How to Collect, Store and Cook With Bacon Fat
One of my most valuable possessions is a pot of fat that I inherited from my grandmother. She would fry bacon every morning — almost every morning — she would take out strips of fried pork and then unceremoniously dump the ghee into the jar along with all the little burnt meat pieces. The saucepan was next to the stove, and she scooped from it, never measuring, whenever she needed “a little fat.”
This system worked great for her – her food was always delicious and no one got sick – but she was not a model for proper food safety. Storing fat near a heat source not only increases the risk of rancidity, but small meaty pieces can also promote microbial growth, shortening the lifespan of your precious fat. Fortunately, storing and collecting bacon fat is not difficult, you just need to take a couple of (very simple) extra steps.
If you’re going to use the fat right away – like frying an egg in it – you don’t have to strain, just add the food to the hot fat and let it do its delicious salty magic. (Yes, and if you want to maximize your ghee and crispy bacon yield, start with a cold skillet .) But if you want to save it for a later project, you’ll have to remove the particulate matter. First select a suitable boat. Pouring hot grease into plastic is a bad idea, but a new-use glass jar – I like the Clausen marinade jar – or a metal or ceramic container will work.
Then take a funnel (I love canning funnels ), a fine mesh sieve, and a coffee filter. Place the funnel in the container, the sieve in the funnel and align the sieve with the filter. Wait for the grease to cool slightly to reduce the risk of splashing and scalding. Pour the grease carefully through the filter and into the jar. Discard the solids, allow the grease to warm to room temperature, then store in the refrigerator where it will keep for almost indefinite time after the solids are removed. (If you are concerned about rancidity, smell it ; it may smell bitter, soapy, or metallic, although I always thought rancid butter smells like crayons.) If you want to be completely safe, you can store it in the freezer. – you can even portion it using the ice cube tray so you don’t have to chunk off the fat from the larger frozen drop.
When it comes to cooking, you may find it becomes your favorite cooking oil. This is a fantastic option for shallow frying (hey, really soggy fries ) as well as baking (hey, the best carrots you’ve ever tasted), but don’t rule out non-heated options like butter and bacon , bacon mayonnaise, and t. D. or even vinaigrette with bacon . One thing to keep in mind when working with it: don’t add salt. The best thing about bacon fat is the smoky, zesty aroma it imparts, and there’s no reason to gilt the lily with more sodium chloride.