How To Render Lard Naturally At Home

For the past one hundred years or so, lard has gotten a bad rap. While people have been told for decades that lard is unhealthy and will make you fat and clog your arteries, that just simply isn’t true.

In reality, Proctor & Gamble used marketing schemes to convince Americans that lard was bad for them and the company’s vegetable oils were good for them. These vegetable oils contained trans fat which was deadly and led to major chronic problems for many Americans.

Lard is much more natural than practically all other oils and it is also not that hard to render lard at home. So how do can you render lard naturally at home?

That’s a great question. And we have the answers that you are looking for! So keep on reading and we will take you through everything that you will want to know!

Render the Fat

You can use a rendering machine to render lard. Make sure that you use leaf fat and the fatback on the pig to get as much lard as possible.

One pound of fat is going to leave you with around one pint of lard. You want to remove as much meat as possible from the fat. Cut the fat into small pieces so that it can render down more easily.

You also want to make sure that you semi-freeze the fat before you start to cut it. As it gets warmer, it will get slippery and will be more difficult to cut up.

You should only use fat from pasture-raised pigs. Remember, you eat what your food eats. There is no point in rendering lard at home if the pig was fed chemicals and junk.

You want to render fat from a healthy animal so that you actually get the benefits that lard can provide. You also want to render your lard with the lowest heat possible.

You don’t want to burn or smoke the fat. If it does end up getting a little burnt, you can still use it.

Make the Lard

First, get rid of any leftover meat from the fat. A little bit of meat is okay but try to get most of it out.

Cut your fat into small chunks. The smaller the better.

Place the pieces of fat in your rendering machine and allow the fat to melt.

Let it all cook down and melt. You will know it is finished when you have nice liquid fat on the bottom and small bits of meat on top.

Line a colander with some cheesecloths. Pour the lard into the colander to remove the meat from the lard.

Put the lard into a mason jar and refrigerate.

The Importance of Knowing How To Render Lard Naturally At Home 

You should now understand how to render lard naturally at home. As we can see, it is easy and simple to do. Just make sure you use healthy pigs and have all of your tools ready beforehand.

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