rendering lard from fatback?

I have taken note of the recent lard revival (lower saturated fat than butter, no trans-fat, etc) and recently tried my hand at making carnitas (pork shoulder fried in lard). I noticed that when I bought the lard off the shelf at the mexican grocery store, the label said "lard with hydrogenated lard". After doing a bit of research, the "hydrogenated" bit doesn't sound that great. It sounds like lard that hasn't been hydrogenated is hard to come by as it is hydrogenated to prolong shelf life. The potential solution I thought of was buying fatback from a butcher - I've purchased it before from Paulina for sausage making - and rendering that down. Is there any reason that wouldn't work? I assume that melting the fatback over low heat would liquify the fat and what would be left would essentially be melted lard.

http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/200 ... -lard.html

viewtopic.php?p=262894#p262894

As I say there, though, there's a big advantage to buying non-industrial pork fat for this purpose. Render the industrial stuff at home and you'll have two or three days to smell the difference...

If you talk to one of the natural pork producers at the various farmer's markets, I'm sure you can get your hands on some naturally-raised-pig lard for a price that won't scare you off.

BigT wrote:I have taken note of the recent lard revival (lower saturated fat than butter, no trans-fat, etc) and recently tried my hand at making carnitas (pork shoulder fried in lard). I noticed that when I bought the lard off the shelf at the mexican grocery store, the label said "lard with hydrogenated lard". After doing a bit of research, the "hydrogenated" bit doesn't sound that great. It sounds like lard that hasn't been hydrogenated is hard to come by as it is hydrogenated to prolong shelf life. The potential solution I thought of was buying fatback from a butcher - I've purchased it before from Paulina for sausage making - and rendering that down. Is there any reason that wouldn't work? I assume that melting the fatback over low heat would liquify the fat and what would be left would essentially be melted lard.

A good carniceria should be able to sell you manteca, house-rendered lard that hasn't been hydrogenated. Carniceria Leon/Tierra Caliente always has it, and theirs is very good for industrial pork.

spinynorman99 wrote:http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/2009/04/how-to-render-lard.html

That is a good link, I will check that out.

Mike G wrote:If you talk to one of the natural pork producers at the various farmer's markets, I'm sure you can get your hands on some naturally-raised-pig lard for a price that won't scare you off.

Good idea, the Slagel Family Farm (http://www.slagelfamilyfarm.com/pork.shtml) has it for $1.79/lb. When they do their deliveries to Mado, do they allow you to order in relatively small quantities (i.e. a couple pounds of fatback, few pounds of belly, etc). I have limited freezer space and wouldn't be able to put in a big bulk order.

I read through a couple of your other posts about rendering fat back - what would you say is the ratio of fatback:rendered lard? For example, if I am making carnitas and need 1-2 pounds of lard, is this going to necessitate 4-5+ pounds of fatback?

gleam wrote:A good carniceria should be able to sell you manteca, house-rendered lard that hasn't been hydrogenated. Carniceria Leon/Tierra Caliente always has it, and theirs is very good for industrial pork.

Is it something you usually have to ask for behind the butcher counter or is it in the refrigerated section? I haven't looked too hard for it but all I remember seeing is the green Armour manteca (http://todayeye.files.wordpress.com/200 ... -small.jpg) boxes on the shelf, which are hydrogenated.

Thanks guys!

I've always asked at the butcher counter.

gleam wrote:I've always asked at the butcher counter.

I will have to make a trip to Leon, the saw the other thread about the al pastor there, I will have to check that out.

So they render their own fat and just have a big vat of it ready to go? That is pretty awesome if so. I guess I would have assumed they would have just a big tub of the commercially produced manteca stuff that they sell on the shelves (green & white boxes).

I read through a couple of your other posts about rendering fat back - what would you say is the ratio of fatback:rendered lard? For example, if I am making carnitas and need 1-2 pounds of lard, is this going to necessitate 4-5+ pounds of fatback?

I don't know offhand, but you don't lose that much moisture and there's not that much skin left, so it could easily be 75% of original weight, ie., 4 lbs. fatback yields 3 lbs. lard, or something like that. Maybe you lose more water than that, but no, I don't think it's half or less in the final result.

BigT wrote:

gleam wrote:I've always asked at the butcher counter.

I will have to make a trip to Leon, the saw the other thread about the al pastor there, I will have to check that out.

So they render their own fat and just have a big vat of it ready to go? That is pretty awesome if so. I guess I would have assumed they would have just a big tub of the commercially produced manteca stuff that they sell on the shelves (green & white boxes).

Not exactly. Here's my guess based on my own kitchen experiences. Periodically, TC prepares fresh manteca in which they simmer their carnitas every weekend. (Every Saturday and Sunday they are sold by the lb.) I have bought this manteca at TC and gotten a slightly warm product, somewhere between liquid and solid and a lovely, toasted light brown color. The flavor is fantastic, but not appropriate for all aplications (pie dough, for example). It is sold in plastic tubs of about 1/2 gal. and I believe that they probably refrigerate this manteca from Sunday evening until Saturday morning (or not) at which time they start the carnitas cycle again. Week after week after week. Why in the world would TC purchase green boxed lard when they produce such a wonderful product?

I went to Tierra Caliente (1402 N Ashland) today in search of freshly rendered pork lard and was successful. They had it sitting in tubs on top of the meat counter; the tubs contain probably about 3-4 pounds of lard and cost about $3.50. Previously, I went to Paulina Meat Market and asked if they had lard and they looked at me like I was crazy. They have fatback for about $3-4/lb. TC is obviously a way better deal.

Mike G wrote: Render the industrial stuff at home and you'll have two or three days to smell the difference...

I got a bag of fatback from Joseph's Finest Meats on Addison Ave., Chicago, the other day and rendered a cup and 1/2 of lard. I have it sitting in a jar next to the stove. I made some eggs and diced pork in it this AM. Yummy.

What will change when I use the stuff again say in a week? The taste? Does it go rancid?

I'll pay attention and let's see what happens.