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Pork
Hi dee ho VA'ers. I know many here wouldn't touch lard and that's fine. However, as I stated in other posts here, I believe that lard is a trad food, and if we have ruined it by agricultural methods that are wrong, it doesn't mean there is another choice that will do. It means we need to fix the agriculture. Personally, I haven't found a veg fat that I'm satisfied with for baking things like pies.
So far I haven't really LIKED any home-rendered lard either, possibly because I wasn't able to find the special "leaf fat" for sale locally, or possibly because I wasn't able to render the fat with enough enough finesse.
This week I bought two types of prepared, trad lard. I got both the regular lard and the LEAF lard (slightly more expensive) to compare. It is interesting to me the differences between the two fats. Some differences are obvious from the pic. The Leaf lard is whiter, dryer, and has no meaty flavor. The regular lard is creamier, browner, and tastes a bit meaty when used in sweet baked goods. The regular lard is the same texture as bacon grease (as you would expect), but of course with no bacon flavor.
Both are softer than coconut oil for easier measuring, but I don't think it ever goes liquid as coconut oil does.
Hubs has had a bit more trouble with pork fat than I have. Neither lard has upset his stomach so far.
I think I may have found my baking fat (leaf lard). For sauteing, I will probably continue to just use a dab of bacon grease, which is my favorite price: free. I suppose that the plain lard would be good for deep-fry, but I feel deep-fry IS something worth avoiding. Still and all, I might be talked into thinking that home deep-fry in lard might not be as bad as restaurant deep-fry --especially if you chuck the oil afterwards.
The leaf lard is at the bottom
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@lil-chick the problem with pork fat is that the fatty acid composition will reflect their diet. Same with poultry.. So if they eat a lot of corn, soy etc.. the fat will be high in omega 6 fats. Which is not good.. That is the case for factory farming pork and poultry.. That's why I try to avoid pork, poultry fat. Because I try to limit PUFA fats.. Beef fat on the other hand will always have almost the same fatty acid composition if the cows eat grass or soy and corn. It will be always mostly saturated and monounsaturated fat.. So I would use beef fat for cooking or say with coconut oil. Unless you can buy meat, fat from pigs that are eating natural diet low in PUFA fats..
Hi @jiri,
I have rendered my own beef tallow in the past but never thought to use it for sweet baked goods. And I liked it. I used to freeze it in little "pats" on cookie sheets, and take out a pat whenever I wanted to saute. It was useful! The texture is like wax, not as easy to measure out as lard is.
As I stated in an earlier post, the farmers near me sell tallow dirt cheap and are happy when you want some. Soup bones too.
My guess is that there is a slight difference in the fatty acid profile of the two lards. (the proof being the difference in texture)
Hub's family used beef tallow for deep-fry when he was a child, and their family was widely known for the deliciousness of their deep-fry foods. Their health results were good.
I'm calling my experiment with leaf lard from a "health food meat" company has failed. I just don't like the taste of it in baked goods. (shrugs) It was better tasting than my home-made lard, but still too meaty.
I'm starting to realize I don't like many fats. For potatoes and bread, I still want a scraping of butter. For salads, olive oil. For sauteeing, bacon grease. I suppose that coconut might have it's place in tropical dishes.
Perhaps next I should try to make a pie crust with tallow.
Quote from ggenereux on November 9, 2018, 2:57 pm
I don’t have a good explanation for why I had such a bad reaction to pork. I’m only documenting what happened to me. Others may have a different experience.
Hi Grant,
Do you remember what cut of pork it was that gave you a bad reaction? Was it pork belly, bacon, or something lean like tenderloin?
It was a lean pork roast. I don't remember the name of the cut.
Someone shared this study with me showing that pork fat has a rather low oxidation temp where it produces toxic by products.
So, maybe that was a contributing factor to my almost immediate bad reaction to it.
Quote from ggenereux on April 27, 2024, 5:29 pmIt was a lean pork roast. I don't remember the name of the cut.
Someone shared this study with me showing that pork fat has a rather low oxidation temp where it produces toxic by products.
So, maybe that was a contributing factor to my almost immediate bad reaction to it.
Thank you for clarifying. I wanted to exclude that it was maybe the fat that possibly triggered some toxin release from the liver, but if it was lean, then it sounds unlikely.
Pork fat is mostly mono-unsaturated, very similar to olive oil. My preferred fat for frying is refined olive oil; it can take high heat without breaking down or going rancid. Tallow would be better, but it is expensive and hard to find. Keep the temperature relatively low and the frying time short and never, never reuse the fat!
I had a stress test that showed my beating heart on a screen in real time. The cardiologist said I had zero plaque in my heart and arteries and that my risk of a heart attack or stroke was zero. I think that means what I"m doing works! (I've also been doing a low-carb diet for 24 years.)