*Affiliate links & codes are used throughout this post; please see disclaimer at footer and thank you for your support.
I don't like things to go to waste, so especially if it's something as nourishing as pig fat, you better believe I'm gonna at least try and make it! I've been on a pork rind post kick lately, if you haven't noticed. I shared my favorite store bought chicharrones, how I made my own at home, and this lard is a byproduct of the homemade ones. Yep, really! We purchased pig skin. It had over an inch of fat on it. I didn't want that fat to go to waste, so we rendered the fat ourselves!
It was chopped up into bite size pieces. You can see there is even some muscle meat on the fat, too. It made for really good cracklin' pieces! Pictured below is all of the fat cut off a tiny piece of skin.
We put it in a pot and cooked it on low for hours. About as long as the pig skin was cooking in the oven (approximately ten hours).
Over time, the fat cooked out and the meat pieces floated to the surface. I probably could have scooped these out earlier (and next time I will).
I fried the solid pieces that came to the top (no need to add any fat; they're coated in it!). Added half a lime, salt (Affiliate code: SB10) and some hot pepper spices, & tossed them in a bowl. They were tasty to eat just like that, but my husband enjoyed them atop salads and in sandwiches, too!
The leftover liquid in the pot is the lard. It still had some flecks and brown bits in it, and if I was going to keep it to cook in longer than a week, I'd strain it out really well. However, we actually used that fat to fry the homemade pork rinds in, it was perfect!
Have you rendered your own fat before? Tell me in the comments. As always, #GetSatiated.
