picked up at garage sales for next to nothing.  Throw the diced fat into it and go about your day, checking in from time to time. 

Another exciting day on the farm!


5 comments:

Mama Pea said...

I've read about using a crock pot somewhere else and if we ever raise pigs again, I'm gonna do it that way. In the meantime, I maybe should look for a crock pot as big as yours looks to be! Good size!

odiie said...

Mama Pea,
We don't raise pigs but I can pick up ground fat from the butcher for 25 cents a pound. The stuff I'm rendering now is only suitable for soap making, but I have about 60 lbs. of the stuff.

Carolyn said...

Like you, I have tried just about every method to render lard (well, except for outside in a huge cast iron kettle under a wood fire), and have found that I prefer the crock pot method by far & that is how I've been doing it for a while now.

odiie said...

Carolyn,
It works great, doesn't it? Maybe your blog is where I got the idea.

FoxyLady said...

I haven't done that in a long time. I have also done bear fat, which is just as nice. I just put it in a big roaster in the oven! :)

Mar 2, 2015

Rendering Lard

There are numerous websites and blog entries on how to render lard.  I've tried to do it a few different ways.  I've done it on the stovetop, in the oven and outside.  Everytime I do it in my home, my honey sleeps in his truck.  :)  He says the smell makes him gag.  I get a bit upset because the smell is perfectly fine for me.  But...Eureka!  I have found a solution that suits us both.  I render the lard in a crockpot out on the front porch.  The porch is enclosed and the dog can't help himself to the fat.  I can't do as much at a time, but it doesn't burn and doesn't have to be watched as closely  as on the stove.
The lard in various stages of cooling.
My "vintage" crockpot.

Crockpots can be picked up at garage sales for next to nothing.  Throw the diced fat into it and go about your day, checking in from time to time. 

Another exciting day on the farm!


5 comments:

Mama Pea said...

I've read about using a crock pot somewhere else and if we ever raise pigs again, I'm gonna do it that way. In the meantime, I maybe should look for a crock pot as big as yours looks to be! Good size!

odiie said...

Mama Pea,
We don't raise pigs but I can pick up ground fat from the butcher for 25 cents a pound. The stuff I'm rendering now is only suitable for soap making, but I have about 60 lbs. of the stuff.

Carolyn said...

Like you, I have tried just about every method to render lard (well, except for outside in a huge cast iron kettle under a wood fire), and have found that I prefer the crock pot method by far & that is how I've been doing it for a while now.

odiie said...

Carolyn,
It works great, doesn't it? Maybe your blog is where I got the idea.

FoxyLady said...

I haven't done that in a long time. I have also done bear fat, which is just as nice. I just put it in a big roaster in the oven! :)