*Affiliate links & codes are used throughout this post; please see disclaimer at footer and thank you for your support.
Okay, so not long after my pork rind taste test we were able to get some pig skin, so my homemade chicharrones dreams came true sooner than I expected! It was a long, laborious process that made a bit of a mess...but read 'til the end to see my final thoughts. The first step in the recipe I loosely followed was to cut the skin off of the fat. We got it as close as we could, but there was probably a lot more left than would be done by a pork rind pro.
Next, the skin was boiled for about two hours. This is my favorite pot to use (affiliate code: SATIATEDBLONDE).
Then, it was put in the oven (careful, it's hot) on a rack on top of a baking pan. It was in there for awhile, like 10 hours, but it probably could have used even more time, but alas, it was bedtime and they needed to be fried up before we went to bed!
You're going to wanna watch this video...it's less than a minute and you can actually see them curl up -- it is so cool! Side note: these tongs were a great buy.
After they came out of the pot all puffed up, they cooled and I put them in a bag with some seasonings and tasty salt (affiliate code: SB10), shook it up, and voilà!
As you can see, it is easy, a little messy, but pretty time consuming. Before I took my first bite, I decided that I was glad I made them, but it wouldn't be worth actually making them in the future, unless I had a ton of skin and did giant batches at a time. After I took my first bite, my mind changed, haha. It was the softest crisp I've ever tasted. They were really flavorful, too. And, I could only eat about two of them because they're so satiating! I think the little layer of fat that was still on there contributes to that, too, haha! But, wow. So, yes, I will make them again, but probably not on the regular.
We took all the fat that was cut off the skin and rendered it into lard. There was some meat attached, so we got some cracklins, too!
Not into making your own? Read my chicharrones taste testing to find out my favorite store bought pork rinds. As always, #GetSatiated.
